Louis Henry Sullivan ( Louis Henry Sullivan, 09/3/1856 - 04/14. 1924)- an architect whose name is inextricably linked with American modernism and the world history of the construction of skyscrapers. Sullivan's contemporaries also built high-rise buildings, but it was he who managed to make a theoretical effort: he formulated universal rules for the construction of skyscrapers and created convincing examples. In addition to being a key figure in architectural modernism, Sullivan is the author of the "form follows function" formula, an ideologue of the Chicago School of Architecture, and a teacher.
His professional career was sometimes very dramatic, but on the whole it was fruitful and varied. He is highly regarded by Americans as an architect who mastered the art of decoration: his terracotta panels with Art Nouveau Celtic motifs are truly artistic, they demonstrate his brilliant stylization skills and the architect's extraordinary imagination.
auditorium building. Together with architect Adler Dankmar. Chicago, Illinois, USA, 1889.
The master's signature techniques also include a massive semicircular arch, which is found on the facades of his buildings. Sullivan sometimes received unexpected orders, for example, he designed the building of the Trinity Church of the Russian Orthodox Church in Chicago (the Church was consecrated in March 1903 while still a bishopric by the future Patriarch Tikhon).
Russian Orthodox Cathedral. Chicago, Illinois, USA, 1903.
The future architect's mother is Swiss-born Adrienne List, and her father is Irishman Patrick Sullivan. Both came to the US in the late 1840s. Their son Louis Sullivan studied well at school, and more than compensated for his incomplete higher education with a rich practice. He studied architecture for a year and a half at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he entered at the age of 16 and where his professional development was directed by William Robert Weyer. Without completing the course, he left for Philadelphia and began working in the architectural office of Frank Furness. The next stage of career development was the move to Chicago.
The great Chicago fire of 1871 destroyed many buildings, the city needed to be rebuilt, and architects were in great demand. So at first it was a lot of work. Here Louis Sullivan worked in the team of the architect William Le Baron Jenney (the office erected buildings with steel structures) and, having earned some money, went to Paris, where he began to attend the School of Fine Arts (1874-1875).
Carson Pirie Scott department store. Chicago, Illinois, USA, 1904.
Later, back in Chicago, he began working as a draftsman for Joseph S. Johnston & John Edelman. One day, Johnston & Edleman was commissioned to design the Moody Tabernacle, with a decorative fresco-secco interior that was entirely designed by Sullivan.
Interior of the Auditorium Building. Together with architect Adler Dankmar. Chicago, Illinois, USA, 1889.
In 1879, the young architect was invited to cooperate with the Dankmar Adler company, and a year later he became a partner in this company. From that moment began the most fruitful period of his work. Sullivan and Adler complemented each other perfectly. Sullivan acted as an architect, designed ornaments, decor and interiors, while Adler did excellent planning, engineering and acoustics. Adler and Sullivan became famous as specialists in the design of theater buildings.
National Trade Bank. Grinnell, Iowa, USA, 1914.
Having built several theaters in Chicago, they received orders for the construction of theaters in Pueblo (Colorado), Seattle (Washington). The most famous building of the company was their joint project Auditorium (1886-1890) in Chicago - the building housed not only a theater hall, but also a hotel, as well as a 17-story office building with lower floors intended for shops with luxurious windows.
National Farmers Bank. Owatonna, Minnesota, USA, 1908.
After 1989, the firm became famous for its office buildings. Notable projects include the Wainwright Building in St. Louis and the Schiller (later Garrick) Building and Theater in Chicago (1890). Important achievements in their architectural practice include the Chicago Stock Exchange Building (1894), the Guaranty Building (1895–96) in Buffalo, and the Carson Pirie Scott Department Store Building (1899–1904) on State Street in Chicago. The last big order that had an impact on the face of Chicago. After the colleagues parted ways in 1895, Sullivan's orders became much less.
