while cataloging my photographic archive from 2017 i ran across a folder containing hundreds of images taken at graceland cemetery on a dreary afternoon with john vinci as my "guide." i learned a great deal while we wandered the cemetery including several engaging stories about...
the latest installment of photographic images, taken over the last few weeks, revolve around the continued transformation of adler and sullivan's jewelers building with an emphasis on the anatomy of the building (i.e., materials and methods), before its once again covered over with new construction...
latest photographic images from the chicago architectural ornament survey is provided below. the architectural ornament is sourced from extant late 19th and early 20th century buildings within chicago's city limits. the majority of the buildings enjoy landmark status, while others are relatively unknown, but are dressed...
i took a few hundred images of howells and hood's tribune tower building (1925) when i was given access to the interior (including ground floor lobby, office tower, and printing plant) to inspect the original dull green enameled commercial grade steel muntin plate glass windows...
faced with a tight schedule revolving around back-to-back lectures given by john vinci on louis sullivan's ornament, i didn't have much time to document the architecture of st. louis like i did the year before. thankfully, vinci and i stayed in adler and sullivan's union...
richard nickel kodachromes taken at navy pier between 1961-63. three images show john vinci examining one of two garrick theater mosaic lunettes awaiting to be reassembled. the other images feature various garrick theater ornament assemblages to be distributed to various institutions (note the hand-written signs) across...
the following image gallery offers a glimpse at the most recent american architectural, medical, and industrial artifacts and/or miscellaneous objects added to our ever-expanding urban remains virtual catalog (over 50,000 catalog listings to date). the newly acquired items have been documented, cleaned/refinished (if need be)...
latest digitized images from chicago architect john vinci's collection of kodachrome and/or ektachrome slides and other photographic images/ephemera are presented below. to see previous posts containing images from this ever-growing collection, please click on links under "further reading." captions will be added to the slides as...
latest images documenting chicago tribune tower (howells and hood, 1925) and jarvis hunt's printing plant (1929). the plant housed the printing presses below the newsroom, located on the top floor. the tower was primarily used for office space and mccormick's lavish rooms and personal office. i was...
during a recent trip to st. louis accompanied by john vinci and tim samuelson, we made a visit to edwardsville, where richard nickel's architectural ornament collection is housed. nickel sold his original collection - where he amassed early adler and sullivan ornament during chicago's land...
richard nickel contact sheet images of adler and sullivan's chicago stock exchange building (1894) terra cotta arched entrance and surrounding facade. the undated images were taken prior to 1964 when brenner-danforth-rockwell (bdr) removed sullivan's original ornamented iron and plate glass transom with a bronze tympanum screen...
shortly after learning a demolition permit was pulled for the destruction of the gaitain building, a south side chicago commonwealth edison substation designed by hermann valentin von holst in 1924, i dedicated a great deal of time in the winter months of 2018 researching and...
the following images a part of an ongoing project pertaining to the documentation of interior and exterior alteration and/or restoration of late 19th and early 20th century buildings located in downtown chicago. the first set of photographs focus on tradesmen working on the facade of...
i've spent months looking for richard nickel images of frank lloyd wright's a.d. german warehouse (1921) located in the architect's hometown richland center, wisc. i found a contact sheet and digitized the images posted here. i cannot recall the date offhand, but must be 1950's. the individual...
the following images highlight an in-depth photographic survey of the massive exterior carved bedford limestone sculptures adorning the facade of hoabird and roche's stevens hotel (1927). the exterior limestone was executed by the indiana limestone company, bedford, ind. the beaux-arts hotel was developed by james w....
my latest photographic documentation of alder and sullivan's 1881 s.a. maxwell timber loft building offer a detailed survey of ongoing modifications to the upper floors. alterations and/or additions include the installation of wood stud wall framing on floors 3-5, sections of floor cut out in...
a photo-essay showcasing the structural ingenuity of adler and sullivan's 1892 schiller building exposed during its destruction in 1961. presenting a peculiar combination of problems associated with the combination of a theater and a multi-story office block, the garrick theater structure was a culmination of a...
richard nickel's extensive visual record of building demolitions and/or salvages in and around chicago during the height of urban renewal is truly remarkable. every time i take on another "project" within his archive, i'm taken aback by his dedication to thoroughly document a building before, during,...
several years ago i had the privilege, alongside a fellow chicago architectural business owner, of visiting the university of wisconsin-milwaukee's historic preservation department, on a memorable roadtrip to examine the original molds the university had acquired. the molds had been rescued by a professor from...
the following image gallery offers a glimpse at the most recent american architectural, medical, and industrial artifacts and/or miscellaneous objects added to our ever-expanding urban remains virtual catalog (over 50,000 catalog listings to date). the newly acquired items have been documented, cleaned/refinished (if need be)...