latest garrick theater salvage images digitized and edited from richard nickel contact sheet images

i've meticulously digitized, edited, and assorted over 600 images of the garrick theater salvaged operation from countless richard nickel contact sheets held at the ryerson and burnham archive, art institute of chicago. the 2 1/4 inch images chronicling adler and sullivan's garrick theater before, during, and after its destruction in 1961 have offered me tremendous insight into how the building was built - through materials and methods employed during its construction in 1892 - and how three individuals (i.e., richard nickel, john vinci, and david norris) managed to orchestrate a seemingly impossible salvage operation, extracting hundreds of pieces of interior and exterior ornament that was methodically cataloged and later distributed to institutions across the world.

the following images, arranged by location, were digitized over the past few weeks. nearly all of the nickel images were taken using his rollieflex camera - not his hasselblad 500c, which i misattributed in the past. he acquired his hasselblad shortly after the demolition was completed in 1961 and used it extensively, including his equally compelling images of adler and sullivan's 1894 chicago stock exchange salvage and demolition in 1972.

all images courtesy of ryerson and burnham archive, art institute of chicago, bldg. 51, and eric j. nordstrom.

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