At the turn of the 20th century, Sullivan first developed the concept of a high-rise building, seeking to "use new proportions and rhythms dictated by the cellular structure of an office building." He outlined his views in the article "High-rise office building from an artistic point of view" (1896). Starting in 1908, he worked in tandem with George Grant Elmslie (with whom he designed "prairie houses" and "diamond boxes"). In the 1910s, he designed ten banking buildings for the cities of the Midwest - Minnesota, Ohio, Iowa, Indiana. In 1918, Sullivan declared bankruptcy and ended his life in poverty.
Every student of architecture from the university knows that Sullivan has a famous saying: "F form follows function". But few remember the context. “This is the original law of everything that exists, organic and inorganic, of all things physical and metaphysical, of everything human and superhuman, everything that our mind, heart, soul tells us: we know life in its expression, form always follows function. This is the law,” Louis Henry Sullivan wrote in 1896.
Louis Henry Sullivan was born September 3, 1856 in Boston. His father is Irish, was a dance master and violinist. In 1872, at the age of sixteen, he entered the first US architectural school opened in 1866 by the Massachusetts Polytechnic Institute, but a year later he left it and for some time worked in the studio of the Philadelphia architect F. Farness, who was an adherent of romantic neo-Gothic. In 1874, for several months, Louis Sullivan attended the Paris School of Fine Arts, but in 1875 he returned to Chicago, where his family lived and began working in various architectural workshops. In 1879, Sullivan came to work in Dankmar Adler's studio, and two years later became his partner. In a joint activity with Adler, an experienced engineer and organizer, Sullivan's abilities manifested themselves to the full. work, but also planning, spatial organization of buildings.
The first major collaboration between Adler and Sullivan was the creation of the Auditorium in Chicago (1887 - 1889). The Auditorium is the largest theater hall in the United States (4237 seats), enclosed in a shell of ten-story hotel buildings and offices. While working on the project, Sullivan moved away from passive imitation of European models, following the example of Richardson. The composition of the multi-tiered stone arcade that forms the facades almost repeats the severely romantic appearance of Marshall Field's wholesale warehouses built in Chicago by Richardson, but in solving the interior design of the hall, the vast space of which is dissected by arched diaphragms that organize acoustics, Sullivan showed himself as an independent master, combining rational logic with the wild imagination of the decorator. Land speculation has led to a huge rise in the value of lots in downtown Chicago. Their offspring was a new type of building - a skyscraper. Its development in height was ensured by the use of a metal frame and a passenger elevator, invented in the middle of the 19th century. The Chicago architects W. le Baron Jenney, D. H. Burnham, and J. W. Ruth were able to clearly and truthfully express the novelty of the design and internal organization of buildings. Sullivan went even further, seeking to combine rationality with the emotional expression of the tension and concentration of the urban environment.
The ten-story Wainwright Building in St. Louis (1890 - 1891) was the first stage of Sullivan's aspirations for the aesthetic development of a utilitarian-constructive reality. The completion of the experiments was the Guaranty Building in Buffalo (1894 - 1895). Divisions of the vertical mass of the building strictly correspond to its function. On the ground floor, the supports of the supporting frame of the building are exposed. Above the second floor, where the offices begin, the rhythm of the walls becomes twice as frequent, emphasizing the overall vertical direction of the composition. The thirteenth, technical floor is interpreted as a plastically saturated completion of the building. In 1896, after the completion of the Guaranty Building, Sullivan published an article, Tall Administrative Buildings, Considered from an Artistic Point of View, summing up the results of his creative search, the first and most clear exposition of the foundations of his theory.
