Wednesday, March 29, 2023

Chicago Botanic Garden (Untitled - by Martin Puryear)

Untitled (Bench) - by Martin Puryear

 

Untitled (Bench) - by Martin Puryear

1998 / Pair of benches - Stainless-steel and Granite

Location: Lakeside Gardens / Chicago Botanic Garden

Gift from Ernest P. Waud, III


Monday, March 20, 2023

Skokie Northshore Sculpture Park (Section IV)

Sun Worshipper - by Ted Gall

 Sun Worshipper - by Ted Gall



Skokie Northshore Sculpture Park (Section IV)

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Skokie Northshore Sculpture Park (Section II)

 

Charger I and II - by Ted Gall

Charger I and II - by Ted Gall


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Skokie Northshore Sculpture Park (Section II)


Skokie Northshore Sculpture Park (Section I )

Trunnion II - by Dale Graham

 Trunnion II - by Dale Graham

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Skokie Northshore Sculpture Park 


Monday, March 13, 2023

Northwestern University - Block Museum Campus Art Walk

Curved Form (1961) - Barbara Hepworth

Curved Form (1961) - Barbara Hepworth

 

Northwestern University - Block Museum Campus Art Walk


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Wednesday, March 1, 2023

Chicago North [The Young Lincoln (1945) - by Charles Keck]

The Young Lincoln (1945) - by Charles Keck

 


The Young Lincoln - by Charles Keck

1945 

 Bronze / 13-foot tall

Location: Senn (Nicholas) Park /

Triangular corner between N. Ridge Ave., N Clark Street and W. Thorndale Ave.

The Chicago Park District website informs... Keck's family donated the Young Lincoln to the G.A.R. collection of Chicago Public Library, which is now the Chicago Cultural Center. In 1997, the Chicago Public Library loaned the monument to the Chicago Park District to allow its installation in Senn Park on the city's North Side.


Chicago North [The Chicago Lincoln (1956) - by Avard Fairbanks]

The Chicago Lincoln (1956) - by Avard Fairbanks

 

The Chicago Lincoln - by Avard Fairbanks

1956 / Bronze

Location: Lincoln Square / Lawrence and Western Avenue

Monument was erected by the Illinois Lincoln Memorial Committee


Tuesday, February 28, 2023

Ida B. Wells ‘Light of Truth’ Monument (2021) - by Richard Hunt

Ida B. Wells ‘Light of Truth’ Monument (2021) - by Richard Hunt

 

Ida B Wells 'Light of Truth' Monument - by Richard Hunt

Unveiled: 2021

Location 37th & Langley Blvd, Chicago


Monday, February 27, 2023

Constellation (2020) - by Santiago Calatrava

Constellation (2020) - by Santiago Calatrava

 

Constellation - by Santiago Calatrava

Installed: 2020

Painted aluminum with steel reinforcement / 29' H x 29' W

Location: River Point Park / 444 W. Lake Street

Funded by the real estate investment, development and management firm Hines.


The BOTS (2018) - by David Weeks Studio

The BOTS (2018) - by David Weeks Studio

 Above image: David Weeks of the David Weeks Studio

The BOTS - by David Weeks Studio

Installed: 2018 

These are larger version of the wildly successful desktop puzzle toy - cubebot. 

Painted aluminum / Standing figure is 23' tall. 

Fabricated at the Vector Custom Fabricating

Location: Marriott Marquis bldg. (near McCormick Place)

at 2121 S Prairie Ave. Chicago, IL.


Red Lily Tree of Liberty (2022) - by Ruth Aizuss Migdal

Red Lily Tree of Liberty (2022) - by Ruth Aizuss Migdal

 Above image: Ruth Aizuss Migdal on her 90th Birthday.



Red Lily Tree of Liberty - by Ruth Aizuss Migdal

Installed: August 17, 2022, 

marking the 90th birthday of the sculptor Ruth Aizuss Migdal!

