Daniel Burnham's Plan of Chicago

6th September - 15th December 2008

The Art Institute of Chicago
111 South Michigan Avenue
Chicago, Illinois

A century ago Daniel Burnham commissioned noted artists to interpret his plans for the development of the city of Chicago.

The collection of 142 maps, diagrams, perspective drawings, and watercolors that he received, played a vital part in the acceptance of his ideas. In a time when such avant garde visions would have most likely been overlooked, this innovative approach won Burnham the project, which is still in place today.

The exhibition, that is a citywide celebration of the Burnham Plan Centennial, presents 32 of these prized commissions from the Department of Architecture and Design’s collection in five separate rotations. The exhibition offers a unique opportunity to view these historic and artistic documents that, because of their fragility, are rarely displayed publicly.

For more information on the exhibit, visit www.artic.edu

River intersection, from Daniel H. Burnham and Edward H. Bennett, Plan of Chicago (Chicago, 1909)

Guerin/Bennett, Plan of Chicago