Architectural Record
search
cart
facebook twitter linkedin youtube
  • Sign In
  • Subscribe
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
Architectural Record
  • NEWS
    • Latest News
    • Awards
    • Interviews
    • Obituaries
    • Podcasts
      • Design:Ed Podcast
      • Sponsored Podcasts
  • OPINION
    • Book Reviews / Excerpts
    • Exhibition Reviews
    • Forum
  • EXCLUSIVES
    • Videos
    • Design Vanguard
    • Top 300 Firms
    • Sponsored Content
    • Sponsored eBooks
    • From the Archives
  • CONTINUING ED
    • Editorial Continuing Ed
    • CE Center
    • CE Academies
  • PROJECTS
    • Buildings By Type
    • Reuse & Renovation
    • Museums & Arts Centers
    • Colleges & Universities
    • Multifamily Housing
    • Interiors
    • Lighting
    • Kitchen & Bath
  • HOUSES
    • Record Houses
    • House of the Month
    • Featured Houses
  • PRODUCTS
    • Products by Category
    • Record Products of the Year
    • Latest Products
  • EVENTS
    • Dates & Events
    • Record on the Road
    • Innovation Conference
    • Sustainability in Practice
    • Women In Architecture
    • Webinars
    • Ad Excellence Awards
    • Submit an Event
  • CONNECT
    • Ask RECORD AI
    • Newsletters
    • Contact
    • Advertise
    • Editorial Calendar
    • Store
    • Customer Service
  • SUBMIT
    • Submission Guidelines
    • RECORD Competitions
  • MAGAZINE
    • Subscribe
    • My Account
    • Digital Edition
    • Current Issue
    • Firm Pass
    • Historic Archive

Chicago's Next Generation

Sean Lally

By Laura Raskin
Chicago's Next Generation

Lally’s composite image shows how energy might create and define physical spaces.

Image courtesy Weathers

October 15, 2015
 
Sean Lally
Photo courtesy Weathers
 
Like many architects, Sean Lally is concerned about climate change and how his profession can help address the immense environmental pressures bearing down on the globe—he just has a very singular vision for the solution. With a background in landscape architecture, Lally, 41, is pursuing a field of design in which steel, wood, and concrete are replaced by energy: electromagnetic, thermodynamic, acoustic, chemical. Rather than simply seeing energy as fuel, he treats it as the next inevitable building material, “the 21st-century version of steel and iron.” As a simple example, Lally, who founded his firm, Weathers, in 2006 and is an associate professor at UIC’s School of Archi­tecture, likes to point to the streetlamp, an important if banal piece of street and park life, safety, and commerce. But the cone of light from a streetlamp is its own architecture, he says. It has a shape with definite borders, an aesthetic, and an interior. It also controls activity, by dictating what can be done and seen when it shines in the dark.
 
“My interest is looking into outdoor space with energy as the material,” says the architect, who published a book in 2014, with Lars Müller, dedicated to his philosophy, The Air From Other Planets: A Brief History of Architecture to Come. To that end, Lally has conceived a number of conceptual projects, such as EOS (2014), in which—combined with advancements in bioengineering and wearable technology—human beings would be able to inhabit spaces made of cones of light and walls of energy. For the Biennial, Lally expands on this idea, exhibiting models, energy-simulation drawings, and photographs. “I don’t have any question or doubt that this is where architecture needs to go,” says the architect. “And we can actually inform the direction it’s going in.”
 
Back to Chicago's Next Generation

Share This Story

Looking for a reprint of this article?
From high-res PDFs to custom plaques, order your copy today!

Lr
Laura Raskin, a former RECORD editor, writes about architecture. She recently moved with her family from Brooklyn, New York, to the Green Mountains of Vermont.

Post a comment to this article

Report Abusive Comment

Subscription Center
  • Create an Account
  • Start a Subscription
  • Manage My Account
  • Sign Up for Newsletters
  • Visit Customer Service
  • Update Preferences

More Videos

Sponsored Content

Sponsored Content is a special paid section where industry companies provide high quality, objective, non-commercial content around topics of interest to the Architectural Record audience. All Sponsored Content is supplied by the advertising company and any opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and not necessarily reflect the views of Architectural Record or its parent company, BNP Media. Interested in participating in our Sponsored Content section? Contact your local rep!

close
  • TAMLYN XtremeTrim Exterior Trim
    Sponsored byTamlyn

    Designing Cleaner Panel Facades: Why Exterior Trim Details Matter

  • Building with Vapor Barriers
    Sponsored byReef Industries, Inc.

    Vapor Barriers Help Control Moisture in Tighter Building Designs

  • Duct Interior with Prodeq System
    Sponsored byHenry, a Carlisle Company

    Designing Resilient Water Containment Systems

DESIGN:ED Podcast
Listen to Architectural Record’s DESIGN:ED Podcast

Events

June 10, 2026

Rethinking Stormwater – The Power of Porous Paving

Credits: 1 AIA LU/HSW; 1 AIBD P-CE; 0.1 ICC CEU

Learn how porous paving systems support stormwater management, reduce heat island effects, and enhance sustainable site design performance.

June 11, 2026

Very Early Warning Fire Detection for Mission-Critical Facilities

Credits: 1 AIA LU/HSW; 1 AIBD P-CE; 0.1 ICC CEU

Examine advanced fire detection strategies that support uptime and enhance safety in data centers and other mission-critical facilities.

View All Submit An Event

Products

2026 Architect's Square Foot Costbook

2026 Architect's Square Foot Costbook

See More Products

Popular Stories

Practice Matters illustration

What’s in a (Firm’s) Name? Thinking About Succession and Legacy

Practice Matters illustration

By the Numbers: Counting America's Architects

House on a Hill

Design Vanguard 2026: Forma

Crane Cove, ONO

Design Vanguard 2026 Winners

House A on a Hill

Design Vanguard 2026: Santiago Valdivieso

Broader Sustainability of CMU - Free Webinar - May 21, 2026

Related Articles

  • Newsmaker: Sean Carlson Perry

    See More
  • Glenburn House by Sean Godsell Architects: Project Specs

    See More
  • All in the Family: Architectural DNA

    See More

Events

View AllSubmit An Event
  • March 30, 2016

    Sean Corcorran: Design for Learning Spaces

    Sean Corcorran, general manager of Steelcase Education Solutions, will discuss how space impacts behavior and how design thinking is transforming classrooms and learning spaces. In the United States the average “functional age” of a school building is more than 40 years.
View AllSubmit An Event
×

The latest news and information

#1 Source for Architectural Design, News and Products

SUBSCRIBE
  • RESOURCES
    • Advertise
    • Contact Us
    • Submit
    • Store
  • ACCOUNT CENTER
    • Create an Account
    • Start a Subscription
    • Manage My Account
    • Sign Up for Newsletters
    • Visit Customer Service
    • Update Preferences
  • PRIVACY
    • PRIVACY POLICY
    • TERMS & CONDITIONS
    • DO NOT SELL MY PERSONAL INFORMATION
    • PRIVACY REQUEST
    • ACCESSIBILITY
  • SERVICES
    • Marketing Services
    • Reprints
    • Market Research
    • List Rental
    • Survey/Respondent Access
  • STAY CONNECTED
    • Linkedin
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
    • X (Twitter)

Copyright ©2026. All Rights Reserved BNP Media, Inc. and BNP Media II, LLC.

Design, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing