Alfred Newton Richards Medical Research Building and Biology Building, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Plans and elevations of service towers, preliminary version

Louis I. Kahn

1957

A tracing-paper study in crayon, graphite, and colored pencil by Louis Kahn working out plans and elevations for the service towers of two university buildings, intending to resolve how mechanical and structural elements fit and form the architecture.

Translucent paper filled with energetic vertical strokes, small plan diagrams, and handwritten notes—tall shaded towers, repeated arch motifs, and pops of green and orange convey a designer thinking through both elevation and plan at once.

The sheet documents Kahn’s method of transforming utilitarian service spaces into expressive architectural language, illustrating a key moment in mid‑century modernism when structure and service became central to a building’s aesthetic and meaning.

Palette

Art Terms

Architectural drawing Elevation drawing Plan drawing Architecture Drawing Graphite Colored pencil Modern art

Exhibitions

Richards Medical Research Building, Louis I. Kahn, Architect

1961

The Architecture of Louis I. Kahn

1966

Architectural Models from the Collection

1974

Built in the U.S.A., 1932–44

1944