Sullivan got his last opportunity to realize his concept in 1899, designing the Schlesinger and Meyer General Store in Chicago (now Carson, Peary and Scott) on a busy corner lot. Despite the complexity, the Sullivan building remains unsurpassed in the power of expressive architecture. Inside the building, the type of warehouse with a solid floor has been preserved. The façade is designed with maximum illumination of the interior space in mind. The main elements of the façade are the Chicago windows, which are remarkable for their conformity to the frame structure of the building. The entire façade is made with such power of expressiveness and precision that cannot be found in any building of that time. The windows, with their thin metal frames, are precisely cut into the façade. On the lower floors, the windows are united by a narrow band of ornamentation on terracotta, accentuating the horizontal organization of the façade.
In the first decade of the 20th century, Sullivan's work was not large in scope. In 1908 he built the National Farmers Bank in Owaton, Minnesota, where he created the best of his interiors. Since 1908, he built little and did not write anything, and in 1918 he went bankrupt completely - he lost his workshop and lost the opportunity to receive orders. In 1922-1923 he wrote The Autobiography of Ideas, in which he described his youth and the most fruitful years of his work with Adler. On April 14, 1924, he died forgotten by everyone in a cheap Chicago hotel room. Louis Sullivan is considered the brightest outstanding representative of the "Chicago school" of architecture.
Louis Henry Sullivan
Louis Henry Sullivan born September 3, 1856 in Boston. His father is Irish, was a dance master and violinist.
In 1872, at the age of sixteen, he entered the first US architectural school opened in 1866 by the Massachusetts Polytechnic Institute, but a year later he left it and for some time worked in the studio of the Philadelphia architect F. Farness, who was an adherent of romantic neo-Gothic.
In 1874 for several months Louis Sullivan attended the Paris School of Fine Arts, but in 1875 he returned to Chicago, where his family lived and began working in various architectural workshops.
In 1879, Sullivan came to work in Dankmar Adler's studio, and two years later became his partner.
Auditorium in Chicago
The very first major work of Adler and Sullivan was the building of the auditorium theater hall in Chicago (1887-1889). The theater hall for 4237 seats was enclosed in a shell of ten-story hotel buildings and offices. Land speculation in downtown Chicago led to a huge increase in their value and thus gave rise to a new type of building - the skyscraper. The development of the construction of skyscrapers was ensured by the use of a metal frame and a passenger elevator, invented in the middle of the 19th century.
The Wainwright Building in St. Louis
The ten-story Wainwright Building in St. Louis, built in 1890-1891, served as the beginning of Sullivan's struggle with constructive reality.
The Guarantee Building in Buffalo (1894-1895) completed his experiments in which the vertical divisions strictly correspond to its functions. Guarantees-building, perhaps the most masterpiece project of Louis Sullivan, the appearance of which is extremely expressive. After the completion of the Guarantee Building, in 1896 Sullivan published an article "High-rise administrative buildings, considered from an artistic point of view", in which he outlines the foundations of his theory.
In 1895, Sullivan parted company with Adler and worked with J. Elmsley until 1905. They were engaged in housing and banking construction.
Schlesinger & Meyer store in Chicago
In 1899, Sullivan was able to realize his concept in the design of Schlesinger and Meyer's Chicago (now Carson, Pirie and Scott) General Store, a fairly large building built on a busy corner lot.
Sullivan was only interested in the expressiveness of the external appearance of the building, its connections with the nature of the environment, and he did not set the organization of internal spaces as an artistic task.
In 1901-1902, little loaded with practical work Louis Sullivan creates most of his literary heritage. During this time, he wrote the book Conversations in Kindergarten. The weekly "Intersite Architect and Builder" published the text of this book for a whole year.
National Farmers Bank at Owaton
In the first decade of the 20th century, Sullivan's work was not large in scope. In 1908 he built the National Farmers Bank in Owaton, Minnesota, where he created the best of his interiors.
Since 1908, he built little and did not write anything, and in 1918 he went bankrupt completely - he lost his workshop and lost the opportunity to receive orders.
In 1922-1923 he wrote Autobiography of Ideas, in which he described his youth and the most fruitful years of his work with Adler.
Louis Sullivan is considered the brightest outstanding representative of the "Chicago school" of architecture.
