LA DALLMAN
Somerville, United States
LA DALLMAN, led by Grace La and James Dallman, is a design practice investigating architecture as site transformation—recalibrating buildings, infrastructures, and landscapes. Based in Somerville, their work spans civic, residential, and public spaces. Honors include the AIA, BSA, and a Progressive Architecture Award, and they were the first U.S. recipients of the Rice Design Alliance Prize. Their projects have been exhibited widely, and featured in Architectural Record, Azure, and Praxis. Grace La chairs the Department of Architecture at Harvard GSD, underscoring the firm’s integration of academic and professional spheres. Their forthcoming monograph Middle Front will be published by Park Books.
2025 Biennial Project
Project Overview
SHIFTING REUSE AND REPAIR
This project reimagines the Door County Granary, a 1901 agricultural building in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, once used for storing and processing grain. Abandoned since the 1960s and marked for demolition, the Granary is the kind of overlooked, utilitarian structure that rarely attracts preservation efforts. Instead of focusing only on historically celebrated buildings, this installation explores how neglected and unremarkable places can be given new purpose. By considering unconventional approaches to reuse and repair, it challenges the idea that only “worthy” structures are worth saving—showing how even the most humble buildings can hold cultural and community value.
Venue
View moreChicago Cultural Center
Address
78 E. Washington St., Chicago, IL 60602
Neighborhood
The Loop
Description
Completed in 1897 as Chicago’s first central library, the building was established as the Chicago Cultural Center, the nation’s first and most comprehensive free municipal cultural venue, in 1991. One of the most visited attractions in Chicago, the stunning landmark building is home to two magnificent stained-glass domes, as well as free art exhibitions, performances, tours, lectures, family activities, music, and more – presented by the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) and many others.
