Joseph P. Donaher DESIGN
YEAR:2023
LOCATION:
2048 N. Milwaukee Ave, Chicago, IL
INSTRUCTOR:Chip von Weise, Fall 2023 Virginia Tech Chicago Studio Residency
This Housing Project on 2048 N Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago IL
challenges the banalities of conventional housing by reimagining
it as monumental architecture, a civic gesture as much as a place
to live. At its core lies the proposition of housing serving not just
residents but also contributing profoundly to the identity and
fabric of a city. Here, ornament and typography, elements often
dismissed as extraneous, become critical tools for crafting an
architecture that is bold and monumental, and serves as a
vehicle for a salient social and political statement, boldly
proclaiming the project’s ethos:
“HOUSE THE PEOPLE”
A CALL TO THE POWERS
THAT BE THAT THERE
OUGHT TO BE A ROOF OVER
EVERYONE’S HEAD
The potential removal of the “Logan” sign in Logan Square, Chicago,
sparked public outcry and inspired this project’s use of typography as a
vehicle for ornamentation. This approach seeks to recreate the elegant yet
often simple beauty of Chicago’s historic townhouses, where
decoration was both integral and expressive. Typography and organic
form are combined to shape the townhouse facades, transforming
them into communicative artifacts that engage residents and the
broader city alike. The project challenges the prevailing trend of
housing that, while equipped with modern amenities, contributes little
to society or the built environment. Instead, it embraces what
Mark Foster Gage has called “Communicatory Aesthetics”, which in
aesthetic theory describes when a building is reduced to an overly simple
meaning or message that is ostensibly present in architecural form, for
example Calatrava’s “angel wings” at the WTC. This project insetad invokes an
unmistakable directness and honesty of its message and intention.