Painted aluminum / 17' x 7' x 7'

Location: Plaza of Chicago Architecture Center / 111 E. Wacker Drive, Chicago

Brought by the CSE (Chicago Sculptor Exhibit)


Quantum Me (2017) - by Davis McCarty

Quantum Me (2017) - by Davis McCarty

 

Quantum Me - by Davis McCarty

2017

Metra Beverly Hills Station

99th Street and Walden Parkway

 50 x 50 Neighborhood Arts Project

Ward 19 / Alderman Matthew O’Shea 


Quantum Me literally and figuratively reflects its surroundings. Multicolored panes of purple, green, and amber dichroic Plexiglas support a stainless-steel sphere that creates a kaleidoscopic experience unique to each passerby. A second piece by McCarty, Quantum Dee, located in the Rogers Park neighborhood in the 50th Ward, is an inversion of this sculpture. 


Phoenix Rising (2018) - by Lucy Slivinski

Phoenix Rising (2018) - by Lucy Slivinski

 

Phoenix Rising - by Lucy Slivinski

2018

Intersection of Sheridan Road, Broadway, and Montrose Avenue


 50 x 50 Neighborhood Arts Project

Ward 46 / Alderman James Cappleman 


Phoenix Rising is a symbol of rebirth. Using recycled materials, Slivinski gathered scrap materials from a nearby Chicago Transit Authority Red Line improvements project site. To contribute to the work, Alderman Cappleman’s office organized Uptown neighbors to donate bicycles, pipes, and other scrap metal. The artwork stands as a welcoming beacon and marks the entry to Uptown at its southern boundary. 


Bronzeville Solar Pyramid (2017) - by Olusola “Shala.” Akintunde

 

Bronzeville Solar Pyramid - by Olusola “Shala.” Akintunde

Bronzeville Solar Pyramid - by Olusola “Shala.” Akintunde 

2017

Gallery Guichard, 436 East 47th Street 


 50 x 50 Neighborhood Arts Project

Ward 3 / Alderman Pat Dowell 


Shala's solar Pyramid generates solar energy and shines through a system of hieroglyphics Shala created with ComEd’s Solar Spotlight Program, which exposes high school students to renewable energy and STEM—science, technology, engineering, and math. Local students created the hieroglyphics to represent images of themselves, their neighborhood, Bronzeville and Chicago.


Loop da Loop (2018) - by John Adduci

 

Loop da Loop (2018) - by John Adduci



Loop Da Loop - by John Adduci

2018 

“The Gateway to the Loop” micropark 

State Street median at Lake Street


 50 x 50 Neighborhood Arts Project

 Ward 42 / Alderman Brendan Reilly 


Loop Da Loop is a site-specific sculpture that draws inspiration from its location below the State and Lake elevated train station. Made of aluminum that echoes the material Adduci and structure of the metal elevated tracks, the sculpture intertwines this iconic symbol with a typographical “C” to represent Chicago. 


Saturday, February 25, 2023

I have A Dream (1978) - by Abbott Pattison

I have A Dream (1978) - by Abbott Pattison

I have A Dream - by Abbott Pattison

1978

Location: Chicago State University

B.F. Ferguson Monument Fund


Friday, February 24, 2023

Ashland (2017) - by Erik Peterson

 

Ashland - by Erik Peterson

Ashland - by Erik Peterson

2017

Thorndale Avenue, between Sheridan Road and Lane Beach

 Commission by the 50 x 50 Neighborhood Arts Project

Ward 48 / Alderman Harry Osterman 


Ashland is a both a sculpture and a utilitarian piece of urban furniture installed within a median at the eastern end of Thorndale Avenue, where the city meets the lake. It was constructed from the wood of blighted ash trees affected by the emerald ash borer and removed from Rutherford Sayre Park on Chicago’s northwest side. It allows people to sit, relax and contemplate, taking in the view of the water and park. 


