Marshall Field wholesale store, 19th Century Architecture
Factual Information:
From: Chicago
Period: 1885-1887
Period: 1885-1887
General Information:
Architecture from the 19th century was extremely practical in cities. Cities needed fire protection and strong, large buildings, that could hold a large amount of things in as small a place as possible. This building is of the Marshal Field wholesale store designed by Henry Hobson Richardson. The building is built to be very large, with many floors, and to let in a lot of light from many windows. The entire structure is made from strong metal, encased in masonry walls. This protected the building from fires, as the strong capabilities of metal, combined with the masonry, allowed it to be a fire resistant very solid structure. Because of the use of metal in the building, they could use many windows on the buliding for decoration and the ability to let in natural light. The design of the building recalls the style of a Renaissance palace or of the masonry of a roman aquaduct, without using the ornamentation of classical buildings.
Why This Artwork?
This artwork was chosen to show the practical purpose of most 19th Century Architecture for this time period, as well as the new building materials and way structures could be designed and used.