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- April 14) - American architect, pioneer of rationalism, father of American modernism. Creator of one of the first skyscrapers and the concept of organic architecture, one of the most prominent representatives and ideologist of the Chicago School of Architecture, teacher of Frank Lloyd Wright. He owns the aphorism "the form in architecture determines the function." life and creation
Sullivan did not receive a completed professional education. He briefly studied architecture in (1872-1873). His main teacher was William Robert Ware ( English) . Then Sullivan went to Philadelphia, where he worked in the workshop of Furness ( English). Due to the long depression, Furness's job ended, and Sullivan traveled to Chicago, where he caught a building boom after the great Chicago fire. There he worked with William Le Baron Jenney ( English), and less than a year later he left for Paris. In France, Sullivan attended the École des Beaux-Arts (1874-75).
After returning to the United States, Sullivan began to work again as an architect. A little later he began to work together with Dankmar Adler, in 1883 they became equal partners. Their company was called Adler & Sullivan, and in this form it existed until 1895. Sullivan was the author of the decor, which he came up with from French examples, mainly from the Flore Ornamentale from Victor Ruprich-Robert ( fr.) .
Sullivan and Adler perfectly complemented each other. Sullivan acted as an architect of ornamentation and interiors, while Adler did excellent planning, engineering and acoustics. After the colleagues dispersed, orders from Sullivan became much less. Some sympathy was retained by an old client, David Meyer, who in 1898 asked for the construction of the Schlessinger & Meyer Store, better known as Carson Pirie. This was Sullivan's last major commission, which had an impact on the appearance of the city.
The starting point for his architectural experiments were the works of Richardson, in which romantic fantasy was organically combined with a strict logic of functionality. The first major work was the Auditorium in Chicago (1886-89). At the turn of the 20th century, he was the first to develop the concept of a high-rise building, striving to "use new proportions and rhythms dictated by the cellular structure of an office building" (TSB). He outlined his views in the article "High-rise office building from an artistic point of view" (1896). Starting in 1908, he worked in tandem with George Grant Elmslie ("prairie houses" and "diamond boxes"). In 1918 he declared bankruptcy and ended his life in poverty.
See what "Sullivan, Louis Henry" is in other dictionaries:
- (Sullivan) (1856 1924), American architect and architectural theorist. Representative of the Chicago school of architecture. One of the pioneers of rationalism and the founders of the architecture of the XX century. Studied at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in ... ... Art Encyclopedia
Louis Henry Sullivan (September 3, 1856, Boston - April 14, 1924, Chicago) was an American architect and architectural theorist, one of the pioneers of rationalism. He did not receive a completed professional education. He worked in the workshop of the architect F. ... ... Great Soviet Encyclopedia
Sullivan, Louis Henry- (1856 1924) American architect and architectural theorist, leader of the Chicago School, who, together with D. Adler, designed more than 100 buildings (1880 1895), including the first skyscrapers made of steel structures. (Architecture: illustrated… … Architectural Dictionary
Sullivan, Louis— Louis Henry Sullivan. Conference room on Michigan Avenue. Chicago. Louis Sullivan (1856-1924), American architect. He gave an artistic interpretation of a high-rise business building, introducing compositional articulations and an ornament (department store in Chicago, ... ... Illustrated Encyclopedic Dictionary
Louis Sullivan Louis Henry Sullivan (September 3, 1856 – April 14, 1924) was an American architect, pioneer of rationalism, and the father of American modernism. The creator of one of the first skyscrapers and the concept of organic ... ... Wikipedia
Louis Sullivan Louis Henry Sullivan (September 3, 1856 – April 14, 1924) was an American architect, pioneer of rationalism, and the father of American modernism. The creator of one of the first skyscrapers and the concept of organic ... ... Wikipedia
- (Sullivan, Louis Henry) (1856 1924), American architect. born September 3, 1856 in Boston. He studied at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and at the School of Fine Arts in Paris. in 1880 he began architectural activity in Chicago; from 1881 to ... ... Collier Encyclopedia
Wikipedia has articles on other people with this last name, see Sullivan. Louis Sullivan Louis Henry Sullivan (Eng. Louis Henry Sullivan; ... Wikipedia
Louis Sullivan Louis Henry Sullivan (September 3, 1856 – April 14, 1924) was an American architect, pioneer of rationalism, and the father of American modernism. The creator of one of the first skyscrapers and the concept of organic ... ... Wikipedia
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LOUIS SULLIVEN
"LOUIS SULLIVEN"
The American architect Louis Henry Sullivan was one of the pioneers of rationalist architecture in the 20th century. His works in the field of the theory of architecture are even more significant. Sullivan set himself a grandiose utopian task: to transform society by means of architecture and lead it to humanistic goals. The theory of architecture created by Sullivan borders on poetry in its violent emotionality.