Letter to Bessie Coleman (2017) - by Architreasures with Bernard Williams

Letter to Bessie Coleman - by Architreasures with Bernard Williams


 Letter to Bessie Coleman - by Architreasures with Bernard Williams

2017

Chicago Park District / Burnham Park at 39th street

Commission by the 50 x 50 Neighborhood Arts Project

Ward 4 / Alderman Sophia King 

Created by Bernard Williams in collaboration with Architreasures, an art-based community development organization, this painted steel sculpture honors Bessie Coleman, the first woman of African American and Native American descent to become a licensed aviator. 


Quantum Hope (2017) - by Nicole Neck

 

Quantum Hope (2017) - by Nicole Neck

Quantum Hope - by Nicole Neck 

2017 

Taylor street & Ogden Avenue

Commission by the 50x50 Neighborhood Arts Project

Ward 28 / Alderman Jason Ervin 


Quantum Hope channels the basic principle of kinetic energy into a site-specific work. Installed within sight of the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center, the Jesse Brown VA Medical Center, and Stroger Hospital, the sculpture expresses sentiments of recovery, aspiration, and positive energy between these facilities. 


Monday, February 20, 2023

Olive-Harvey College [Conveyor (2020) - by Barbara Cooper]

Conveyor (2020) - by Barbara Cooper

 

Conveyor - by Barbara Cooper

2020

Wood -white oak veneer and perforated steel

122' x 5' x 7'

Location: Olive-Harvey College, Chicago

Commissioned by the Illinois CDB Art in Architecture program.


Windhover (1970) - by Robert Murray

Windhover (1970) - by Robert Murray

 

Windhover - by Robert Murray

1970 / Installed: 1976

Corten steel / Painted blue

Location: Hinsdale Junior High School

Funded by the citizens of School District 181 and 

a grant from National Education Association.


Untitled (1973) - by Peter Voulkos

Untitled (1973) - by Peter Voulkos



 
Untitled - by Peter Voulkos

Also known as Miss Nitro

1973

Location: Highland Park, Laurel Park

Funded by grant from the NEA's Art in Public Places program and publicly raised funds.
(NEA - National Endowment for the Arts)


Oakton Community College [ Silver Oak (1983) - by Barry Tinsley]

 

Silver Oak (1983) - by Barry Tinsley




Silver Oak - by Barry Tinsley

1983

Stainless Steel / 17.6' H x 43' W x 24' D

Location: Oakton Community College, Des Plaines, IL

Commissioned by the Illinois CDB Art in Architecture program.


Saturday, February 18, 2023

NMSP Collection [ Paul (2006) - by Tony Tasset]

Paul (2006) - by Tony Tasset

Can you spot me in the image?

 

 Paul - by Tony Tasset

Installed: 2006

Pained fiberglass over steel frame

Location: the NATE / Nathan Manilow Sculpture Park

at Governors State University

Commission by Illinois CDB Art in Architecture program.


Friday, February 17, 2023

Play (1969) - by Richard Hunt

Play (1969) - by Richard Hunt

 

Play - by Richard Hunt

1967-69

Corten Steel / 12-foot square 

Location: John J. Madden Mental Health Center


Thursday, February 16, 2023

Chicago State University [Building and Growing (2012) - by Richard Hunt]

Building and Growing (2012) - by Richard Hunt

 

Building and Growing - by Richard Hunt

2012

Welded stainless steel

Location: Chicago State University (CSU)

Commissioned by the Illinois CDB Art in Architecture program.


Wednesday, February 15, 2023

From Here to There (1975) - by Richard Hunt

From Here to There (1975) - by Richard Hunt

 

From Here to There - by Richard Hunt

1975 / Bronze

Location: Dr. Martin Luther King Community Service Center

4314 S. Cottage Grove, Chicago


Gwendolyn Brooks (2018) - by Margot McMahon

Gwendolyn Brooks (2018) - by Margot McMahon

 

Gwendolyn Brooks - The Oracle of Bronzeville 

- by Margot McMahon

2018 

A bronze sculptural bust is accompanied by a porch modeled after the poet's childhood writing spot, a path of stepping-stones that are etched with quotations from Annie Allen and a stone circle.

