1.    Adler was Chicago’s “society architect” of the very wealthy, but his work is all over the country.  Interestingly, he “shunned public attention” and his clients were unsolicited. They could have hired anyone. They selected him. Adler, ultimately, chose to let his work speak for itself. Most of his grand, Classical homes still stand 100 years later and are cherished by owners.

​

2.    Though schooled at the prestigious Polytechnikum in Munich and the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, Adler didn’t have a formal advanced degree or an Illinois license in architecture until obtaining one later in his career, upon passing an oral exam. His body of work demonstrates he was exceptionally gifted. At least 12 of his homes are on the National Register of Historic Places.  He created enduring, timeless beauty.

​

3.    Adler had “an enormous range of stylistic expression” and was “one of the last great eclectic architects.” 

​

4.     Adler was a complete architect. To ensure harmony, he also masterfully planned site usage, landscaping, interior decoration and furnishings. He frequently collaborated on interiors with his sister Frances Elkins, the inventive and famed designer. They are recognized for being leaders of mixing in works of European avant-garde artists, Jean-Michel Frank and brothers Diego and Alberto Giacometti, who are highly prized today.

​

5.     Adler was friends with Modern architects including internationally renown Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, who he recommended to head the new architecture school of the Armour Institute of Technology (now IIT) in Chicago. However, Adler chose to work mostly in the classical vocabulary inspired by the elegant architecture of history.