Thoughts

What happened to taking pride in what we build?

We live in an era of uninspired artisanship, where somehow glass and steel rule supreme. Buildings and skyscrapers today are that of eyesores that do nothing more than reflect the sun into your apartment or office blinding you. Instead of building cities into advanced sprawling metros, we build upwards, living on top of one another like one of those termite mounds you might find on your next safari. Now that isn’t to say there aren’t beautiful buildings being built. I should caveat all this and say I am by no means an expert on the matter, I am purely a spectator on the sidelines rooting for the old dog.

Take Frank Gehry for example, a world-class architect known for his over-the-top design(s) of the Walt Disney Concert Hall, the Hotel Marques de Riscal in Spain, and the Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts. These buildings are beautiful but leave me feeling uninspired, giant sprawling sheets of metal made to almost look like paper falling or bent to form an architectural model for your college design class. Is there a level of attention to detail to this style of architecture? Absolutely. How the curves both work with each other and against each other is beautiful. But you can’t help but go “Well I could’ve done that” and unfortunately I think that can be said for most modern skyscrapers and buildings today.

You do not have to go back very far to find architecture and design that will have you attempting to pick your jaw up off the ground. For example in Barcelona, Spain where they are putting the finishing touches on the Sagrada Familia. A basilica that has taken over 130 years to complete. Initially designed by Francisco de Paula del Villar and later taken over by Antoni Gaudi, stands as a testament to what attention to detail can look like. Massive spires ordained with stained glass and intricate carvings. The interior is filled with whimsical colors, natural light, and pillars that seem to touch the heavens above. With a completion date expected in 2026, this architectural marvel should be on everyone’s bucket list.

In what I consider the best city for architectural diversity Chicago has also fallen victim to the big shiny objects in the sky. If there was ever a physical timeline of different architectural styles over time it would be the skyline of Chicago. Where you can go from Neo-Gothic design to Brutalism to Contemporary design, all within five city blocks. There are two buildings in Chicago that leave me going “wow” every time. Those would be the Chicago Tribune Tower the once home to the Chicago Tribune newspaper and the Pantheon in the Sky the building formerly known as the RR Donnelley Building located at 77 W Wacker Dr. These two buildings pay homage to the their respective styles those being Neo-Gothic and Postmodernism.

Chicago’s crown is what I like to call the Tribune Tower. A Neo-Gothic skyscraper masterpiece. John Mead Howells and Raymond Hood the architects of the building won an open design competition held by the newspaper in 1922. They did a fantastic job capturing the beauty and intricacies of Gothic architecture, while still providing a tall skyscraper that would stand the test of time and stand strong amongst its peers. The base is littered with relics from all over the world, in the wall there is a piece of Edinburgh Castle, a piece from the Notre Dame de Paris, the Great Pyramid of Giza, and many more iconic locations. Couple the bewilderment at the base with the crown on top and you will have yourself going “Why don’t we do this more?”

Ever wonder what the Pantheon would look like but in skyscraper form? No? Well, me neither until I saw the RR Donnelley Building. Architect(s) Ricardo Bofill Taller de Arquitectura are the ones who came up with this design and they knocked it out of the park. This building is one of the most prominent examples of Postmodernism in Chicago. Covered in white marble, glass and topped with a Greek pediment, you can’t help but wonder why more buildings don’t take inspiration from the past. I believe its true beauty comes out at night with lights shining upwards on the building giving it this very pronounced and ominous feel.

To put a bow on this unneeded rant about architecture, let’s try and be better as a community. Think about what you’ll want to see in the future. Is it a giant glass building that went out of style the day it was completed? Or is it a building that was carefully thought about from the shape of the front entrance to the carving around each window? And if you want my answer then maybe you should read the article again. Let us be better as a society and take pride again in craftsmanship and artisanship because it’s the details that will stand the test of time.