Location: Gwendolyn Brooks Park / 4542 S Greenwood Avenue, Chicago

The Brooks Park was formerly known as the Hyacinth Park and is located in the Kenwood community. It was renamed as Gwindolyn Brooks in 2004 as part of an effort by the Chicago Park District Board of Commissioners to recognize the contributions of Chicago women. The park is less than a mile away from her childhood home at 4332 S Champlain.


Tuesday, February 14, 2023

AIC / Seating for Eight (1985) - by Scott Burton

Seating for Eight (1985) - by Scott Burton

 Seating for Eight - by Scott Burton

1985

African red granite / 32" x 18" x 34"

Location: Art Institute of Chicago (AIC) Columbus Drive


Homeless Jesus - by Timothy Schmalz

 


Homeless Jesus - by Timothy Schmalz

Homeless Jesus, also known as Jesus the Homeless, is a bronze sculpture that depicts Jesus as a homeless person, sleeping on a park bench. The original sculpture was installed at Regis College, University of Toronto, Toronto in early 2013. Other casts have since been installed. This includes the one in River North neighborhood of Chicago. It is outside the Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago's headquarters of Chicago.


Noguchi Fountain (1976) - by Isamu Noguchi

Noguchi Fountain (1976) - by Isamu Noguchi

 

Noguchi Fountain - by Isamu Noguchi

1976 

Celebration of the 200th Anniversary of the Founding of the Republic

Granite and stainless steel, L 50 ft. 

Location: The Art Institute of Chicago, east façade Columbus Dr. between Monroe St. and Jackson Blvd.

Commissioned by the B.F. Ferguson Monument Fund 


Flight Forms (2001) - by Richard Hunt

Flight Forms (2001) - by Richard Hunt

 

Flight Forms - by Richard Hunt

2001

Stainless steel / 35 ft H

Commissioned by the City of Chicago Percent for Art program.

Richard Hunt’s Flight Forms unites a variety of forms in an upward-sweeping composition that suggests the defiance of gravity and the dynamism and wonder of flight. The sculpture’s grand scale balances the scale and character of the airport’s architecture. It is highly visible to passing motorists and provides an engaging experience for pedestrians.

Source: City of Chicago Public Art website


Saturday, February 11, 2023

Stepped Arch (1982) - by Linda Howard

Stepped Arch (1981) - by Linda Howard



 

Stepped Arch - by Linda Howard

1982

 Aluminum / H 197 in. x W 89 in. x D 72 in 

Location: Chicago Fire Station 108

4625 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago

Commissioned by the City of Chicago Percent for Art program.



Friday, February 10, 2023

Blue Geisha (1985) - by Jerry Peart

Blue Geisha (1985) - by Jerry Peart


Blue Geisha - by Jerry Peart

1985

Painted aluminum / 39' x 24' x 22' / 9 tons

Location: 8750-8770 W. Bryn Mawr Ave., Chicago

Commissioned by Chicago's Miglin-Beitler Developments. It was a private commission, and the sculpture is located on private property. 

The same developers had earlier commissioned Louise Nevelson's "Dawn Shadows" at the Madison Plaza I.  Later the development firm Metropolitan Structures commissioned Jerry Peart for Splash (1987) at the Illinois Center complex. The sculpture Splash is now relocated at the Trickster Gallery in Schaumburg.


Northeastern Illinois University [ Serenity (2005) - by Ruth Duckworth]

Serenity (2005) - by Ruth Duckworth



Serenity - by Ruth Duckworth

2005

Northeastern Illinois University

Commissioned by the Illinois CDB Art in Architecture program.

The sculpture was installed when the artist was 96 years old. "Duckworth's sculptures have smooth and elongated silhouettes with slight details to insinuate the face and limbs."


