MERCHANDISE MART

Yesterday a friend and I went to the Merchandise Mart, an easy walk from the train stations, on the north side of the river at Orleans St. Apart from what's in it, this is quite the impressive Art Deco building. Just to stroll its immenseness, to take in the ceilings, the exquisite bronze work on the doors and elevators, to walk the beautifully patterned floors, is a tour all by itself. It is in wonderful shape.

But we went for two things there now, the Buckminster Fuller exhibit, and the Dream Home rooms, both free. The Fuller exhibit is right inside the south door; you can't miss it. In case you don't know who Buckminster Fuller is, he was the man who designed all those geodesic domes as houses. My friend even knew of one in a Minneapolis suburb.

This one Fuller called "Fly's Eye Dome" because it does indeed resemble the compound lenses of a fly's eyes, as you can see. This is synthetic, stands 24 feet tall, made of 50 fiberglass sections, weighs 3,500 pounds, and is held together by about 1,050 stainless steel bolts, very visible. White outside, dark blue on the interior. These were supposed to be affordable, prefab homes, but I can't imagine living in one, although my friend said the one she knew was much larger. The huge holes are supposed to be filled with fiberglass windows. I suppose in a very private rural setting it might work.

But you can simply take it in for what it is here, a piece of sculpture. And walk inside if you want. Architecture and art.

As for the Dream Home rooms, the idea that anybody in their right mind would actually consider living in any one of these I find absurd. Over the top is an understatement. Although the bathroom was not toooo bad, I guess. All black and beige and ecru and bland, blah blah. Not to my taste at all. But like I said, it's free, and if you go, the woman at the door will give you a pass to many of the upper showroom floors, so you can browse them too. One floor was all it took for us, same-o, same-o. Although one item did catch our eye, a magnificent desk for the artist, architect, designer, to the tune of $14,000.

I can recommend Blue Fin, the restaurant right across the lobby from those rooms. We lingered there for some hours. Great food.

CHICAGO PUBLIC ART # 25 - SKYSPACE - 2005

The last one - the very last one! (unless you count the granite fountain in back of the Art Institute, which I will check periodically, since I go there every month) I have been at this since last August, I think. And unless I hear that the neon is working in the police station. In 18 years, I have never seen The Fountain of Time with a drop of water, so I have given up on that.

This one, called "Skyspace", and not unique in the States, but the only free-standing one, was created by James Turrell. He has several of these about the U. S. It is in the heart of UIC (University of Illinois at Chicago) at the corner of Halsted and Roosevelt, the southwest corner. And if a movie sound man ever wanted to record traffic sounds of city life, this is the place. Peaceful, it is not.

And that's too bad, for the building itself could lend itself to serenity and quiet. But not here. The pictures better describe this elliptical building better than I can. Supposedly "it acts as an observatory for changes in the colors of the sky that he [Turrell] orchestrates in the hours after dusk and hour before dawn. The effort stands alone in public art in Chicago." Per Alan Artner, art critic of the Chicago Tribune.

Well, I was there last nite, April 17th, and I observed no changes. Waited around from 7:30 to 8:00. Nada. But I figure someone would have to reset this all the time, taking into account the changing times for dawn and sunset, and Daylight Saving Time. It was a wonderful space, but the traffic zooming by just ruins it, for me. Halsted and Roosevelt are major arteries in Chicago and this corner is very busy.

I wonder why they (UIC) sited it there. Lots of benches to sit on for reflection and to look up at the sky through the oval hole in the ceiling. And a majestic view of the city to the northeast, where the skyline is fabulous.















Some final words about this 8 1/2 month project:

First of all, I enjoyed in immensely. Finding all these places was in itself a kick. So many I never knew were there, or had little appreciation for, until I actually came face to face with them. As in The Bowman and The Spearman, or Cloud Gate, or Buckingham Fountain, and even "I WIl", that piece at Cannon Drive and Fullerton that I had passed for decades.

