Chicago Architecture and Design, 1923-1993

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This major volume on Chicago's urban history documents the city's architectural evolution in relation to social and architectural environments before and after the Great Depression and World War II. It identifies significant changes in city planning, land use, and transportation while exploring some of the most exciting architecture in the context of America's political, social, and cultural climate. Featuring over 600 illustrations, including line drawings and specially commissioned photographs of buildings and artifacts, the plates are accompanied by extensive annotations. Seventeen original essays by scholars in various fields, including design history and American studies, provide a panoramic view of the mature twentieth-century city. The book discusses numerous innovations in urban design that have impacted Chicago and other cities worldwide, highlighting key developments such as O'Hare International Airport, Water Tower Place, suburban business centers, iconic skyscrapers like the John Hancock Center and Sears Tower, the 1988 Chicago Public Library competition winner, and the controversial State of Illinois Building. This volume, a sequel to the acclaimed Chicago Architecture, 1872-1922: Birth of a Metropolis, coincides with an exhibition at The Art Institute of Chicago and includes an exhibition checklist, a genealogy of Chicago architects, and biographies of influential architects and planners who shaped the city.