Chicago Tribune Tower (The Aesop's Screen Facade)

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Unknown
Chicago Tribune Tower (The Aesop's Screen Facade)
c. 1925

About the Item

Original lithograph of Chicago Tribune Tower and its famous facade known as Aesop's Screen. Artist Monogram (BB or BBL) lower left. The Tribune Tower is a neo-Gothic skyscraper located at 435 North Michigan Avenue in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Built between 1923 and 1925, the international design competition for the tower became an historic event in 20th century architecture. The tower was the home of the Chicago Tribune, Tribune Media, and Tribune Publishing. WGN Radio originated broadcasts from the building until moving to 303 Wacker Drive in June, 2018. The last WGN Radio broadcast emanated from the Tribune Tower on June 18, 2018. The ground level houses the large restaurant Howells & Hood (named for the building's architects), whose patio overlooks nearby Pioneer Court and Michigan Avenue. CNN's Chicago bureau was also located in the building. It is listed as a Chicago Landmark and is a contributing property to the Michigan–Wacker Historic District. In early 2018, work began on converting the entire office building into condominiums, expected to be completed by 2020. In 1922 the Chicago Tribune hosted an international interior and exterior design competition for its new headquarters to mark its 75th anniversary, and offered $100,000 in prize money with a $50,000 1st prize for "the most beautiful and distinctive office building in the world". The competition worked brilliantly for months as a publicity stunt, and the resulting entries still reveal a unique turning point in American architectural history. More than 260 entries were received. The winner was a neo-Gothic design by New York architects John Mead Howells and Raymond Hood. Other Tribune tower entries by figures like Walter Gropius, Bertram Goodhue, Bruno Taut, and Adolf Loos. Construction on the Tribune Tower was completed in 1925 and reached a height of 462 feet above ground. The ornate buttresses surrounding the peak of the tower are especially visible when the tower is lit at night. Rene Paul Chambellan contributed his sculpture talents to the buildings ornamentation, gargoyles and the famous Aesops' Screen over the main entrance doors. Rene Chambellan worked on other projects with Raymond Hood including the American Radiator Building and Rockefeller Center in New York City. Also, among the gargoyles on the Tribune Tower is one of a frog. Prior to the building of the Tribune Tower, correspondents for the Chicago Tribune brought back rocks and bricks from a variety of historically important sites throughout the world at the request of Colonel McCormick. Many of these reliefs have been incorporated into the lowest levels of the building and are labeled with their location of origin. Stones included in the wall are from such sites as the St. Stephen's Cathedral, Trondheim Cathedral, Taj Mahal, Clementine Hall, the Parthenon, Hagia Sophia, Corregidor Island, Palace of Westminster, petrified wood from the Redwood National and State Parks, the Great Pyramid, The Alamo, Notre Dame de Paris, Abraham Lincoln’s Tomb, the Great Wall of China, Independence Hall, Fort Santiago, Angkor Wat, Ta Prohm, Wawel Castle, Banteay Srei, and Rouen Cathedral's Butter Tower, which inspired the shape of the building.

Creation Year:
c. 1925
Dimensions:
Height: 29.5 in (74.93 cm)Width: 22 in (55.88 cm)
Medium:
Lithograph
Movement & Style:
Gothic
Period:
1920-1929
Condition:
Mounted on heavy art paper, minor scratches and paper loss in upper edges, not affecting the image.
Gallery Location:
New York, NY
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU5184421141