The one that hit me between the eyes, so to speak, and that I will long remember, was "Radiant One'. I purely loved it. I guess my favorite is still "Fountain of Time"; it is so monumental, and evocative of human suffering and joy. It speaks to me, as all good art should do to an observer. Maybe not every observer, every time, as art appeals differently to each person, but at least to one human, once.

My truly detested one was "Reading Cones". I could rave on about how much I disliked it, but you should make your own judgment. Maybe you will be the one it speaks to.
So go out and find these for yourself. They're worth the effort.

I should also note that I will be off for a while, as traveler that I am, in a few weeks I will be in France for 10 days. Lyon and a famous Le Corbusier abbey just outside it.
La Tourette. And when I return, gardening season will be upon me hard.

CHICAGO PUBLIC ART # 24 - CLOUD GATE-2004

On the same glorious day that we went to Buckingham Fountain, we first went to the now practically world-famous "Bean".

Done by Anish Kapor, it is sited in Millenium Park on Michigan Avenue between Madison and Monroe Streets. Just look for the crowds. I might add that we ate lunch at The Park Grill, right under "The Bean" and were pleasently surprised, both at the quality of the food and the prices. I can heartily recommend the hamburger and their fries, which were terrific, and I don't much even like fries.

Artner: "This 21st Century equivalent of a grand ceremonial arch or gate to an ancient city additionally reflects the heavens and some of Chicago's important architectural legacy. (The work is popularly - and foolishly - nicknamed the Bean."

Now I had seen this a zillion times and never once saw it for what it really is, an arch, a gateway to our city. And that makes so much sense when you look at it, really look at it, disregarding the reflections and hordes of people. It gives it so much more stature and importance to me. Yes, it does look like a bean, there's no denying that, but the real title "Cloud Gate" fits it better. It is a gate that reflects the clouds.
A gate to our wondrous city.

CHICAGO PUBLIC ART # 23 - EAGLE COLUMNS - 1989

Done by Richard Hunt, these forms are located in Jonquil Park, a small neighborhood park at 1023 West Wrightwood Avenue, at the junction of Lincoln, Sheffield and Wrightwood. Near his studio. According to Mr. Artner, Hunt has more monumental art on view here than any other Chicagoan.

These pieces posed a problem for me. While I liked them, I did not like them there. Personally, I think they should be where the "Reading Cones" are. Because the busy-ness of the neighborhood businesses in the background detract mightily.

You just cannot get a really good angle from which to appreciate them. And I'm not sure even which way they face. If north, then you have to stand across the street to view them, if south, then you should cross the park. But not from close up, unless you like craning your neck.

Yes, I liked them, beautiful forms evoking eagles and flight and soaring freedom. But not there. As you will see, from the pictures. They are quite impressive and somehow, spiritual, and deserve a better location.
I have included so many pics so you can see just what the problem is.

CHICAGO PUBLIC ART # 22 - READING CONES- 1988

Made by Richard Serra, a minimalist artist, and it shows. Situated about a block east of the east entrance to The Art Institute. On the south side of Monroe. And on the day I was there, in a rather bleak, barren landscape, which may be what the artist intended.
When I came upon these it was like "what the?" If this is art, for once it totally escapes me. But then I am no fan of minimalism. And I would dearly like to know if this form of art will still be around in 100 years or so.

Artner - "The greatest living sculptor in the United States contributes two arcs of steel perfectly conceived in relation to the human body [?] and cannily set in a blunt, dramatic relationship with land and sky."

Honestly, Mr. Artner would have to stand with me in front of those two pieces and explain all that, for I have no clue what he means. Yes, I can see that they are two arcs, but that's about all. Maaaybe a blunt dramatic relationship with land and sky, but human body? How? I simply cannot see it.
The steel is horribly rusted, and I'm not in love with rusted steel either. Although one site I did read says it is very difficult to bend steel into those shapes and at least the art should be appreciated for this technical skill. No. If a cook knows all about the ways of cooking and expertly fixes a meal that tastes terrible, I'm supposed to appreciate the art of cooking it. I think not. A filmmaker may know all about lighting, and photography, and editing, and have assembled a great cast, but if he cannot direct a story that involves us, what's the point?

