By Alexander Doerr published in Failed Architecture

The Absent Column is a documentary about the battle for preservation and ultimate approval for demolition of Prentice Women’s Hospital in downtown Chicago. In recent months, the film was screened at several festivals, including the Architecture Film Festival Rotterdam and the New York Architecture and Design Film Festival. It premieres online today. For Failed Architecture, Alexander Doerr interviewed the director, Nathan Eddy.

Alexander Doerr: Did you know Prentice had been approved for demolition before starting the film, or was this a development that occurred while you were filming?

Nathan Eddy: The demolition permit actually happened towards the end of when we were filming. When we were going through the process of making the film, it was up in the air and it didn’t look good. It seemed that things were tilting in favor of North Western University, and that it was going to be demolished, but then the preservation board decided to landmark the building and then right away turned around and reversed the decision. So it kind of became a farce. When we decided to make the film, there was still a chance that the building was going to be saved, and all the preservationists we talked to kept using the word “hopeful” which turned out to not be the case.

AD: At one point Prentice was supposed to be landmarked, saving it from demolition, but because of bureaucratic “shuffling” at City Hall, never achieved such status. Someone of course, makes money from the demolition and reconstruction of Prentice which highlights the interconnectivity of real estate, politics, architecture and preservation. Do you think there should be a more regulated control of preservation, or is your film solely documenting a moment in time of Chicago’s continuous rebuilding?

NE: The people that we talked to, came at the situation from differing points of view. You had the university, which is the rightful owner of the land and the building, so theoretically they should be able to do what they want to with the land that they own. If you start taking away those rights from people in a capitalistic society than you raise all these other questions and legal issues. It’s more about trying to find some sort of balance. There are numerous buildings in Chicago that are never going to be touched because they are so significant and such an integral part of the cityscape that are also not landmarked. Those are the ones we don’t have to worry about so much, it’s more about buildings exactly like Prentice. Its a question of de facto landmarking. With Prentice, it’s an empty building. It’s a gorgeous, architecturally significant building, but you know, it’s empty, and where is it empty? It’s empty in downtown Chicago. What do we need in downtown Chicago? Space to build new buildings. Its about priorities, what do we value as a society. That’s where the whole title of the film comes from – The Absent Column – what is it? What is the missing piece here?...Continue Reading

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