Robie House
Wright pushed the rooflines out past the walls in 1910 — cantilever and Roman brick doing things most architects wouldn't attempt for another generation.
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One of the last buildings Frank Lloyd Wright drew at his Oak Park studio, and the Prairie style at full ambition. It survived two demolition attempts before landing with the University of Chicago. The floor plan splits into two offset rectangular "vessels" — a structural idea that broke with everything a house was supposed to be.
What to look for
- Roofs cantilevered outward over terraces set at different levels — the horizontal emphasis is the point
- Roman brick facade with concrete trim, cut-stone decorations, and art glass windows throughout
- The two-vessel open plan: south side for communal living, north side for service rooms
On the University of Chicago campus in Hyde Park; operated as a house museum, with interior design overseen by George Mann Niedecken.
Robie House is one of 37 sights worth the detour in Chicago, all bundled offline in Voyage GO — download the Chicago pack and it sits on your map with no signal, filling your travel passport the moment you walk past.
More to see in Chicago
- Willis TowerIt held the world's tallest title for nearly 25 years after opening in 1973 — and the Skydeck is still the highest observation deck in the United States.
- Art Institute of ChicagoFour paintings you've seen your whole life — Nighthawks, La Grande Jatte, The Old Guitarist, American Gothic — hang in the same building.
- John Hancock Center (875 N Michigan Ave)A moving platform pivots you 30 degrees outward over the Magnificent Mile — 1,128 feet of nothing beneath your feet.
- Aon CenterWhen it opened in 1973 as "Big Stan," this 83-floor tower was the fourth-tallest building on Earth — and clad entirely in marble.
- United CenterThe Bulls hardwood floor is literally assembled over the Blackhawks ice and taken apart game by game — two teams, one frozen surface, shared by puzzle.
- Soldier FieldThe NFL's oldest stadium lost its National Historic Landmark status because of the renovation meant to save it.