David Woodhouse’s Daniel Burnham Memorial Designs Lands Him the Commission

By Steve Delahoyde on July 10, 2009 7:01 AM

It’s all Daniel Burnham all the time here in Chicago right now, with the hundredth anniversary of his plan for the city. Along with Ben van Berkel and Zaha Hadid‘s temporary pavilions and Mayor Daley‘s big city model, it’s been announced that architect David Woodhouse has been selected to design a memorial to Burnham on the south side of the city, near all our famous and scenic museums by the lake (you’ll recall our telling you of the memorial’s shortlist back in April). Here’s a description:

Woodhouse’s design would reshape the grassy, tiered open space of Chicago’s Museum Campus, just north of the Field Museum, with three major elements: a gently sloping lawn; a long, 2-foot-high block of stone that would represent historic stages of Chicago’s growth; and a pair of tall granite walls that would form a ceremonial “corner” honoring Burnham’s influential Plan of Chicago.

Although there’s still some details to be hammered out and bickered over with city officials, you can expect to see the memorial some time in 2011. But if that’s too long for you to wait for yet another Burnham fix, you’ll be pleased to know that the Lookingglass Theater will be putting on a limited run, one man show (a la Give ‘em Hell, Harry!) with actor Raymond Fox playing Burnham.