Building 51 | Building 51 | exceptionally rare c. 1920’s interior wall-mount silver-plated brass art glass farcroft building lobby sconce – charles wheeler nicol, architect
9738
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exceptionally rare c. 1920’s interior wall-mount silver-plated brass art glass farcroft building lobby sconce – charles wheeler nicol, architect

51-18194-13

Category

Chicago Buildings

About This Item

historically important and visually distinctive original and largely intact interior farcroft building wall-mount single electric light wall sconce attributed to the friedley-voshardt co., chicago. the partially intact original silver plated finish has a nicely aged surface patina. the elongated cylindrical-shaped globe is comprised of multiple leaded panels accentuated with floral rosettes. the bent seeded amber glass is free from cracks or breaks. the top bracket featuring an unusual mythical creature is affixed to a highly stylized floral rosette. the shade fitter is adorned with detailed acanthus leaves. the supporting bottom bracket contains an elegant floriated scroll arm affixed to the oversized arch top backplate. the single leviton candelabra base socket is original and intact. the historic neo-gothic style farcroft building was constructed in 1928 by architect charles wheeler nicol. the farcroft bears the distinction of being the northernmost highrise building in chciago. the distinctive exterior contains a plethora of grotesque carvings and/or comical grotesques, including relief carvings symbolizing human vices (i.e., vanity, gluttony, greed, etc.). according to some, the architect supposedly fancied himself as a magician or spiritualist and thus, intentionally designed the building as a nexus for magical energy. legend has it that the interior is devoid of having any right angles in order to optimize the flow of mystical energy throughout the building. nicol started his architectural practice in 1913 and soon became one of the most prominent architects in lafayette, ind. he went on to design commercial buildings, schools, residences, and a variety of buildings at purdue university. nicol was featured in the january, 1914 edition of the ohio architect, engineer and builder. this article contains many illustrations of his work from 1913 and renderings of upcoming projects. the magazine also featured an article entitled “lafayette is wide awake,” describing the prosperity of lafayette and its many advantages. during the late 1920’s, charles nicol moved to chicago and later founded the firm of nicol, nicol chaney and vanek with his son, robert scott. measures approximately 29 x 9″.