Chicago, Illinois is one of my favorite cities in the United States. I love that it is cold there in the winter and the Architecture is… . There are so many wonderful buildings in the city. If you go there and I highly suggest that you do, promise me that you will go on the architecture tour. Both the walking tour and the boat tours are excellent. The Chicago Architecture Center is the best place to book with, they have interesting and knowledgeable docents. They also have a Museum and little gift store.
My favorite ensemble is the two buildings that make up Marina City, not just for Chicago, but in all my travels thus far, spoiler alert it wasn’t designed by a woman. These two buildings were designed by Bertrand Goldberg, locate on State Street, in the loop neighborhood (downtown).
“In our ‘cities within cities’ we shall turn our streets up into the air, and stack the daytime and nighttime use of our land.” —Bertrand Goldberg
https://www.architecture.org/online-resources/buildings-of-chicago/marina-city
The CAC website describes the duo as Modernist, and they were completed in 1967. I love that they are round, are a self contained urban dwelling, and overlook the river. It was an experiment in urban living in the sixties, and includes the following amenities, “Theater Gym Swimming Pool Ice Rink Bowling Alley 19-floor Parking Garage Retail Shopping and Restaurants Marina Laundry Facilities with Panoramic Views of the City 360-Degree open-roof deck on top of each building” CAC.
I would love to move to Chicago, and live in Marina City. #retirementgoals I do occasionally check Zillow for listings.
So, now that I have told you a little more about me and my love of architecture. I want to share some well known women in architecture.
I am going to start with a local designer, Meredith Kirkpatrick. She is a friend of a friend of mine and I love seeing the projects she works on. Some of her projects are some of my favorite places in our area. I am working on a interview with her to hear about her life, ideas, and creative process. Stay tuned!
Projects she has worked on are Trophy Brewing and Dix Park.
“I get a real kick out of imagining, for example, how my work on the 100-year-old buildings at Dix Park will evolve over the next 100 years,” she says.
Raleigh Magazine
I wanted to find out about some other notable ladies who design and build. A Britannica article I found super informative was Woman-Made: 13 Architects you might not know. I always love learning more about women doing cool things in different mediums in art and culture.
Zaha Hadid has been featured as the most influential and the best in the world alongside of Frank Lloyd Wright, Frank Gehry, Renzo Piano, Norman Foster, and Bjarke Ingels. Notice she is the only female in this list.
Above is just a snippet of her buildings she has designed. There are so many more! When I look at her work I see movement, fluidity, and class.
Many of her works are museums and they are all over the globe!
It is gorgeous and as a continue to write the Glass Canvas I want to be inspired, to inspire, and learn more about the women making beautiful things in all facets of the art world.
Hadid is one of these women… Watch the video below to learn more about her & her work!
Architecture is something I enjoying learning about when I travel. I love taking photos of buildings and then using them as inspiration for printmaking. Writing this post has been a great way to learn more and share!
If you want to learn more about Chicago, Women, and Architecture check out this article 5 Women Architects in Chicago History.
Until next time on @glasscanvas!
Instagram – @heartmailstudios & @heartsonwalks
See you soon – M.E
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