The American Skyscraper: Transforming Chicago and the Nation

FAIN: BH-267161-19

Chicago Architecture Foundation (Chicago, IL 60604-2505)
Adam Rubin (Project Director: February 2019 to June 2022)
Jenni G. Mushynski (Co Project Director: October 2019 to October 2020)
Nicole Kowrach (Co Project Director: October 2020 to June 2022)

Two one-week workshops for 72 school teachers on the development of the skyscraper and its impact on the city of Chicago and on urbanization throughout the world.

The Chicago Architecture Center will offer the workshop The American Skyscraper: Transforming Chicago and the Nation to supplement and enhance the humanities lessons of teachers from across the nation. Buildings are primary sources that reflect who we are as a society at a moment in time. As such, architecture stands as one of the strongest tools for sharing the way we live our lives. The skyscraper is perhaps the strongest architectural legacy of America, and Chicago, as the home of one of the first skyscrapers, provides a powerful lens through which we can examine our culture, economy, history, and society. Through the context of skyscraper development in Chicago from the late 19th through mid-20th centuries, teachers participating in this workshop will use Chicago’s landmark buildings to explore the many forces that shaped Chicago into a center of architecture, how these developments impacted society and vice versa, and how this history continues to impact urbanization to this day.

Associated Products

Flipgrid Materials (Course or Curricular Material)
Title: Flipgrid Materials
Author: Adam Rubin
Abstract: One tool we used throughout the project was Flipgrid, an online application that allowed participants to create short video “essays” that could in turn be shared with the instructors and with the whole group for critique. We used these videos in a few different capacities over the course of the week, first as a different way to collect short answer prompts to assess comprehension (“How a Local Building Reflects the Values of the Community,” “Reading a Chicago Building,” A Meaningful Tall Building to You”) and as a final report where participants explored a building in their own community, examining its history, context, materials, function, accessibility, and other subjects discussed during the course (Week 1 Final Videos, Week 2 Final Videos). Please use the guest password "skyscrapers2021” to access the videos.
Year: 2022
Primary URL Description: As there are a number of URLs to follow (corresponding to titles listed in the abstract), they are listed here: How a Local Building Reflects the Values of the Community: https://flipgrid.com/58e2a851 Reading a Chicago Building: https://flipgrid.com/3ffff9af A Meaningful Tall Building to You: https://flipgrid.com/3b14c6cd Week 1 Final Videos: https://flipgrid.com/58e2a851 Week 2 Final Videos: https://flipgrid.com/f891a2a4 Please use the guest password "skyscrapers2021” to access the videos.
Audience: Other

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