And although I roamed all around the site, I could find not hide nor hair of any plaque or sign attributing this to Mr. Serra.
The reason it is called "Reading Cones" is because the steel was forged in Reading, Pennsylvania.

CHICAGO PUBLIC ART #21 - CHICAGO FUGUE - 1987

This one is in the lobby of the building at 190 South LaSalle Street, you can't miss it when you walk in. Done by Anthony Caro. Quoting Mr. Artner "An evocation of music very different [ yes indeed!] from Polasek's Thomas Memorial; this one, by Britain's leading living abstract sculptor, communicates not the general spirit of music [ as did the statue of the goddess Music] but something of one of its oldest constructions involving themes sounded in several parts or voices."
I am not that technically proficient in music to be able to comment on that. It does sound to me is if Artner is referencing the kind of songs sung in rounds, such as "Row,Row Your Boat". Although that is not old. But I could be totally wrong here. Whatever, I liked it. The Gregorian chants may be what he is talking about; I just don't know, and I don't think it matters. You like it or you don't, although certainly the more you know about a subject, the better you can appreciate it.

This is absolutely monumental in size. I'm sorry I don't have someone in the pictures to give you an idea, although the couch does help. There is a nice viewing area in front of it, with a 2 comfy sofas, chairs, coffee table. And a couple of chairs off to one side. There are guards at the doors, but as long as you are just staying in the lobby, it's fine.
One of the things I like about it is that it fits its space so perfectly. In looking at these pictures online, I notice that they really do not convey, in any sense, the power of this sculpture. You must see it. So if you are in the vicinity, please do drop in. It is well worth it.

CHICAGO PUBLIC ART # 20 - NEON FOR THE 14TH DISTRICT POLICE STATION - 1984

THIS PIECE OF PUBLIC ART IN THE CITY OF CHICAGO IS TOTALLY NON-FUNCTIONAL. THE POLICE WHO WORK IN THE STATION HAVE NOT SEEN IT WORK IN YEARS. THIS IS A DISGRACE. AND AS YOU CAN SEE IN THE TOP PICTURE, SOMEONE HAS THOUGHT TO PUT IN A FLORESCENT DROP LIGHT, WHICH TOTALLY DISFIGURES THE ART.

NOW IT LOOKS BASICALLY LIKE A BUNCH OF RED SQUIRMY WORMS ON THE CEILING.
ALTHOUGH YESTERDAY MORNING, A SUNDAY, THE POLICE IN THE STATION WERE WONDERFULLY INTERESTED AND FRIENDLY AND HELPFUL, THEY COULD NOT FIGURE OUT A WAY TO TURN IT ON, AND SAID THAT FOR YEARS WHEN IT WAS ON, IT SPUTTERED AND FRITZED AND DROVE THEM CRAZY. SOME OF THEM HAD NEVER SEEN IT ON AND ASKED TO SEE THE PICTURE I BROUGHT. I AM SURE THIS IS NOT WHAT STEPHEN ANTONAKOS, THE ARTIST, INTENDED. I HAVE WRITTEN HIM (HE HAS A NICE WEB SITE), TO SEE IF HE CAN HELP. TO THINK OF TAX DOLLARS GOING DOWN THE DRAIN LIKE THIS IS FRUSTRATING, ESPECIALLY IN THESE TIMES.

IF YOU WANT TO SEE THE WONDERFUL PICTURE OF WHAT THIS SHOULD LOOK LIKE, GO THE THE CITY OF CHICAGO'S WEB SITE UNDER "CHICAGO PUBLIC ART". AND THERE IS NOTHING THERE TO INDICATE THIS DOES NOT WORK. BUMMER.

I AM ALSO WRITING ALAN ARTNER, OF THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE, WHO LISTED THIS IN HIS TOP 25 PUBLIC ART WORKS FOR CHICAGO. DID HE KNOW THAT IT DIDN'T WORK WHEN HE PUBLISHED THAT LIST LAST JULY? (He did not. He wrote me back immediately to say he had called and asked about it, and was told it worked.)

HELP! EITHER DISMANTLE IT AND TAKE IT OFF THE LIST - OR FIX IT.

