Ideas

The exhibition, “Helmut Jahn: Life + Architecture,” showcased significant designs from Jahn’s illustrious career, including notable projects like the crystalline Michigan City Public Library and the striking James R. Thompson Center in Chicago. It also highlighted transformative designs, including the Sony Center in Berlin and the construction of the Pritzker Military Archives Center in Wisconsin, which was still ongoing at the time of the exhibition.

Debuting at the Chicago Architecture Center nearly one year after Jahn’s passing, the posthumous exhibition featured photography, models, and sketches that shed light on Jahn’s collaborative design and engineering process. Additionally, images from Jahn’s family archives, videos, and recollections from those who knew and worked with Jahn emphasized his dramatic flair and zest for life.

“Helmut Jahn: Process Progress” — an international exhibition by the Neues Museum in Nuremberg and Die Neue Sammlung (the International Design Museum, Munich) — showcased the comprehensive body of work by Helmut Jahn. The exhibition focused on Jahn’s open approach to architecture, characterized by two overarching concepts: process, representing work process, and progress, signifying advancement. It presented Jahn’s dynamic portfolio, spanning from his early works in Chicago to contemporary “mega big buildings” in Qatar, China, Japan, and Korea, and also explored Jahn’s visionary projects for ideal cities in the Emirates and large-scale shopping centers in China.

Despite the scale of these projects, Jahn’s personal touch was incorporated throughout the exhibition, through drawings that were executed on small paper blocks or notebooks. The exhibition also displayed architectural models, primarily made of Plexiglas, and featured photographs of Jahn’s works captured by photographer Rainer Viertlböck.

Helmut Jahn’s return to Nuremberg after 46 years provided a comprehensive overview of Jahn’s career, showcasing both built and forthcoming projects and exploring his belief that “the future is never wrong.”