Louis Henry Sullivan collection, 1873-1910, bulk 1883-1895

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Collection context

Creator:
Sullivan, Louis H., 1856-1924
Abstract:
Louis Henry Sullivan (1856-1924) was an American architect and partner in the Chicago architectural firm Alder & Sullivan. He is also known as a mentor to architect Frank Lloyd Wright. The core of the collection is made up of 122 drawings given to Frank Lloyd Wright by Louis Sullivan before Sullivan's death in 1924. The Avery collection represents the bulk of what remains of Sullivan's drawings. Most of the drawings in this collection are designs for ornament representing different stages of Sullivan's stylistic development. Some drawings are annotated by Wright. The collection also includes additional donations of drawings, objects, and papers collected over the years.
Extent:
147 drawings, 2 items (metal objects), and 2 manuscript boxes
Language:
English .
Scope and content:

The bulk of the collection date from the period, circa 1883-1910, when Sullivan was a partner with Dankmar Adler in the architectural firm Adler & Sullivan. Projects represented in the Wright collection include remodeling of McVickar's Theater (Chicago), Auditorium Building (Chicago), Transportation Building (Columbian Exposition, Chicago), Chicago Stock Exchange building, St. Nicholas Hotel (St. Louis), Guaranty Building (Buffalo), remodeling of the Taylor Building (Chicago), National Farmers Bank (Owatonna, Minnesota), and miscellaneous buildings. Additionally, the collection includes fresco designs, ornamental studies and designs, cover designs for magazines, figure studies, and drawings done by Sullivan while at the École des Beaux-Arts. Also included are drawings attributed to other architects, including Sullivan's assistant, George G. Elmslie.

Biographical / historical:

Louis Henry Sullivan was born September 3, 1856 in Boston, Massachusetts. His Swiss-born mother, Andrienne List, and his Irish-born father, Patrick Sullivan, had both emigrated to the United States in the late 1840s.

At the age of 16, Sullivan was briefly enrolled at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, but left after a year to work for architect Frank Furness in Philadelphia. He was not working long when he was let go by Furness as a result of the economic downturn of 1873.

In 1873, Sullivan followed a wave of architects moving to Chicago in hope of finding work rebuilding the city after the destruction of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. Sullivan left Chicago briefly in 1874 for Paris to study at the École des Beaux-Arts. He stayed in Paris for a year, returning to Chicago in June 1875.

Sullivan worked at various firms for a few years until he settled at Dankmar Adler's office in 1879. By 1881, Sullivan became a partner and the firm was renamed Adler and Sullivan, Architects. The partnership lasted for 14 years.

By 1894, Adler and Sullivan dissolved their partnership amid another financial downturn for the country. The years following the split from Adler, Sullivan only secured a few commissions. Prior to his death, Sullivan published two important books: The autobiography of an idea and A System of Architectural Ornament According with a Philosophy of Man's Powers .

Sullivan died in Chicago on April 14, 1924. In 1946, he was posthumously awarded the American Institute of Architects Gold Medal.

Access and use

Restrictions:

This collection is available for use by appointment in the Department of Drawings & Archives, Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library, Columbia University. For further information, please email avery-drawings@library.columbia.edu.

Preferred citation:

[Description of item], [Item Number], Louis Henry Sullivan collection, Drawings and Archives, Avery Architectural & Fine Arts Library, Columbia University.

Location of this collection:
300 Avery Hall
1172 Amsterdam Ave.
New York, NY 10027, USA
Before you visit:
Researchers are encouraged to request materials at least one month in advance. You will receive an email from the department within 2-3 business days confirming your request and currently available appointment times. Requests are limited to 8 boxes per day (or equivalent), with a maximum of 5 boxes for off-site materials, 5 folders of drawings, or 5 rolls or tube boxes.
Contact:
avery-drawings@columbia.edu