Ever since Chicago was announced as the location of the forthcoming Barack Obama Presidential Library, speculation over who would land this prime commission, expected to cost at least half a billion dollars, has been rampant. Rumors have circulated around Tanzanian-born British architect David Adjaye, and hometown partisans have been hopeful a local architect would win what may be one of the city's most lucrative and important jobs. Chicago Tribune architectural critic Blair Kamin helped cut out some of the guess work yesterday when he reveled a partial list of the estimated 50 or more firms who have received official invites to submit bids, in advance of the September 16 due date for RFQs. While Chicago architect Mark Sexton of the firm Krueck+Sexton wryly noted that at this point in the selection process, picking favorites is little like the Republican primaries, since standings are bound to shift, we thought we'd examine how the potential field is shaping up, and look at both the frontrunners and dark horses.
See all the contenders, including NYC-based starchitects, this way >>