an architect were dependent upon reputation and skill. Drawings needed to convey intent, but left
much to the contractors’ judgment.
The architects designing tall buildings, however, met with issues of construction and engineering.
Several of these innovative architects obtained their education in technical schools or engineering
offices. Jenney had received training in engineering at the Ecole Centrale des Arts Manufactures in
Paris and Root had studied engineering in New York (Douglas, 1996 ). Obviously, architects’ offices
varied from small to large, but the partners in large architectural firms began to specialize. As Dankmar
Adler jovially acquired commissions, Sullivan was concerned with design, especially ornamentation.
Similarly, Burnham, with strength in the organizational aspects of architecture, managed the firm
while Root was reportedly the design partner (Douglas, 1996 ). Because the size and scale of his pro-
jects were expanding, Richardson terminated drawing and instead sketched his ideas, trusting his
draughtsman to the technical drawing. In this way, the sketch, in addition to a personal dialogue,
extended its role to intra-office communication. With the popularity of magazines publishing homes
of the wealthy, sketches became a mode of advertisement and dissemination of style. As mentioned
earlier, these sketches also propagated an emotional atmosphere to promote a style.MEDIAIn the late nineteenth century, publication in the form of magazines connected the architects of the
world. Heavily illustrated, these contemporary ‘pattern books’ transmitted style across the country
and between continents. In 1896 Sullivan published his essay ‘The Tall Office Building Artistically
Considered’ in Lippincott’smagazine. It was this article that delineated the parts of a tall building and
likened them to a column, specifying the base, mezzanine, repeated floors/shaft, and the attic col-
umn. The proliferation of architectural discourse also widely distributed drawing styles and tech-
niques. Many proposed, and completed, buildings were portrayed as sketches to suggest textural or
atmospheric impressions.
Although basically similar to previous generations, the tools and materials of this period available
to the architect were considerably refined. Paper had been manufactured since the late eighteenth
century and could be purchased in large sheets or rolls. The precision of ruling pens and other draw-
ing instruments were constantly being improved. Presentation drawings were rendered with ink wash
and watercolor. Draughting was precise and detailed using t-squares, triangles, and ruling pens
(Hambly, 1988 ). Sketches relayed information concerning the design of details in the case of Sullivan’s
carefully explored floral ornament. The initial conceptual musings as illustrated by Richardson’s brief
sketch resemble a partidiagram describing the essence of the project. A fast and efficient method to
visualize, pencil and pen and ink continued to assist in design. With an abundance of architectural
and popular periodicals, architects such as Ferriss were able to successfully sway public opinion with
their dramatic and emotional visions of the contemporary city. The use of pencil shading to achieve
lighting effects made the sketch an atmospheric communication tool. The expansion of urban con-
struction helped promote such skills, raising awareness in the minds of Americans that architecture
was a factor in the image of the city. The American neoclassical architects depended upon sketches to
conceive, envision, and detail their continually more complex building explorations.H5719-Ch04.qxd 7/15/05 3:34 PM Page 99