It is a great pleasure to welcome you to the Marquette Building and to the MacArthur Foundation’s new exhibition space.
We are especially glad to have with us so many who are deeply committed to honoring Chicago’s treasury of modern urban architecture, and who have worked so hard to preserve our heritage.
I am glad to thank all those who contributed generously to this project: Gunny Harboe, an architect whose gift for sensitive restoration is without peer; Tim Samuelson, Chicago’s cultural historian, who shared his encyclopedic knowledge with us; Jennifer Bosch who managed the project with efficiency and grace; and the Chicago History Museum which gave us access to their library of images
We are particularly grateful for the encouragement and support of the Chicago Architecture Foundation; to Lynne Osmond, and to Jason Nieses who served on the committee that helped make this possible.
And thanks also to the MacArthur staff who devoted their time to the project, ably led by Marc Yanchura and Andy Solomon. (Committee Members: Liz Kane, Sharon Burns, Richard Kaplan, Dan Miller, and Mike Curtis).
The Marquette Building has been a part of the MacArthur story for decades. In 1938, a young John D. MacArthur purchased Banker’s Life and Casualty Company, which had its offices here. In 1977, the Company acquired the building itself. After John’s death in 1978, the Foundation chose the Marquette Building as headquarters.
Marquette is one of the few survivals of an architectural movement whose achievements changed the face of cities everywhere. The Chicago School pioneered the steel-framed skyscraper, solved the problem of how to clad it with appropriate beauty and dignity, and popularized Holabird and Roche’s “Chicago Windows” that brought air and light to interior spaces. Marquette exemplifies those achievements, and Holzer’s rich Tiffany mosaics and the marble splendors in our lobby add further to the building’s importance. You will hear more about the building and its place in architectural history in a moment from Lynne Osmond of the Chicago Architecture Foundation.
Marquette was named a National Historic Landmark in 1976. But successive unsatisfactory patches to the cladding, and the disastrous removal of the cornice in the 1950’s, meant that Marquette entered the 21st Century in need of substantial work.
Six years ago, MacArthur seized the opportunity to restore the building to its original glory. We fabricated the cornice, saved the windows, and cleaned and repaired the façade. The process cost $10 million, but we believe the results are well worth the expense. The Marquette Building’s restoration has set the standard to which Chicago’s other historic buildings aspire.
At least 12,000 people come through the Marquette Building on guided tours each year, and many more on an individual basis.
The Foundation felt that the lobby should be not only a tourist attraction, but a place where MacArthur could connect to the public, share something of what we do around the world, and invite questions and comments. The same spirit of open engagement animates the quarterly public seminars we now offer and the receptions we hold for our arts and culture grantees.
So we decided on a two-part exhibition. The first part places Marquette in the context of the Chicago School of Architecture, tells something of its history, and outlines John MacArthur’s association with the building.
The second part focuses on selected aspects of MacArthur’s work worldwide, a brief sample of the rich diversity of our programs, from international justice to community development, from reducing maternal mortality in Nigeria to saving beautiful landscapes in Bhutan. And, of course, there is plenty of information about our Fellows Program and our support for creative individuals and institutions. It was a challenge to select and condense for the purposes of the exhibition, but I think the exhibit reveals much about our mission, values, and accomplishments.
The exhibit is interactive, and I invite you to take full advantage of its features shortly.
The Marquette Building is an integral part of Chicago’s patrimony. The MacArthur Foundation, proud of its deep ties to the City, offers this renovation to our fellow-citizens and to all who visit Chicago. We hope it helps you get to know us better, and that that you will be uplifted by our vision for a more fair, just world at peace revealed through our contributions to this community, across the nation, and in sixty countries around the globe.
Now Lynne Osmond will tell you more about the Marquette Building’s significance.