Eric

product arrangement photographed by eric j. nordstrom

we just acquired a large lot on very rare and highly sought after "expanded metal type" freestanding lockers designed and fabricated by the federal steel fixture company (chicago, il.). the thoroughly ventilated locker system was often assembled with no. 13 gauge diamond mesh expanded metal and reinforced with riveted and oxy-acetylene welded single piece frames used ensure absolute rigidity and free...

the urban remains showroom will undergo a mild overhaul during the fall of 2013. additional retired or decommissioned artifacts from my personal collection will be brought over to complement or enhance the existing items already available for sale at the showroom. the core of my collection, consisting primarily of commercial and residential artifacts from notable chicago commissions, will remain permanent...

i was returning from a demolition site the other day when i decided to make a detour to revisit the old abandoned cooky county hospital, which is considered to be one of the best remaining examples of beaux arts-style architecture in the city of chicago. sadly, the ornamental terra cotta facade, which stretches two city blocks in length, continues to...

a mostly random assemblage of photographic prints taken by eric j. nordstrom will go on display in the urban remains showroom beginning in fall of 2013. the majority of the prints will be matted and framed. some will be for sale, while others will be for display only. a few carefully selected photographs will be enlarged with the hopes of...

we recently acquired multiple early 20th century factory lunchroom swing-out seat tables fabricated by the chicago hardware foundry company, chicago, il. the large assemblage of unrestored components provide us with greater flexibility to reconfigure the tables into any number of multi-seat arrangements (i.e., 4, 8, 12, 16, etc.). the salvaged tables were fabricated around 1926 for a factory located outside...

urban remains owner eric j. nordstrom and anthony baus work together on the roofline of the richman brothers building on a balmy saturday afternoon. the polychrome terra cotta ornament was carefully removed and preserved. two of the figural birds reside in the bldg. 51 museum. the richman brothers clothing store (formerly known as the bee hive dry goods store was...

i just recently discovered that this well-maintained and fully functional chicago advertising neon "can" sign  (see above) has been taken down and hauled off to the scrapyard. why not contact us? so incredibly frustrating. the art deco streamlined style "exterminators" sign still retained a vibrant color scheme in the form of baked porcelain enamel over cold-rolled steel. such a tragic...

over the past few days urban remains has been consumed in removing a large load of mobile industrial carts or "floor trucks" from the burhop paper company factory complex, located west of downtown chicago. the incredibly robust, shopworn carts were designed and fabricated by the j.t. towsley mfg. co., cincinnati, oh. nearly a hundred matching carts were originally purchased by...

the 2009-2010 Emerging Media Innovation Grant team Michele Chiuini (architecture) and John Fillwalk (IDIA) launched the Digital Chicago Stock Exchange website, the result of their work to virtually reconstruct portions of the 1894 Chicago Stock Exchange building, designed by the famous duo Adler and Sullivan. The stock exchange was demolished in 1972, but a number of structural elements were salvaged and...

the long-term collaboration involving the creative brilliance of architect louis h. sullivan (with assistance from chief draftsman george grant elmslie) and execution by the notable winslow brothers ornamental iron foundry culminated in 1899 with the fabrication (and generally well-maintained) enameled ornament adorning the schlesinger & mayer building street level facade.

in other news, i'm dangerously close to pulling the trigger on securing the lease for this 38,000 square-foot factory building that would house the new urban remains warehouse, showroom and museum. urban remains outgrew the existing warehouse two years ago, so this seems to be the next logical step towards expansion. the satellite showrooms will remain open until further notice.

we are currently in the process of salvaging a recently shuttered chicago funeral home that will ultimately be demolished in the coming weeks. the morgue is always a fine place to contemplate one's mortality. however, i believe i was more preoccupied or perhaps sickened by the appalling stench, coupled with the incredibly hot weather (inside and out) on that particular...

the hartwell houses will be facing the wrecking ball within the next few weeks. the adjoining victorian era three-flats were built for lumber baron edwin s. hartwell’s two children in 1885 by architect julius h. huber. each unit contains a large red slip-glaze terra cotta bust, depicting both son and daughter in costume, surrounded by intricate floral motifs. i’ve reached...

The sheer variety of rare and unusual pieces here is mind-blowing. Between the huge warehouse in Chicago’s West Town and the online catalog, this architectural antique store is like a museum where everything is for sale. From stained and leaded glass windows, to historic building hardware and 1920s Farie lamps, Toledo stools and industrial tables, antique electrical devices, the odd...

urban remains has recently acquired a sizeable amount of meticulously documented original building elements removed from the historic reliance building after nearly 16 years in off-site storage. the majority of the artifacts found in storage were either replaced with faithful reproductions or were rendered obsolete under current day building codes during a lengthy restoration occurring in the 1990's. building materials...

sadly, the massive, intricately designed "sullivanesque" unglazed and speckled terra cotta frieze, adorning the facade of the c. 1905 michael reese hospital (designed by the architectural firm of garden, martin and schmidt), was destroyed in early may of 2011. in addition, nearly 300 terra cotta figural lion heads flanking the ends of the window sills were lost as well. any...

the michael reese hospital "salvage" was no doubt a formidable experience on a multitude of levels. the logistics surrounding the acquisition and removal component seemed rather straight forward and largely uneventful in the beginning, despite the fact that we were faced with a partially abandoned 28 building complex with very little, if any, operable utilities. however, as the project began...