Founded in 1879 as both a museum and school, the Art Institute of Chicago collects the highest quality works of art and represents the world’s diverse artistic traditions. The Art Institute is currently featuring Bertrand Goldberg: Architecture of Invention, on display until January 15, 2012.

Bertrand Goldberg, American (1913–1997). Early scheme for Prentice Women’s Hospital, 1969-72. Tempera on paper. The Art Institute of Chicago, Archive of Bertrand Goldberg, gifted by his children through his estate.

Born in Chicago, Bertrand Goldberg became one of the city’s great creative architects. Goldberg’s dramatic sculptural forms and innovative engineering are incredible contributions to the landscape of Chicago. This exhibition features the first comprehensive retrospective of Goldberg’s work, including his groundbreaking design for Marina City (1959–1967).

Goldberg’s work reflects the changing themes of American culture: his early work with prefabrication and low-cost housing, his projects for middle class leisure culture in the 1950s, his expanded engagement with new cultural programs throughout the 1960s, and finally his large-scale projects for hospitals and urban planning in his later practice.

Bertrand Goldberg, American (1913–1997). Pineda Island Recreation Center, Mobile, AL, 1956-60. Crayon and marker on trace. The Art Institute of Chicago, Archive of Bertrand Goldberg, gifted by his children through his estate.

As his practice grew in scale, Goldberg’s alternative urban model for “the city within a city” gained a strong following of international architects and critics. This exhibition showcases Goldberg’s work at its most progressive, and resonates with the multidisciplinary practices of today’s architects and designers.

Collected from the museum’s Goldberg archives, the Harvard Art Museums and several private collections, the exhibition features over 100 original architectural drawings, models, photographs and examples of his graphic and furniture design.

A City within a City: Marina City, Chicago (1959 – 1967)
Bertrand Goldberg’s design for Marina City had a lasting impact on Chicago urbanism and the cultural imagination of the mid-century world. This complex grew into what Goldberg called “a City with a City,” an iconic architectural landmark. Marina City represented one of the most ambitious efforts to revitalize the center of a major American city in the postwar period.

Bertrand Goldberg, American (1913–1997). Marina City, Chicago, IL, 1985. Marker on trace. The Art Institute of Chicago, Archive of Bertrand Goldberg, gifted by his children through his estate.

The Critical Mass of Urbanism: River City, Chicago (1972 – 1989)
River City was Bertrand Goldberg’s most comprehensive urban project, marrying great social experiment—his “democracy through architecture”—with the modest goal of creating a walk-to-work culture in Chicago.

Bertrand Goldberg, American (1913–1997). River City model of unbuilt triad towers, Chicago, IL, 1972-79. Mixed Media. The Art Institute of Chicago, Archive of Bertrand Goldberg, gifted by his children through his estate.

“My message, I think, is much more important either than myself personally, or than the quick identification as the round-building architect. I am talking about the performance of people in a social system, about the performance of people in the city.”
–  Bertrand Goldberg

The Bertrand Goldberg exhibition is on display at the Art Institute of Chicago until January 15, 2011. For additional information, call 312.443.3600 or visit Art Institute of Chicago.

Emmaline Niendorf is an Integrated Marketing Associate with Otherwise Incorporated.