Richard Nickel's Chicago


Book Description

Richard Nickel is an urban legend of sorts. He is remembered for his brave and lonely stand to protect Chicago's great architecture, and for his dramatic death in the rubble of the Stock Exchange Building. He is remembered, too, for the photographs he left behind. This is a book about one man's relationship with his city, a remarkably personal story told through compelling photographs. Richard Nickel's Chicago is for people who love the city, and for people all over the world who value city life.




They All Fall Down


Book Description

"Richard Nickel, whom I had the delight of knowing during hisall too brief life, is one of the unsung heroes of Chicagoarchitecture. He was not an architect himself, nor a designer. Hesimply took pictures, but what pictures! He was, for want of abetter description, one of the most sensitive of architecturalphotographers. More than that, his life--and ironically,tragically and poetically, his death--were fused to Chicagoarchitecture. How he died tells us how he lived: for the beauty inthe works of Sullivan, Wright and the others. His story is one thatmust be told." --Studs Terkel, author "He was completely understanding of architecture and genius andof the quality of the work he was dealing with. He wassingle-minded in his pursuit and dedication to quality in history,art and architecture. That is an increasingly rare quality." --Ada Louise Huxtable, former New York Timesarchitecture critic "Richard was an excellent photographer--sensitive andintelligent, and a very good craftsman". --John Szarkowski, former Director, Photography, Museumof Modern Art, New York "Richard Nickel was one of those who saw architecture, and whopassionately and skillfully pursued its portrayal. He was one of avery small number, and to make his work known would be afundamental service to architects, students, and teachers as wellas to the art of architecture." --Edgar Kaufmann, Jr., architectural historian




Richard Nickel Dangerous Years


Book Description

"Selections from the Richard Nickel Archive at the Ryerson and Burnham Archives of The Art Institute of Chicago. Mary K. Woolever, Art and Architecture Archivist; Joe Tallarico, Digital Imaging Photographer. With contributions from the personal collections of Tim Samuelson, Susan Nickel Brunson, Nancy Nickel, Donald and Harriet Nickel, Emily Eads"--Page 264.




The Complete Architecture of Adler & Sullivan


Book Description

"Introductory essays [by John Vinci] about the firm's work are followed by a catalogue raisonne of Adler & Sullivan's projects, with historical photographs and images by Nickel and his contemporaries. ... The catalogue raisonne ... contains essays about each building accompanied by historical images and plans when available."--P. 3.




The Chicago School of Architecture


Book Description

This thoroughly illustrated classic study traces the history of the world-famous Chicago school of architecture from its beginnings with the functional innovations of William Le Baron Jenney and others to their imaginative development by Louis Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright. The Chicago School of Architecture places the Chicago school in its historical setting, showing it at once to be the culmination of an iron and concrete construction and the chief pioneer in the evolution of modern architecture. It also assesses the achievements of the school in terms of the economic, social, and cultural growth of Chicago at the turn of the century, and it shows the ultimate meaning of the Chicago work for contemporary architecture. "A major contribution [by] one of the world's master-historians of building technique."—Reyner Banham, Arts Magazine "A rich, organized record of the distinguished architecture with which Chicago lives and influences the world."—Ruth Moore, Chicago Sun-Times




Gotta Go Gotta Flow


Book Description

"Michael Abramson took these photographs with the full knowledge and consent of patrons in and outside five nightclubs on Chicago's South Side during the mid-1970s. Patricia Smith used these photographs four decades later as an inspiration for her poetry"--T.p. verso.




Chicago


Book Description

Chicago has never had a photo book of its own. Until now. The city has produced some of the most important photographers of our time -- Harry Callahan, Aaron Siskind, Vivian Maier, Art Shay -- but has never before possessed a book packed with their most timeless work. This is the finest collection of its kind -- 100 stunning images by the city's most revered photographers that show the enduring and endearing aspects of Chicago and its landscape from the Loop to the city's vast array of neighborhoods. Richard Cahan and Michael Williams, the foremost picture editors of the city, curate the book. Here they have chosen photos going back more than a century to show a city that is both well-known and surprising. This is a book for people who love Chicago and for visitors who want something special to remember her by. It is filled with classic photographs that defy time -- timeless pictures of a changing city.




Louis Sullivan's Idea


Book Description

A visual compendium revealing the philosophy and life of America's renowned architect The story of Louis H. Sullivan is considered one of the great American tragedies. While Sullivan reshaped architectural thought and practice and contributed significantly to the foundations of modern architecture, he suffered a sad and lonely death. Many have since missed his aim: that of bringing buildings to life. What mattered most to Sullivan were not the buildings but the philosophy behind their creation. Once, he unconcernedly stated that if he lived long enough, he would get to see all of his works destroyed. He added: "Only the idea is the important thing." In Louis Sullivan's Idea, Chicago architectural historian Tim Samuelson and artist/writer Chris Ware present Sullivan's commitment to his discipline of thought as the guiding force behind his work, and this collection of photographs, original documentation, and drawings all date from the period of Sullivan's life, 1856-1924, that many rarely or have never seen before. The book includes a full-size foldout facsimile reproduction of Louis Sullivan's last architectural commission and the only surviving working drawing done in his own hand.




Reconstructing the Garrick


Book Description

A beautifully designed and lavishly illustrated biography of one of Chicago's greatest lost buildings For six months in 1961, Richard Nickel, John Vinci, and David Norris salvaged the interior and exterior ornamentation of the Garrick Theater, Adler & Sullivan's magnificent architectural masterpiece in Chicago's theater district. The building was replaced by a parking garage, and its demolition ignited the historic preservation movement in Chicago. The Garrick (originally the Schiller Building) was built in 1892 and featured elaborate embellishments, especially in its theater and exterior, including the ornamentation and colorful decorative stenciling that would become hallmarks of Louis Sullivan's career. Reconstructing the Garrick documents the enormous salvaging job undertaken to preserve elements of the building's design, but also presents the full life story of the Garrick, featuring historic and architectural photographs, essays by prominent architectural and art historians, interviews, drawings, ephemera from throughout its lively history and details of its remarkable ornamentation--a significant resource and compelling tribute to one of Chicago's finest lost buildings. A seventy-two-page facsimile of Richard Nickel's salvage workbook is tipped into the binding.




The Encyclopedia of Chicago


Book Description

A comprehensive historical reference on metropolitan Chicago encompasses more than 1,400 entries on such topics as neighborhoods, ethnic groups, cultural institutions, and business history, and furnishes interpretive essays on the literary images of Chicago, the built environment, and the city's sports culture.