Alfred Newton Richards Medical Research Building and Biology Building, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Perspective

Louis I. Kahn

1957

A tracing‑paper perspective sketch in crayon, graphite, colored pencil, and ink by Louis Kahn that studies the massing and vertical rhythm of two linked university research buildings.

You'd first notice a cluster of tall, rectangular shafts—drawn with brisk vertical hatching and faint colored accents—rising from an otherwise spare sheet, their monumental scale suggested by a tiny pair of figures at the base and scattered compositional notes along the margins.

The drawing exemplifies Kahn’s mid‑century move toward monumental, archetypal forms, an investigative study of solids, light, and proportion that helped redefine institutional architecture as sculptural and enduring.

Palette

Art Terms

Architectural drawing Architecture Drawing Perspective Graphite Colored pencil Ink

Exhibitions

Richards Medical Research Building, Louis I. Kahn, Architect

1961

The Architecture of Louis I. Kahn

1966

Built in the U.S.A., 1932–44

1944

Architectural Models from the Collection

1974