Burnham Pavilions

The Burnham Pavilions were public sculptures by Zaha Hadid and Ben van Berkel in Millennium Park, which were located in the Loop community area of Chicago, Illinois. Both pavilions were located in the Chase Promenade South. Their purpose was to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Daniel Burnham’s Plan of Chicago, and symbolize the city's continued pursuit of the Plan's architectural vision with contemporary architecture and planning. The sculptures were privately funded and reside in Millennium Park. The pavilions were designed to be temporary structures.

Both Pavilions were scheduled to be unveiled on June 19, 2009. However, the Pavilion by Hadid endured construction delays and a construction team change, which led to nationwide coverage of the delay in publications such as The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. Only its skeleton was availed to the public on the scheduled date, and the work was completed and unveiled on August 4, 2009. The van Berkel pavilion endured a temporary closure due to unanticipated wear and tear from August 10–14.

In June 2008, there was an announcement that the pavilions would be constructed. The pavilions were commissioned by the Burnham Plan Centennial Committee, a group of civic leaders who collaborated closely with the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs, the Art Institute of Chicago, and Millennium Park Inc. On April 7, 2009, the designs were unveiled for the pavilions set to open on June 19 and to continue on display on the south end of the Chase Promenade until October 31. Delays were caused as a result of manufacturing. This may cause the pavilions to stay on exhibit until November. Additionally, the Hadid Pavilion may be situated in a different part of the park for part of 2010. The choices of Hadid and van Berkel were somewhat controversial because Burnham was a classicist and they are both avant-garde modernists. Additionally, local architects complained that it was a bit of a slight that two European architects were chosen to produce works to serve as the focal points of the Burnham Plan Centennial celebration. The pavilions were scheduled to be a focal point of the centennial celebration of the 1909 Plan of Chicago, which is a yearlong celebration. However, Hadid's Pavilion encountered manufacturer's difficulty in executing Hadid's complex, computer-aided design.

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