Bruce Graham | |
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| Born | Bruce John Graham (1925-12-01)December 1, 1925 La Cumbre, Valle del Cauca, Colombia |
| Died | March 6, 2010(2010-03-06) (aged 84) Hobe Sound, Florida U.S. |
| Alma mater | University of Pennsylvania School of Design Case Western Reserve University University of Dayton |
| Occupation | architect |
Bruce John Graham (December 1, 1925 – March 6, 2010) was a Colombian-born Peruvian-Americanarchitect. A longtime employee of the architecture firmSkidmore, Owings and Merrill, Graham designed buildings all over the world and was deeply involved with evolving theBurnham Plan of Chicago. Among his most notable buildings are theInland Steel Building, theWillis Tower (formerly the Sears Tower), and theJohn Hancock Center.[1] He was also responsible for planning theBroadgate andCanary Wharf developments inLondon.[2][3][4]
Architectural historian Franz Schulze called him "theBurnham of his generation."[1] He was a 1993Pew Fellow.
Born on December 1, 1925, inLa Cumbre, Valle del Cauca,Colombia, Graham was the son of aCanadian-born father who was an internationalbanker,[5] and aPeruvian mother. His first language was Spanish.[1]
He attendedColegio San Jose deRio Piedras, Puerto Rico, and graduated in 1944. He studied at theUniversity of Dayton, Ohio, and Structural Engineering at theCase School of Applied Sciences in Cleveland, Ohio. He graduated from theUniversity of Pennsylvania in 1948 with a degree in Architecture. When he first came to Chicago, he worked forHolabird and Root and joined the Chicago office ofSkidmore, Owings and Merrill, the largest architectural firm in the United States, in 1951.[6]
During his 40-year tenure at SOM, Bruce Graham designed notable buildings all over the world from his home in Chicago, to Guatemala, Hong Kong, London, Cairo, and many other cities. He designed theWillis Tower, tallest building in the world for nearly 36 years, the 100 story tallJohn Hancock Center,One Shell Plaza etc.
He was extremely involved with the University of Pennsylvania, especially the School of Fine Arts. He believed that teachers of architecture should be currently involved in its practice.[7] He was committed to the study of architectural theory and started theSOM Foundation. He also taught an architectural studio at Harvard. Graham was a great collector of art. He befriendedAlexander Calder,Joan Miró,Chryssa andChillida, among others. He invited these artists to create public works of art for the city of Chicago. He believed that to create great work an architect should be informed by philosophy, history, music and literature.
Graham had studied structural engineering at Case Western and brought that knowledge and respect of the structure of an edifice to all his buildings. The Hancock building in particular, uses structural design for esthetic expression. Graham later expressed this inHotel Arts in Barcelona and many other buildings including his buildings in London at Broadgate. Bruce Graham firmly believed that architecture like dance and music were a combination of structure and beauty. He believed that these forms of art represented the highest achievements of culture. Like other forms of Art, Graham believed that architecture was a result and a reflection of the morals of the culture in which it was built.[8]
Graham left a major influence onLondon, where he was responsible for designing the master plans for the massiveBroadgate andCanary Wharf developments.[2] He also designed nine buildings in London.[3][9][10]
Graham said, "We design our buildings for the inhabitants and for those who see them from the street. We try to design buildings that are a part of London, not in an imitation of period styles but an invention."[11]
_and_Bruce_John_Graham_(1925%25E2%2580%25932010)_at_Graceland_Cemetery%2c_Chicago.jpg)
Graham died March 6, 2010, at the age of 84 inHobe Sound, Florida. The cause was complications of Alzheimer’s disease, said his son, George.[12] Graham was buried atGraceland Cemetery next toFazlur Rahman Khan.
On October 14, 2010, Chicago Alderman Brendan Reilly, 42nd Ward, dedicated the streets to the south and east sides of theJohn Hancock Center – one of Graham’s most iconic achievements – as Honorary Bruce J. Graham Way. It runs along Chestnut Street between Mies van der Rohe Street and Michigan Avenue and along Mies van der Rohe Street – named after famed architect,Ludwig Mies van der Rohe - between Chestnut and Delaware Streets.[13]
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