CHICAGO PUBLIC ART #19 - BODARK ARK - 1982

THIS IMAGE ON THE LEFT IS FROM THE AIR, TAKEN OFF THE SIGN.

THIS ONE IS FAR, FAR FROM ME, 40 MILES TO BE EXACT, ONE WAY, IN UNIVERSITY PARK, A FAR SOUTH, HARDLY EVEN, SUBURB. AT GOVERNORS STATE UNIVERSITY AS PART OF THEIR EXTENSIVE SCULPTURE PARK.

DONE BY MARTIN PURYEAR, IT IS REALLY BETTER APPRECIATED FROM THE AIR, AS THE WHOLE THING IS MEANT TO CONVEY A BOW AND ARROW.

BUT FIRST - WHEN I GOT THERE, IT TOOK SOME DOING TO FIND (AND IT WAS A REALLY COLD DAY). THE PARK IS RATHER EXTENSIVE, WITH NO SIGNS POINTING TO THIS PARTICULAR PIECE, FOR IT IS MORE THAT THAN AN ACTUAL SCULPTURE, ALTHOUGH THERE ARE CERTAINLY SCULPTURAL ASPECTS IN IT.
SO, NATCH, AT FIRST I TOOK THE WRONG PATH AND HAD TO DOUBLE BACK. THEN WHEN I THINK I SPOT PART OF IT (AN ARCH) ACROSS A POND SIMPLY SATURATED WITH GEESE, MORE THAN I HAVE EVER SEEN IN ONE PLACE BEFORE, AND THE SAME WITH ANOTHER LARGER POND ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE PATH, I COME ACROSS A SIGN THAT SAYS THE BODARK ARC IS CLOSED TO THE PUBLIC INDEFINITELY. GREAT. IN ONE PLACE IT SAYS FOR CONSERVATION; IN ANOTHER BECAUSE SOMETHING IS HAZARDOUS. YOU CAN'T HAVE IT BOTH WAYS.
AND I DIDN'T COME 40 MILES FOR NOTHING. AHEAD OF ME, THE PATH WAS MOWED AND I JUST WALKED BEYOND THE SIGN TO A SMALL SNOW FENCE ACROSS THE PATH. OTHERS BEFORE ME HAD OBVIOUSLY WALKED AROUND IT, SO I FOLLOWED THOSE OTHER TRAIL BLAZERS.

IT IS VERY HARD TO DESCRIBE THIS, IF YOU HAVEN'T ACTUALLY BEEN THERE, AND I HOPE MY PICTURES WILL GIVE YOU SOME IDEA. I ALREADY KNEW THAT THERE WAS A KIND'VE HEDGE ROW OF OSAGE ORANGE TREES AND THAT IN THE MIDDLE OF THAT ROW WAS A CHAIR FROM WHICH TO VIEW THE LANDSCAPE, INCLUDING THAT POND, IN FRONT OF YOU. PURYEAR HAS PUT A SMALL WOODEN ARCH AT THE END OF THAT PATH, FRAMING THE POND. THE PATH FROM THE SEAT, OF SOME HARD METAL, TO THE POND, COMPRISES THE ARROW PART OF THE PIECE, THE OSAGE ORANGE TREES PART OF THE BOW, AND THE SEMI-CIRCLE FROM ONE END OF THE TREE ROW TO THE OTHER, THE ARC OF THE BOW. IT REALLY IS QUITE THE CONCEPT, AND ITS STARK OUTLINES IN EARLY MARCH ARE VERY CLEAR.

IF YOU ARE INTERESTED THERE IS A NICE EXPLANATION AT THE GOVERNORS UNIVERSITY WEB SITE.

