Romanticism to Ruin

Icons. Demolished. 

A “paean to two of America’s most celebrated designers.” Architectural Record

The critically-acclaimed exhibition Romanticism to Ruin: Two Lost Works of Sullivan and Wright, now on view at Wrightwood 659 in Chicago, has been extended through December 18.  

Romanticism to Ruin explores two visionary masterpieces of American architecture that were razed to erect a parking lot and a truck stop. The life and death of Chicago’s Garrick Theatre, by Louis H. Sullivan and Dankmar Adler, and Buffalo’s Larkin Building, by Frank Lloyd Wright are memorialized through two distinct presentations.

“Reconstructing the Garrick: Adler & Sullivan’s Lost Masterpiece” investigates the full life span of this long-lost treasure, from German performance center to its dissolution and demolition. A Chicago-based team led by architect John Vinci curated the presentation, which grew out of a drawing project of Vinci’s to understand unknown aspects of the building’s circulation and construction. These drawings will be presented for the first time, along with archives, salvaged architectural ornaments, and haunting archival photographs by Richard Nickel. The presentation is co-curated by Tim Samuelson, Chris Ware, and Eric Nordstrom.  

“Reimagining the Larkin: Frank Lloyd Wright’s Modern Icon” spotlights a commission for a progressive mail-order conglomerate—the Larkin Company of Buffalo provided employee benefits and humane conditions for a largely female workforce, which appealed to the utopian Wright. Featuring 3D models and digital re-creations, artifacts, and Wright-designed furniture and modular filing systems, the presentation is curated by Jonathan D. Katz, Associate Professor, University of Pennsylvania.   

On view Fridays and Saturdays through December 18. Tickets at wrightwood659.org.

The exhibition and related publications are made possible by the Alphawood Foundation, Chicago.