Videos

Video Archive

Select from interviews with architects, clips from broadcast reports and virtual tours in this video archive of University of Chicago architecture. More Building Ideas architecture videos coming soon. 

Rafael Viñoly on the Charles M. Harper Center, Chicago Booth

New York City based architect Rafael Viñoly speaks on the challenges of designing a building to unite the many distinct moments in American architecture which surround it.


Jeanne Gang and John W. Boyer discuss Campus North Residential Commons

Jeanne Gang, founding principal of Studio Gang Architects, and John W. Boyer, dean of the College at the University of Chicago, discuss the architecture of the Campus North Residential Commons.


Time-lapse of Campus North Residential Commons Construction

A time-lapse taken from May 23, 2014 to Sept. 6, 2016 shows the construction of the University of Chicago's Campus North Residential Commons, designed by Studio Gang Architects. The facility will house roughly 800 undergraduates and is designed around the University's distinctive College House system.


Center for Care and Discovery

World-renowned architect Rafael Viñoly discusses developing a new kind of hospital and research space that embraces science and technology as much as collaboration and interaction.


Eckhardt Research Center to foster precision science and engineering

The new William Eckhardt Research Center at the University of Chicago will host a broad spectrum of 21st-century science, from investigation of the deepest cosmic mysteries to manipulations of matter on the scale of atoms and molecules.


William Eckhardt Research Center: Physics of light

A time-lapse of the University of Chicago's William Eckhardt Research Center designed by HOK Architects. The video highlights the ephemeral and actual aspects of the glass wall of the building and how it reacts to light through one day. The building houses offices, conference rooms and laboratories for the Division of Physical Sciences and the Institute of Molecular Engineering. The specific Physical Science units include Astronomy & Astrophysics and the Kavli Institute for Cosmological Physics. The building also houses the Pritzker Nanofabrication Cleanroom Facility.


University of Chicago opens Hong Kong campus

University of Chicago has officially opened a campus in Hong Kong that will serve as a regional hub for ambitious research, education and collaboration.


Harris at the Keller

In January 2019, Harris opened their new home, the Keller Center. While the building was still under construction, we sat down with the architect, Gabriel Wilcox of Farr Associates, to hear about how the Keller Center was designed to be a physical representation of Harris' mission.


The focal point of the Keller Center is the Harris Family Foundation King Harris Forum, a sun-soaked, four-level atrium that reaches the full height of the building.

The focal point of the Keller Center is the Harris Family Foundation King Harris Forum, a sun-soaked, four-level atrium that reaches the full height of the building.


Welcome to the Keller Center

The University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy is a driving force for rigorous thinking and evidence-based approaches to address our world’s most important problems. Now more than ever, the world needs a new generation of leaders dedicated to finding clear-eyed solutions to society’s issues. Thanks to the generosity of our donors, the Keller Center offers a world-class destination on Chicago's South Side where students, scholars, policymakers, and civic leaders can learn, work, and collaborate in confronting the challenges facing our city and the world.


The Architectural Vision Behind the Logan Center for the Arts

Architects Tod Williams and Billie Tsien discuss the design for the Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts.


Landscape Architecture at the University of Chicago

Peter Lindsay Schaudt of Hoerr Schaudt Landscape Architects shares how by looking to the past and understanding modern day needs, the quadrangles transformed to evoke simplicity and elegance.


Wendy Doniger on the University of Chicago’s Architectural “Neighborhoods”

Wendy Doniger, Mircea Eliade Distinguished Service Professor of the History of Religions, discusses how different architectural styles coexist and complement one another on campus. Among these architecturally diverse buildings is the Divinity School, where her office, made famous by the film Proof, has become known as one of the most beautiful on campus.


A twinkling tour at twilight with College Dean John W. Boyer, AM'69, PhD'75

Campus in the late fall, just after sunset, made the perfect backdrop to create a flashlight tour of campus. College Dean John W. Boyer, AM'69, PhD'75, narrates, sharing a brief history or story about each stop. 


Inside the Mansueto Library

An in-depth look at how the University of Chicago's Joe and Rika Mansueto Library uses automatic storage and retrieval systems to organize and distribute materials from the 3.5 million volumes housed below the glass dome.


Joe and Rika Mansueto Library

Architect Helmut Jahn discusses incorporating Mansueto Library’s context and function into the design.


The Grey City Transformed

Steve Wiesenthal, Associate Vice President and University Architect at the University of Chicago, moderated a panel discussion featuring architects and designers Tod Williams and Billie Tsien, Ann Beha, and Jamie Carpenter. The Architecture and Design Society sponsored the event, which was held at the Art Institute of Chicago on May 24, 2012.


Steve Wiesenthal on the Campus's Architectural Legacy

Steve Wiesenthal, Associate Vice President and University Architect at the University of Chicago, discusses the campus's evolution from the 1890s to now, emphasizing its shift from architectural insularity to transparency and openness with a new generation of glass structures.


Planning a Vibrant University Campus

Philip Enquist, Partner in Charge of Urban Design and Planning at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, explains generational layering on the University of Chicago campus and its function in fostering vibrancy, activity, and a higher quality of life through architecture and design.


Blue Balliett on the Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House

Best-selling children's author Blue Balliett discusses the communicative elements of architecture in Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House.


Rockefeller Chapel fosters sense of community

Rockefeller Memorial Chapel serves as a vital spiritual, ceremonial, and artistic home for the University of Chicago and community. Elizabeth Davenport, Dean of Rockefeller Chapel, discusses the unique culture of the chapel. 


David Rubenstein Forum

A preview of the exterior and interior spaces of the David M. Rubenstein Forum at the University of Chicago.


The David Rubenstein Forum at the University of Chicago

A look inside the David Rubenstein Forum.


Ann Beha on Saieh Hall for Economics Adaptive Reuse

Architect Ann Beha discusses the renovated Saieh Hall for Economics and the role successive generations play in repurposing academic spaces to fit their particular needs.


South Campus Chiller and West Campus Combined Utility Plants

Internationally recognized and award-winning architect Helmut Jahn explains blending the aesthetics of machinery and outdoor space in his cutting-edge West and South Utility Plants design for the University of Chicago.