AS I WALKED THE PATH TO THE CHAIR, THERE WERE LOTS OF SMASHED OSAGE ORANGES ON THE GROUND. I MOST DEFINITELY DID SIT IN IT AND TOOK IN THE VIEW OF THE GEESE. BUT WHEN I LEFT I WALKED DOWN THE ARROW PATH TO THE POND, AND HARDLY HAD I TAKEN THREE STEPS WHEN ALL THOSE THOUSAND GEESE AROSE AS ONE MASS AND TOOK WING. I HAVE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE IT, AND THE SOUND! I WISH I HAD CARRIED WITH ME SOME SORT OF SOUND RECORDER. WHEN I CAME BACK AROUND TO THE FRONT OF THE POND AGAIN, IT WAS TOTALLY EMPTY. AND BELIEVE ME, I AM NOT EXAGGERATING WHEN I SAY 1000 GEESE.

AND THAT IS THE REASON FOR THE CLOSURE, I THINK. GEESE CAN BE VERY NASTY ESPECIALLY IN MATING SEASON. I HAVE KNOWN A FARM THAT USED GEESE AS WATCHDOGS, VERY EFFECTIVELY. YOU DON'T WANT TO GET IN THE WAY OF MALE GEESE PROTECTING THEIR MATES. AND WHILE THE CHAIR IS NOT TOO CLOSE TO THE POND, BECAUSE THE PATH LEADS TO IT, NATURALLY YOU WANT TO WALK THERE. I CAN TOTALLY EMPATHIZE WITH GOVERNORS STATE BEING CAUTIOUS ABOUT THIS UNTIL THEY CAN FIGURE OUT A WAY TO ELIMINATE ALL THOSE BIRDS, IF THAT IS THEIR REASON FOR THE CLOSURE.

The "bodark" of the title is an English corruption of the American-French "bois d'arc," or wood of the bow, that is, Osage orange used for bows by the Native Americans of the Southeast and Midwest.

DEFINITELY WORTH THE DRIVE. BUT I DON'T THINK PURYEAR EVER ENVISIONED THE PROBLEM WITH THE GEESE.












AND THE CELL PHONE TOWER DOES NOTHING TO ENHANCE THE AMBIANCE OF THE PIECE EITHER.

CHICAGO PUBLIC ART #18 - "I WILL"

Erected in 1981 on the northeast corner of Fullerton Avenue and Cannon Drive in Lincoln Park. By Ellsworth Kelly, who created those geometrical colored forms that grace both sides of the upper hall outside of The Art Institute's Regenstein Hall.

Now it's funny, this art, because for decades now, I have turned that corner to look for parking along Cannon Drive because I frequently go to the Landmark Movie Theater up on Clark Street, and most always park on Cannon and walk up. And probably somewhere in my subconscious if you had asked me, I might have recalled a something on that corner, but could not have told you what.

But yesterday on a day that definitely had a taste of spring in the air, I did go to a movie at Landmark, did park on Cannon, and before the movie, walked down to the corner to look at and admire this piece.
All the articles call it a column; I'm not sure I'd use that word. According to Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary, a column is "a supporting pillar; esp: one consisting of a usu. rounded shaft, a capital, and a base". This is not that at all, as you can see from the pictures. It is a geometrical form, very slightly bulging in the middle, and almost invisible from the sides, it is so slender.

Also, according to the sign embedded in the facing rock formation, Kelly calls it "Curve XXII", not "I Will".
Artner says this is stainless steel and calls it a "minimal column". It is most certainly minimal, but beautiful in its starkness, I think. It is situated at the farthest point north of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, and yesterday, at a little before 1 pm, the form reflected that fire in my pictures. Serendipity? Purposeful by Kelly? Who knows? The form faces southwest, and at that time of day in February perfectly both absorbs and reflects the sun. The red spray at the top is only in my picture. Doesn't it look like a flame shooting up?

















Supposedly, the form relates to our skyscrapers that were built after the fire, but here, to me, it seems to have been sculpted to be a shooting flame. At least at a certain time of day in the year. and I was lucky enough to have caught it. (This is not the same picture, lest you think it was a fluke; I even have a third.) And if you look very close, the ground in front seems to be reflecting that light.
Apparently the "I Will' comes from the fact that that was the motto adopted by Chicagoans after the fire. And they certainly did.
Other literature says it's hollow, although when I touched it, and even gave it a rap, it didn't seem hollow. It is totally flat, and so slender, it is almost two-dimensional. I loved it.