The following is C_UP's entry for the Chicago Architectural Club : 2012 Chicago Prize Competition.

C_UP :
T. Joseph Surjan, founding chair, project designer
S. Hjelte Fumanelli, project architect & digital modeling
John F. Perrine, digital rendering

FUTURE PRENTICE is a is a single-stage international design ideas competition intended to act as a platform for public debate about the future of one of Chicago’s most architecturally significant Modern buildings, Bertrand Goldberg’s Prentice Women’s Hospital.

C_UP's position for the project is one of preservation, NOT restoration...in other words, what can be repurposed in the existing Goldberg building to extend life-span of this ICONIC Chicago structure.

the Prentice & the Pauper -( Goldberg Storytelling Center )

Storytelling is a form of talk therapy.

As in Mark Twain's well known story, the newly constructed tale of the Prentice & the Pauper physically links two unacquainted characters. The relationship between the Prentice & the Pauper reveals a cyclical life lesson applied in the present day context of Chicago. Can the engineering marvel of the Prentice and its historic position be retold to a new generation by the Pauper; via the introduction of a common architectural element? In this new tale, the Prentice plays herself, and the role of the Pauper is performed by a civil servant known as Staircase.

The life lesson of the Prentice & the Pauper is a simple one...

A city is a story, & every story is a city.

Everyone has a story.

Stories adapt & change over time as a direct link to the storyteller.

Storytelling is a disappearing art form.

The FUTURE PRENTICE will elevate everyone to tell their stories.

The Goldberg Storytelling Center provides a platform for expression.

A staircase elevates everyone.

FUTURE PRENTICE design process builds FOUR Storeys of Matter.

Solid Storey = Static condition

Ground plane lacking any space for public use. Podium building conceals poured in place concrete marvel.

Liquid Storey = Non-equilibrium condition

Remove Podium building’s curtain wall & floor slabs. Bed tower made into a one storey auditorium spaces.

Gas Storey = Equilibrium condition

Water basin is symbolic storytelling archive. Staircase plinth creates a cantilevered landscape.

Plasma Storey = Public condition

Floating Garden delivers natural light to all four storeys.

FUTURE PRENTICE creates a platform for people to gather.