Page 14 - Court: The Place of Law and the Space of the City

14 Court

1 2
1 & 2

The platonic grid of the Court
establishes the autonomous
principles of the architecture;
analogous to those of the Law.

3 4
3 & 4

The facade, devoid of
iconography and
ornamentation pertaining to the
Law, instead asserts the notion
of the ‘threshold’ alone; the
delineation between the place
of Law and space of the city.

5 6
5 & 6

Within the frame of the
Courtroom, all assumes
representational significance.
A re-enactment of the events of
the city; its subject.

7 8
7 & 8

Three orders of threshold - the
plaza, the facade, and the
Courtroom walls - distance the
place of Law from the instance
of its context.

9 10
9 & 10

The Judges and Attendees enter
the Courtroom through
different doors, as they assume
their respective roles in the
performance of the trial.

Deconstructing the Everett McKinley Dirksen
U.S. Courthouse
Figure 9: Elements and symbols of the Chicago courthouse.