Heroic Athleticism
[Illinois Athletic Club (1907) Barnett, Haynes & Barnett, architects /Image & Artwork: designslinger]
Classicism abounds, and heroic figures herald the arrival of, voi·là, the Illinois Athletic Club,
an explosion of Beaux Arts detailing presented to you by the architects at Barnett, Haynes & Barnett.
[Illinois Athletic Club/Charlie Club (1985) Swann & Weiskopf, architects /Images & Artwork: designslinger]
Work on the building began in 1905 and opened with a large banquet held in December of
1907. With 4,000 members paying an initiation fee of $160 and a yearly fee of $30, founding member Frank O. Lowden proclaimed, "The poor man with health and physique is far richer than the millionaire with dyspepsia." And with the average wage at about $350/year in 1907, this club was meant for men of means and apparently, in need of exercise. By 1983, with only 1,000 members, who may or may not have been dyspepsic, the last 170 equity shareholders sold the building to Charles Vavrus who added an additional 5 stories to the building. Designed by Swann & Weiskopf, it contained none of the exuberant, classical athleticism exhibited by the original architects.
[MacLean Center, School of the Art Institute (1994) /Image & Artwork: designslinger]
Sitting above the enormous frieze showing Zeus presiding over athletic games sculpted
by Leon Harmant, the addition was as unsuccessful as the Charlie Club. It went out-of-business 6 years after moving in and sat empty until scooped by the School of the Art Institute in 1992. Converted into dormitories, offices and classrooms, the building was ready for occupancy in 1994, just at the time I was working in the art department on John Hughes' remake of Miracle on 34th Street. We built a Santaland inside the old ballroom and the set looked great wrapped within a space filled with an amazing array of plaster-molded, and marble classicism, which was preserved and restored by the current occupants after we left.
Posted by designslinger at 11/4/2010 1:42 AM 
Categories: Architecture, History, Decorative Arts
Tags: clubs Art Institute of Chicago Barnett Haynes and Barnett
Categories: Architecture, History, Decorative Arts
Tags: clubs Art Institute of Chicago Barnett Haynes and Barnett
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