The Dubuffet Reflected

The Dubuffet Reflected

Jack Siegel
Architecture, Chicago, Street, Urban Landscapes

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A few weeks back I said that I have had trouble capturing an image of the Jean Dubuffet sculpture that sits in front of Helmut Jahn's State of Illinois building.  While heading out from today's 50th-anniversary reenactment of the the unveiling of the Picasso statue in Daley Plaza, I passed the west wall of the Daley Plaza.  I had noticed the reflection before, but today the colors were striking and I liked the tableau of pedestrians.   Not much more to say.

Reenacting the Picasso Unveiling

Reenacting the Picasso Unveiling

Jack Siegel
Architecture, Chicago, Chicago Tourism, Street, Things to Do in Chicago, Urban Landscapes

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Today, the City's Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events held a reenactment of the August 15, 1967 unveiling of the Picasso statue that sits in Daley Plaza.  Although a major tourist attraction, as well is should be, Anish Kapoor's Cloud Gate has usurped the Picasso's stature with city residents and visitors.  Personally, I prefer the Picasso, which includes many classic Picasso motifs folded into its Cor-Ten steel outline and shapes.    
 

London House Noir

London House Noir

Jack Siegel
Architecture, Chicago, Jazz, Urban Landscapes

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This photograph was shot from the third floor outdoor bar at the Chicago Loews Hotel in Streeterville, looking southwest to the famed London Guarantee & Accident Building on the south shore of the Chicago River at the intersection of Michigan and Wacker.  The bar, dubbed Streeterville Social, is a nice place to hang on a warm summer night.  We visited it after seeing Kathryn Bigelow's outstanding film, Detroit, at the nearby cineplex.  We were seated on a coach under a large umbrella.  The corn, pepper and mushroom flatbread, mussels, and watermelon feta salad were all excellent, as was the margarita.     

Reflected Riverscape

Reflected Riverscape

Jack Siegel
Chicago, Architecture, Urban Landscapes, Windows

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Sometimes your best shot is behind you, which was the case today (and maybe everyday in the case of this location).  Standing at the foot of glass tower, I looked up, discovering the reflective qualities of its skin.  The partitioned mirrors serve to compress the six blocks of riverscape to the east.  Even better, the mirrors create wavy distortion.  A great take on the riverscape.

Double Ecstasy: Malt and Fries

Double Ecstasy: Malt and Fries

Jack Siegel
Chicago, Urban Landscapes

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Double ecstasy might be a malt and fries from McDonald's, or something else.  If you are lucky, it might be both.  Lollapalooza is in town for its annual four-day run in Grant Park, so the streets are filled with suburban kids in J. Crew and NBA gear, as well as investment bankers who can afford the $6,600 platinum package.  Time is the only thing that separates the two.

Exiting the South Loop

Exiting the South Loop

Jack Siegel
Architecture, Chicago, Urban Landscapes

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The South Loop used to be a rather desolate place, but Columbia College, DePaul University, Roosevelt University, and Jones College Prep have changed brighten the area.  With all those students, there is plenty of cheap eats and urban funk.  There is even a hostel, offering cheap and clean rooms--J. Ira & Nicki Harris Family Hotel, which is also known as Hi Chicago.

Photographer's Note.  I didn't have my technical camera with me, so convergence was an issue.  Fortunately I had a rather long lens (110mm).  I find that convergence becomes less of a problem when using longer lens.

Bughouse Square Debates

Bughouse Square Debates

Jack Siegel
Chicago, Festivals, Performance, Things to Do in Chicago

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It is probably no longer politically correct to refer to an institution for people with mental health issues as a bughouse, but the "Bughouse Square" nickname for Washington Square Park was an attempt to capture some of the craziness that came with the eccentrics and expressive orators who took park in debates and other public forums the park during the early decades of the last century.  Bughouse was then the slang for what would later generations would refer to as the looney bin or Cuckoo's Nest.

Washington Square Park

Washington Square Park

Jack Siegel
Architecture, Chicago, Flowers, Things to Do in Chicago, Urban Landscapes

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The 3-acre Washington Square Park sits just south of the Newberry Library.  The American Land Development Company donated the land to the City of Chicago in 1842 for a public park.  It hoped to make the area more attractive for high-end residential development.  While its intentions were good, the Company probably never envisioned that the park would be a center for boisterous vocal debate, attracting what today might be described as left-wingers and Occupy Wall Street types.  The resulting racket probably was not the first preference of local residents.

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