The American section of the show, at the Whitney, organized by Phyllis Lambert with K. Michael Hays, adjunct curator of architecture, deals with Mies's development of modular construction, from the long, low buildings of the Illinois Institute of Technology's Chicago campus, which he designed as head of its architecture department, to his high-rise apartments and offices and his ultimate vision, the resolution of structure and enclosure as monumental, universal space.
The large enclosure where Hanson was killed includes a smaller cage where animals can be confined for feeding or when the large space is being cleaned.