decay. In addition, they still have not received the architectural appreciation that they deser ve from the general public, which complicates ef for ts to maintain them. In Chicago, we have recently lost the entire Michael Reese Hospital campus (designed with direct involvement of Walter Gropius), and we are currently immersed in a battle to save the Ber trand Goldberg–designed Prentice Women’s Hospital. The city of New Orleans, for example, is fighting the same battles. A city known for its eighteen and nineteen-centur y architecture, in recent years it has seen the demolition of some of its best mid-twentieth centur y modern architecture, especially the forward-thinking public schools designed and built there in the 1950s. The most recent example is the demolition of the Phillis Wheatley Elementar y School designed by Charles R. Colber t in 1955. Recipient of multiple design awards and exhibited around the world by the U.S. State Depar tment in the late 1950s, the building was torn down last month despite the ef for ts from individuals and organizations like DOCOMOMO Louisiana. As society evolves, so do our needs and consequently the uses of the buildings in our cities. Competitions like the 2011 Burnham Prize can be an excellent tool to envision new possibilities for buildings, whether they still serve their original purposes or not. These ideas can and should generate an open dialogue between designers and all parties involved in the future of these buildings. At the same time, they should engage and excite the general public with the new functions and experiences that they can pro-
vide. This year’s edition of the Burnham Prize received many entries that reexamined the possibilities of the McCormick Place East Building, providing elaborate visualization of the new experiences this building could generate. Other entries concentrated their ef for ts in celebrating its architectural form and modernist values. While the latter looks to the past and facilitates a conversation exclusively among the architectural discipline, the earlier has the potential to generate a broader, and ultimately more successful, discussion about the value of the building. Looking to the future not only will suppor t the ef for t to save building but also will ultimately demonstrate the value of its past.
CHICAGO ARCHITECTURAL CLUB:2011 BURNHAMPRIZE
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