salvaging plaster ornament during demolition of adler and sullivan's schiller building

richard nickel images documenting the many patterns of plaster ornament used in adler and sullivan's schiller building or garrick theater (1893) interior auditorium and 14th floor banquet hall before, during, and after demolition in 1961.

nickel, john vinci and david norris spent months in early 1961 salvaging plaster ornament while atlas wrecking was rattling the building with its workers torching/dropping columns and beams and their crane's headache ball pounding against the masonry walls from one floor to the next.

the salvaged ornament was trucked off repeatedly to navy pier were it was unloaded and stored (long after demolition) - awaiting distribution to universities, museums, and other institutions. richard nickel continued to process ornament well into 1964 - nearly three years after the garrick's demolition. he received very little (if any) compensation for these efforts.