Louis Henry Sullivan was born September 3, 1856 in Boston. His father, an immigrant from Ireland, was a violinist and dance master. Louis spent almost all of his childhood on his grandfather's farm, retaining a love of nature for the rest of his life. He did not receive a consistent professional education. At the age of sixteen, he entered the first US architectural school, opened in 1866 by the Massachusetts Polytechnic Institute, he left it a year later, and for some time worked in the studio of the Philadelphia architect F. Farness, an adherent of romantic neo-Gothic.
In his autobiography, Autobiography of an Idea, he later wrote:
": Louis's interest in engineering in general and in [two] bridges in particular captured his imagination so strongly that for some time he dreamed of becoming a bridge engineer. The idea of bridging the void imperiously attracted him both in theory and in practice. He began to realize that among people who lived in the past and live in his day, there are people who are masters of ideas, people of courage and that they stand apart, each closed in their own world.But the practical result of the impact of the bridges on Louis was that it switched his mind from directly engineering science to science in general, and with new zeal he began to read the works of Spencer, Darwin, Huxley, Tyndall and German scientists, and a new, grandiose world began to open up before him, a world that seemed to have no boundaries or volume. "neither in content nor in variety. This course of reading has not been completed in a month, a year, many years; it is still going on."
For several months in 1874, Sullivan attended the Paris School of Fine Arts, but already in 1875 he returned to the United States, to Chicago, where his family settled, and began working in various architectural workshops.
In 1879, Sullivan entered the studio of Dankmar Adler and two years later became his partner. Let's look at the architect's autobiography again:
"LOUIS SULLIVEN"
Adler & Co. drove into a beautiful suite of offices on the top floor of the Borden Block building. On May 1, 1881, the inscription appeared on the doors of the building: "The architectural firm of Adler and Sullivan."
Louis now felt a firm foothold under his feet, a point that could serve as a starting point for him to enter the wide world. Taking responsibility for this world, he faced it boldly.
He was now free to follow the path of practical experimentation, which he had long sought, and which was to lead to an architecture that was fit for its function, a realistic architecture based on well-established utilitarian needs; all practical considerations of utility should be of paramount importance as the basis of planning and design. No authority in architecture, no tradition or prejudice, no habit should stand in the way. He will sweep it all away, regardless of anyone's opinion. For him, the conviction was immutable: in order for architectural art to acquire an immediate value corresponding to its time, it must be plastic: any conditional inertness devoid of meaning must be expelled from architecture; it must intelligently serve, not oppress. Thus, in his hands, forms will naturally grow out of needs and reflect these needs frankly and freshly. In his bold imagination, this meant that he would put to the test the formula he had developed during his long observation of living things, namely that form follows function, which in practice means that architecture can again become a living art, if only one really adheres to this formulas:"
In joint activities with Adler - this experienced engineer and organizer, Sullivan's abilities were fully manifested. In accordance with the specialization common to the second half of the 19th century, Sullivan took on the solution of artistic problems, while Adler was engaged not only in the business and engineering side their work, but also planning, spatial organization of buildings.
