Review: Frank Lloyd Wright Exhibit in Chicago Shows His Genius Unfold

In 1833, when the outpost called Chicago was incorporated, only 350 pioneers called the mosquito-plagued bog home. Soon, canals, railroads, factories, banks, pigs, and cattle made for a boom. In a few short years, around 300,000 hustled and bustled there. And, goodness, though the 1871 Great Fire gutted most of the city, only a bit more than 20 years later, the reborn, freshly gilded metropolis hosted the 1893 World’s Fair. Who knows whether Mrs. O’Leary’s cow called Sizzle or a soused Peg Leg Sullivan knocked over that lantern that started the 1871 blaze? Only kidding about the cow’s name, but there was indeed a Peg Leg Sullivan at whom most fingers pointed when it came to lantern-tipping.

“CHICAGO WILL RISE AGAIN,” a Chicago Tribune headline read, just three days after the fire. It did, and fast. It’s a timeless American story. And what architecture, buildings that reached to the skies and covered the ground with purpose: making money, mostly. Frank Lloyd Wright (1867–1959) was among those who remade Chicago, using his own secret sauce.

About the Author

Brian T. Allen

Brian T. Allen is National Review’s art critic.

Featured Tags

In 1833, when the outpost called Chicago was incorporated, only 350 pioneers called the mosquito-plagued bog home. Soon, canals, railroads, factories, banks, pigs, and cattle made for a boom. In a few short years, around 300,000 hustled and bustled there. And, goodness, though the 1871 Great Fire gutted most of the city, only a bit more than 20 years later, the reborn, freshly gilded metropolis hosted the 1893 World’s Fair. Who knows whether Mrs. O’Leary’s cow called Sizzle or a soused Peg Leg Sullivan knocked over that lantern that started the 1871 blaze? Only kidding about the cow’s name, but there was indeed a Peg Leg Sullivan at whom most fingers pointed when it came to lantern-tipping.

“CHICAGO WILL RISE AGAIN,” a Chicago Tribune headline read, just three days after the fire. It did, and fast. It’s a timeless American story. And what architecture, buildings that reached to the skies and covered the ground with purpose: making money, mostly. Frank Lloyd Wright (1867–1959) was among those who remade Chicago, using his own secret sauce.