John Portman retrospective

General view with model for Entelechy I, 1964 residence in foreground.

(Image credit: Mike Jensen)

last updated 11 October 2022

For W*129 we took a trip to Entelechy II, John Portman’s Sea Island summer house and arguably the most concrete expression of the architect’s philosophical wrangles. You’ll have to visit page 178 of the new issue for the full story and interview, but on wallpaper.com we’re celebrating what Portman is most renowned for – the creation of the atrium hotel.

From the 1967 Hyatt Regency in his hometown of Atlanta to the Shandong Hotel and People’s Hall in Jinan, China in 2003, Portman has made the soaring atrium his signature stamp. Here we’ve rounded up a comprehensive gallery of our favourites from Portman’s extensive portfolio.

Our research also led us to a timely exhibition celebrating the length and breadth of the architect’s 50-year career, which recently opened at the High Gallery in Atlanta. Showing architectural models and sculptures alongside a series of canvases, previously unseen in public, we thought it only appropriate to include a selection of installation photographs to turn our own gallery into a comprehensive retrospective of Portman’s extraordinary creative output.

Abstract of sculpture Beilei (budding flower) by John Portman.

General view with sculpture maquette for Chronos by John Portman in foreground.

General view with model for Il Porto Vecchio, 1988 design concept in foreground.

Abstract view of sculpture Fish Lady in foreground and painting Music in background.

General view with sculpture maquette for Chronos II in foreground.

Detail of model base of Tomorrow Square, Shanghai, 2003.

Detail of model base of Incheon 151 Tower with Chronos II sculpture shown to scale, Incheon Metropolitan City, Republic of Korea, ongoing.

Detail of Hyatt Regency San Francisco atrium, 1974.

Hyatt Regency San Francisco atrium, 1974 with sculpture Eclipse by Charles Perry.

Renaissance Center, Detroit atrium, 1976 with sculpture Free Fall by Gerhardt Knodel.

Renaissance Center, Detroit atrium, 1976.

Hyatt Regency O’Hare, Chicago atrium, 1971.

The Westib Bonaventure, Los Angeles atrium, 1977.

The Westin Bonaventure, Los Angeles atrium, 1977.

AmericasMart 3, Atlanta atrium, 1979 with atrium addition, 1988.

Atlanta Marriott Marquis, Atlanta atrium, 1985.

Atlanta Marriott Marquis, Atlanta atrium, 1985 with hanging Atrium Sculpture by Daniel Graffin.

SunTrust Garden Offices, Atlanta atrium, 2000.

SunTrust Garden Offices, Atlanta atrium, 2000 with sculpture The Web by John Portman in background.

The Westin Warsaw, Poland glass elevator enclosure, 2003.

Shandong Hotel and People’s Hall, Jinan, China atrium and elevator core, 2003.

Shandong Hotel and People’s Hall, Jinan, China atrium, 2003.

Renaissance Schaumburg Hotel, Convention Center and Performing Arts Center, Illinois atrium, 2006.

Renaissance Schaumburg Hotel, Convention Center and Performing Arts Center, Illinois lobby, 2006 with fireplace sculpture Warmth by John Portman.

J.W. Marriott, San Francisco atrium, 1987 with detail of sculpture Joie De Danse by Elbert Weinberg.

Hyatt Regency Atlanta atrium, 1967 with sculpture Flora Raris by Richard Lippold.

Marina Mandarin, Marina Square, Singapore atrium, 1987 with hanging Atrium Sculpture by Richard Lippold.

Ellie Stathaki is the Architecture & Environment Director at Wallpaper*. She trained as an architect at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece and studied architectural history at the Bartlett in London. Now an established journalist, she has been a member of the Wallpaper* team since 2006, visiting buildings across the globe and interviewing leading architects such as Tadao Ando and Rem Koolhaas. Ellie has also taken part in judging panels, moderated events, curated shows and contributed in books, such as The Contemporary House (Thames & Hudson, 2018), Glenn Sestig Architecture Diary (2020) and House London (2022).