The first major collaboration between Adler and Sullivan was the creation of the Auditorium in Chicago (1887-1889) - the largest theater hall in the United States (4237 seats), enclosed in a shell of ten-story hotel and office buildings.
"LOUIS SULLIVEN"
While working on the project, Sullivan moved away from passive imitation of European models, following the example of Richardson. The composition of the multi-tiered stone arcade that forms the facades almost repeats the sternly romantic appearance of the Marshall-Field wholesale warehouses built in Chicago by Richardson, but in solving the interior of the hall, the vast space of which is dissected by arched diaphragms that organize acoustics, Sullivan showed himself as an independent master, combining rational logic with the wild imagination of the decorator.
Land speculation has led to a huge rise in the value of lots in downtown Chicago. Their offspring was a new type of building - a skyscraper. Its development in height was ensured by the use of a metal frame and a passenger elevator, invented in the middle of the 19th century.
Chicago architects W. le Baron Jenney, D.H. Burnham and J.W. Ruth was able to clearly and truthfully express the novelty of the design and internal organization of buildings. Sullivan went further, seeking to combine rationality with the emotional expression of the tension and concentration of the urban environment. In parallel with the experiments in the construction of skyscrapers, his architectural theory took shape.
The high-rise buildings designed by Sullivan testify to the desire to synthesize the laws of composition, coming from the traditions of the Parisian School of Fine Arts, and the new frame solution, new proportions and rhythm, dictated by the cellular structure of the office building.
The ten-story Wainwright Building in St. Louis (1890-1891) was the first stage of his struggle for the aesthetic development of a utilitarian constructive reality. His solution is largely a compromise. The completion of the experiments was the Guaranty Building in Buffalo (1894-1895). Divisions of the vertical mass of the building strictly correspond to its function. On the ground floor, the supports of the supporting frame of the building are exposed. Above the second floor, where the offices begin, the rhythm of the walls becomes twice as frequent, emphasizing the overall vertical direction of the composition. The thirteenth, technical floor is interpreted as a plastically saturated completion of the building. In 1896, after the completion of the Guaranty Building, Sullivan published an article "High-rise administrative buildings, considered from an artistic point of view", summing up the results of creative searches - the first and most clear exposition of the foundations of his theory.
The moment the Chicago school had mastered the new tools it had created, its further development and influence came to an abrupt end.
"LOUIS SULLIVEN"
The event that directly gave rise to this process was the 1893 Chicago World's Fair. But the forces already operating in this direction appeared much earlier in other parts of the country. In the 19th century, American architecture came under a wide variety of influences. The strongest of these was the influence of "commercial classicism" developing in the east of the country.
The 1893 exhibition was admired by the public and most architects. However, some European observers were more skeptical about it. Thus, the well-known Belgian engineer Vierendel considered the "gypsum architecture" of the exhibition and the continued constructive solutions to be provincial and weak.
However, individual voices of Americans protesting against the corruption of public taste by the pseudo-magnificence of the exhibition were not heeded. Sullivan stated bitterly that "the consequences of the damage caused to the country by the Chicago exhibition will be felt for at least half a century." This was an accurate prediction of what happened afterwards.
The prestige of the Paris Exposition of 1889 led to the dominant role of the French School of Fine Arts in the Chicago Exposition. The compiler of the biography of John Root said: "At that time, few could think of competing with the French. Their artistic abilities and experience made us doubt our own abilities. We had to organize a large American exhibition, but in relation to its layout and exhibition, we had to excellence of French taste." In search of samples of beauty, the American organizers of the exhibition turned to France. But these were examples of the most decadent period of French architecture.
