Turned Down Daniel Burnham
Not long after his success organizing the 1893 World’s Fair, Daniel Burnham offered Wright a partnership at his architecture firm. As part of the offer, Burnham would have sent Wright to the Ecole de Beaux Arts school in Paris, where Burnham trained, for three years. The Ecole de Beaux Arts school focused on classical and neoclassical design, bringing Greek and Roman styles into modern structures. Wright, a strong believer in architecture working with nature, not dominating it, turned the offer down.
For all their differing ideas of what architecture should be, Wright gave Burnham credit for an innovative urban design. During a lecture, he said,”Thanks to Dan Burnham, Chicago seems to be the only great city in our States to have discovered its own waterfront.” Today’s cities are rediscovering this idea that blends Daniel Burnham’s use of waterfront as public space and Wright’s connection with nature.
