Panel from the Rothschild Building, Chicago

Designer Louis Henry Sullivan American
Dankmar Adler American
1880–81
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 701
The most famous Chicago architect, after his one-time draftsman Frank Lloyd Wright (1867–1959), Louis Sullivan worked for Dankmar Adler as a designer between 1879 and 1883. Sullivan is credited with playing an integral role in the design of the Rothschild Building, which served as a salesroom and manufacturing plant for E. Rothschild and Brothers, a clothing firm. Although missing a central floret, the cast-iron panel is a powerful example of Sullivan’s early decorative vocabulary. Its bold, highly stylized organic forms, unlike anything produced by his American contemporaries, clearly indicate Sullivan’s familiarity with the writings of the era’s leading European design theorists.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Panel from the Rothschild Building, Chicago
  • Designer: Louis Henry Sullivan (American, Boston, Massachusetts 1856–1924 Chicago, Illinois)
  • Maker: Dankmar Adler (American, 1844–1900)
  • Date: 1880–81
  • Geography: Made in Chicago, Illinois, United States
  • Culture: American
  • Medium: Cast iron
  • Dimensions: 67 x 37 1/2 in. (170.2 x 95.3 cm)
  • Credit Line: Purchase, Emily Crane Chadbourne Bequest, 1973
  • Object Number: 1973.289
  • Curatorial Department: The American Wing

More Artwork

Research Resources

The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.

To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.

Feedback

We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.