Ruth Duckworth (1919-2009)

She was born in Hamburg, Germany. She fled her German homeland to escape Nazi oppressions. She studied art in England. She came to Chicago in 1964 to teach at the University of Chicago and remained in the city after retiring from the university in 1977.

Duckworth died in Chicago at the age of 90 on October 19, 2009. She spent 45 years of her life in Chicago.  In two consecutive years Chicago lost two of the early modernist women sculptors. Geraldine McCullough passed away in 2008 at the age of 91. Ruth Duckworth passed away in 2009 at the age of 90.


Thursday, February 9, 2023

Stained Glass (2004) - by Mike Hill



 Stained Glass - by Mike Hill

Installed: 2004

Steel, glass and concrete / H 9 ft. x W 15 ft. x D 15 ft. 

Location: 1st District Police Station
 1715 S. State St., Chicago

Commissioned by the City of Chicago Percent for Art program.


Chicago artist Mike Hill designed Stained Glass to relate to the architectural scale and elements of the 1st District Police Station and to reference the familiar checkered band motif of the police uniform cap. Four tinted architectural glass block and cast steel panels are located at the four corners of a plaza paved in cast steel and concrete. A concrete bench is located at the center of the installation. The steel blocks and paving tiles were fabricated from scrap steel, the by-product of illegal firearms confiscated and destroyed by the Chicago Police Department. The artist chose this material to symbolize one of the shared concerns of police officers; specifically, approaching any situation in which one might be threatened by firearms. The steel is transformed here to create a contemplative space that honors those who protect the community.
Source: City of Chicago Public Art website



Riverview (1980) - by Jerry Peart

 


Riverview - by Jerry Peart

Installed: 1980

Painted aluminum / H 17 ft. 

Location: 19th District Police Station 
2452 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago

Commissioned by the City of Chicago Percent for Art program.

The site of the North Side Police Center was formerly occupied by the historic Riverview Amusement Park, for which many Chicagoans share a fond nostalgia, and from which Jerry Peart derived the name of this sculpture. Riverview was fabricated from rolled aluminum plate that the artist cut and welded in his Chicago studio. Next, the sculpture was assembled on-site. The work, a vigorous combination of curvilinear forms, is painted with vivid enamel colors. Riverview’s bright colors and the open sweep of its circular arc are reminiscent of the carnival rides that preceded the sculpture.

Source: City of Chicago Public Art website

Photos taken on Nov 22, 2019


Jetty (1980) - by Barry Tinsley

 



Jetty - by Barry Tinsley

1980Cor-Ten steel / H 48 ft. x W 12 ft. x D 15 ft. 

Location: 24th District Police Station 

6464 N. Clark St., Chicago

City of Chicago Percent for Art program

Barry Tinsley’s Jetty is made from plates of Cor-Ten steel welded into a variety of volumetric forms that are fastened together by welding and brackets. It was assembled on-site at the Rogers Park District Police Station and dedicated in January 1980. Because of the intense urban nature of the site, Tinsley designed an innovative, non-objective work, oriented close to the ground to give its viewers a sense of visual order and their own human scale.

Source: City of Chicago Public Art website


Photos taken: October 8, 2019


Untitled (1980) - by Amir Nour



 Untitled - by Amir Nour

1980 / Cold rolled steel

Location: 4th District Police Station
225 E. 103rd street, Chicago 

Commissioned by the City of Chicago Percent-for-Art program.

Amir Nour’s untitled sculpture comprises a series of five semi-spherical forms, scaled to a six-foot diameter. The steel components seem to rely on one another for balance and, in their linear arrangement, suggest movement along the southeast corner of the police facility.
Source: City of Chicago Public Art website




Rescue (1980) - by Jill Parker


  

Rescue - by Jill Parker

1980 / Wall relief

Location: Chicago Fire Dept. Engine 95 

4001 W. West End Ave., Chicago

Commissioned by the City of Chicago Percent for Art program.