In 1895 Sullivan's partnership with Adler ceased. Lacking business acumen, Sullivan can't compete with architecture firms that quickly create impersonal designs. The success of the pseudo-classical architecture of the World's Fair undermined the position of structural realism, and gradually all Chicago architects are returning to eclectic decoration. Only Sullivan did not give up. But after he built the Transportation Pavilion for the Chicago Exposition, his popularity as an architect was lost. The heyday of the "Chicago school" is over. This further exacerbated the difficulty in obtaining orders.
From 1895 to 1905 Sullivan worked with J.
"LOUIS SULLIVEN"
Elmsley, engaged in housing and banking construction. Sullivan's last major opportunity to realize his concept was in 1899, designing Schlesinger and Meyer's general store in Chicago (now Carson, Peary and Scott) on a busy corner lot.
Despite the complexity, the Sullivan building remains unsurpassed in the power of expressive architecture. Inside the building, the type of warehouse with a solid floor has been preserved. The façade is designed with maximum illumination of the interior space in mind. The main elements of the façade are "Chicago windows", remarkable for their conformity to the frame-frame structure of the building. The entire façade is made with such power of expressiveness and precision that cannot be found in any building of that time. The windows, with their thin metal frames, are precisely cut into the façade. On the lower floors, the windows are united by a narrow band of ornamentation on terracotta, accentuating the horizontal organization of the façade.
As an artist, Sullivan was only interested in the expressiveness of the external appearance of the building, its relationship with the nature of the environment. He had not yet realized the organization of internal spaces as an artistic task. This step in the development of the concept of organic architecture was already made by Wright, who worked for Sullivan in 1888-1893 and until the end of his life remained under the impression of the ideas of the "beloved master".
Little loaded with practical work, Sullivan in 1901-1902 creates most of his literary heritage. At this time, the book "Conversations in Kindergarten" was written, the text of which was published for a whole year by the weekly Interstate Architect and Builder. For a more lively transmission of his thoughts, Sullivan chose here the form of a dialogue between the teacher and the children. The title of the book reflects the author's opinion that only the simplicity of communication in kindergarten can be considered fruitful - he contrasts it with the traditional methods of the academic school.
Dissatisfaction, painful notes become more and more distinct in the works written by Sullivan after 1900. His criticism becomes more and more poisonous, his style more and more epigrammatic and at the same time more and more complex and saturated with metaphors, reminiscent of the slow rhythms of H. Melville's prose. Most often, Sullivan addresses the architectural youth.
However, the theoretical statements of the architect are no less significant than his buildings.
"Everything in nature," says Sullivan, "has its appearance, in other words, it has a form, an external expression, which reveal to us their essence and how they differ from each other and from ourselves." Comparison with nature leads the author to the conclusion that the goal of an architectural solution should be to give each building its own unique appearance. "Whether it is a soaring eagle or a blossoming apple tree, a draft horse carrying a load or a branchy oak, meanders of a river or clouds driven by the wind, a rising or setting sun, form always meets function - this is the law." And, emphasizing this idea, he ends with the words: "If the function does not change, the form does not change."
The first decade of the 20th century was not easy for Sullivan. His latest works are small in volume. They are more lyrical; a peculiar combination of rich ornamentation with a large monumental form of the whole is their remarkable feature. The most interesting of his later buildings is the National Farmers Bank in Owatonna, Minnesota (1908), where Sullivan created the best of his interiors.
From 1908, Sullivan built little and wrote nothing. In 1918, he finally went bankrupt - he lost his workshop and the opportunity to receive orders. In the last years of his life, he wrote Autobiography of an Idea (1922-1923), in which he tried to resurrect his youth and the most fruitful years of his work in collaboration with Adler. He died on April 14, 1924, forgotten by everyone, in a poor Chicago hotel room.
Wright said at an exhibition of Sullivan's work in Boston in 1940: "They killed Sullivan and almost killed me."
The work of Louis Sullivan, a major architect of this school, left its mark on the work of the next generation of architects in the Midwest, of which Frank Lloyd Wright became an outstanding representative.
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