Major Works
- Eagle Point Park, Dubuque, Iowa.
- Promontory Point, Burnham Park, Chicago, Illinois.
- Riis Park, Chicago.
- Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool at Lincoln Park. Restored from 1998-2002 by the Lincoln Park Conservancy and Chicago Park District, designated as a Chicago Landmark.
- Campus Landscaping, Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago. Major portions destroyed.
- Lafayette Park, Detroit, together with his IIT colleagues Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Ludwig Hilberseimer.
Caldwell, like his mentor Jens Jensen, promoted a natural style of landscape design. The intent was to manufacture a native landscape that copied natural ecosystems. A complete natural ecosystem requires little maintenance other than removal of non-native invasive species. Due to the subtleness of his planting designs and the live nature of landscape materials, many of Caldwell’s projects have fallen into disrepair as the result of improper maintenance and modifications; the Lily Pool, however, is regularly maintained by the Lincoln Park Conservancy and Chicago Park District.
Caldwell’s buildings are frequently mistaken for the work of Frank Lloyd Wright. Both architects created Prairie School designs in and around Chicago at roughly the same period of time. Caldwell stressed the importance of orientation for passive solar design, as well as integration into the landscape.
Read more about this topic: Alfred Caldwell
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