Pyrix (1981) - by Bruce White




Pyrix - by Bruce White

1981

Enameled aluminum / 24 ft H x 32 ft W

Location: 4th District Fire Station
4900 W. Chicago Ave., Chicago

Commissioned by the City of Chicago Percent for Art program.


 "Illinois sculptor Bruce White has long been fascinated by astronomy. His PYXIS abstract sculpture shares the name of a constellation of stars in our solar system. Its vertical orientation and striking architectural scale draw the eye upward, past the building façade, and provide a dynamic link between the building, the ground and the sky. The sculpture’s clean lines and smooth blue enameled surface create a bold accent against the deep red painted steel exterior of the fire station."
Source: City of Chicago Public Art website

Spiral Rain Form (1981) - by David Morris


 

Spiral Rain Form - by David Morris

Originally known as Spiral Vortex

Installed: 1981 / Refurbished in 2018

Stainless Steel / 23' high

Location: 3rd District Police Station 

 7040 S Cottage Grove Ave., Chicago

City of Chicago Percent for Art program

Refurbished in 2017 under the 50 x 50 Neighborhood Arts project.



Wednesday, February 8, 2023

Steel Garden (2013) - by Richard Hunt


 

Steel Garden - by Richard Hunt

2013 / Welded Stainless Steel

Location: Rainbow Beach Park, 79th & South Lake Shore Drive


The Chicago Portage - by Ferdinand Rebechini


 

Chicago Portage - by Ferdinand Rebechini

1990 / Corten steel

Location: 4800 S Harlem Ave, Forest View, IL 60402

Located at the National Portage Historic Site


Explorers Marquette and Joliet first crossed the Chicago Portage in 1673.  The statue depicts that event. It was designed and executed by Ferdinand Rebechini (1923-2003), a Chicago area artist.

The Chicago Portage was a significant factor in the development of United States interior. The Chicago Portage is the low and short divide between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River systems. It has been described as one the keys to the continent. Explorers Marquette and Joliet first crossed the Chicago Portage in 1673. One of the most important travel routes of the mid-century, the portage was significant factor in the development of United States interiors.   



Tribute to the Past (2015) - by Roman Villarreal







 Tribute to the Past - by Roman Villarreal

2015

Location: Steelworkers Park 
 87th street and Lake Shore Drive, Chicago


Drexel Fountain (1882) - by Henry Manger


Drexel Fountain - by Henry Manger

1881-82 / Restored

Bronze

Believed to be one of the earliest monuments in the city.

The four-sided statue is decorated with Neptune and harvest Goddess figure.


Monday, February 6, 2023

Chieftan Statue - by Geraldine McCullough

 



Chieftan Statue - by Geraldine McCullough

The 7-foot-tall bronze sculpture portrays Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as an African 15th century Benin chieftain. The casting was commissioned to create a symbol of peace following the riots of 1968 after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King.

Location: Peace and Justice Plaza in front of WHA Austin Wellness Center

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The Pathfinder (1982) - by Geraldine McCullough

 




The Pathfinder (1982) - by Geraldine McCullough

1982 / 13 feet high / Sheet brass, brass pipe, brushed brass 

Location:  Village Hall Courtyard, Oak Park, Illinois.


Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) Fountain (1999)



Chicago Board of Trade Fountain

Location: 141 W. Jackson Boulevard

The Board of Trade building's Art Deco doors inspired the design of the fountain.

Constructed as part of 1999 Public Fountain Program.


Wicker Park - Gurgolye Fountain

 



Wicker Park - Gurgolye Fountain 

Dedicated by the Mayor on May 11, 2002.

The fountain was initially purchased from a New York firm J.L. Mott Iron Works in 1892. However, the company was later bought by the Robinson Iron Company of Alexander Cit, AL. The Robinson firm was able to find the original catalos and some of the actual molds, which were used to cast in the Wicker Park Fountain.