Madlener, Albert F., House - Chicago, IL
Posted by: 
adgorn
N 41° 54.570 W 087° 37.770
16T E 447792 N 4639919
This residence, which was built for liquor wholesaler Albert F. and Elsa S. Madlener, represents a high point in the history of Chicago architecture, combining elements of both the Chicago and Prairie schools of design.
Waymark Code: WM8QCV
Location: Illinois, United States
Date Posted: 05/02/2010
Views: 2
Continued from the City of Chicago's site:
(
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"It has the massing, logic, and dignity of a Renaissance Revivial-style palace, yet the details and strong horizontal emphasis are thoroughly modern in design. The incised ornament around the entrance is reminiscent of the designs of Louis Sullivan. The building was purchased in 1963 by the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts, an educational institution."
The Chicago Landmark plaque inscription:
"The clarity, simplicity, and order of the Madlener House make it an outstanding residence in the tradition of the Chicago and Prairie Schools of architecture. It has the massing, logic, and dignity of a Renaissance Revivial-style palace, yet it is a thoroughly modern design.
Designated a Chicago Landmark on March 22, 1973,
by the City Council of Chicago
Richard J Daley, Mayor
Commission on Chicago Historical and Architectural Landmarks"
From the National Park Service's Chicago Travel Itinerary (
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"One of the most prominent residential buildings represented by the second generation of the Chicago School architects is the Albert F. Madlener House. Designed by Hugh Garden, the house faces Burton St. (My note - s/b "Place") with an off center front door. Three stories compose the brick and limestone building, which is capped by a hip roof and a cornice, and topped by a low parapet. A two-story carriage house is located west of the house with a small yard separating the two buildings.
A square hallway sits in the center of the house. Most of the living spaces are located on the main floor with the bedrooms on the second floor. The third floor includes a large ballroom."
I was not aware of the Graham Foundation until I saw the plaque on the door. What they have to say about the house from (
visit link)
"Since 1963, the Graham Foundation has been located in the Madlener House, a 9,000 square foot Prairie-style mansion located in the historic Gold Coast neighborhood of Chicago. The work of architect Richard E. Schmidt and designer Hugh M. G. Garden, the house was built in 1901–02 for Albert Fridolin Madlener and his wife Elsa Seipp Madlener, both of whom came from prominent pioneer Chicago families that emigrated from Germany in the 1850s. In its compact, cubic massing the house is related to the German neoclassical work of Karl Friedrich Schinkel and his followers in Berlin, but in many of its details it clearly reveals the influence of Louis Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright."
About the foundation:
"Founded in 1956, the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts makes project-based grants to individuals and organizations and produces public programs to foster the development and exchange of diverse and challenging ideas about architecture and its role in the arts, culture, and society."