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This is Washington Square Park, also known as Bughouse Square. The land for the park was donated to the city in 1842, making it one the oldest parks in Chicago. It was a favorite among soapbox orators in the early 1900's. In These Times featured an article detailing the early history of Bughouse Square, and how it became the locus of free speech in the city.
If you walk around the perimeter of the park, you'll see the Newberry Library, the Scottish Rite Cathedral, and as you walk a bit south on Dearborn you'll notice a cluster of masonry buildings that represent the largest group of dwellings still in existence built by some of Chicago's wealthy citizens in the immediate aftermath of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871.
I took this shot right after they tore down the Sun-Times Building and just as they were laying the groundwork for the new Trump condos that will be built on the site. So, for a few weeks, we were able to see Mies van der Rohe's IBM Building without any blockage whatsoever. It looks, to me, like one of the tablets from '2001 - A Space Odyssey.' I know I'll miss this way of viewing the building before it is dwarfed by the new.This was to be Mies van der Rohe's last building designed in the USA. You might want to check out the website archiseek for more information.
I decided, a while back, to break the routine and take a different route on my walks, even if my destination was to be the same. It keeps my eyes fresh. One thing about a city is that you get used to certain landmarks, and from seeing them in certain ways. After some time, you're not seeing them at all. I'm pretty familiar with the John Hancock Building, so it was interesting for me to view it at this angle, layered with the older castle like building in the forefront, as I walked north on Clark. This sort of surprise comes with great frequency, once you decide to start looking around.I read of Jane Jacobs' death in the New York Times. She wrote a book called, "The Death and Life of Great American Cities," that made quite an impact at the time it was published and it is still highly regarded. From the excerpts I've read, she analyzes how cities work at a very human level. It sounds interesting to me, and I'm surprised I haven't read it yet. I've got it on my list of books for my next library visit. If anyone has read it and would care to comment, I'd love to hear your impression of her work.
Built in 1893, the Chicago Harbor Lighthouse sits at the northern breakwater. It used to sit at the mouth of the Chicago River, but it was moved to its current location in 1919. You see a structure like this and you can't help but think about the history of lighthouses. PBS had a special back in the late nineties that featured America's lighthouses (PBS). It was there that I found out that the first lighthouses were mere bonfires on the shore, and the light from those fires would guide the ships safely to land. Then came the structures, and oil lamps, and still the need of people to tend the protective light. Eventually, electricity made the need for the light tender unneccessary. But the lighthouses still grab our attention. There is a great effort, worldwide, to restore and maintain these structures, if only as historical artifacts.
The open lakefront gives the city of Chicago its distinctive border to the east. The lakefront places Chicago on the map; it's the reason the city was founded here. The city's architecture gives it its style. Chicago gave the world its first skyscraper in 1885, a building supported by steel frame. It was the Home Insurance Building.The Home Insurance Building was the world's tallest building for five years, and with that possibility, cities began to scale upward. I've always loved the architectural details on the Old Colony Building that I've photographed here. I love the rounded windows and the stone. This is an early example of what became known as the Chicago Style building. It was completed around 1894, designed by the architectural firm of Holabird and Roche. It's a designated landmark. Some more information can be found at The Chief Engineer.
Lincoln Park Zoo is located within walking distance of my apartment. Its proximity means that I go there often; it marks the midway point of a good walk. Lincoln Park Zoo is open year round and is free. Lincoln Park ZooThe zoo was founded in 1868, making it one of the nation's oldest zoos, but it's also one of the most modern. I always enjoyed going to the zoo when I was a child, but now I have a great deal of ambivalence about caging wild animals. My gut response, from observation, is that I think it's a bad idea. It's just painful to watch an animal, like a polar bear, reduced to levels of boredom that are manifested in repititous bodily movements. Even a state of the art containment pen can't provide what the natural habitat for these animals provides for them.The argument in favor of zoos would point out the educational possibilities the wild animals provide to a public eager to view them. Since the 60s there has been more of an environmental awareness, and with that awareness came a movement against zoos. Zoo keepers have responded by becoming more environmentally aware themselves and now argue a conservation stance, that they provide a haven, or oasis, for the animals and save them from the ravages of a planet that is facing overpopulation, pollution, and destruction of natural habitat. They may have a point; a self-fulfilling human point, but a point, nonetheless.I started wondering about the history of zoos. Who was the first person who had the impulse to keep a wild animal and attempt to take care of it? I look at the lions and tigers (okay, and bears, oh my!) and can't help but wonder why anyone would want to spend their days keeping these animals penned up. For a brief look at the history of zoos I recommend this site:A Brief History of Zoos
I've fallen in love with photography in the last few years. I think I have a lot of company. Digital cameras definitely made the difference for me. To be able to do some post-processing on a computer, rather than working in a darkroom, really opened up a new world for me; I couldn't take the chemical odors of the darkroom. There's also the instant feedback with the digital camera, and I really like the possibilities of expression using photoshop. The digital camera makers seem to have adopted the same pattern as computer makers. You buy a camera and within twelve months, something offering more features is available for about the same amount of money that you spent on the old camera. I'm trying to ignore those desires to upgrade, just as I do with computers, though I love looking at what's new. I took this photo using a Nikon D70s, with the new lens they have, the 18-200mm with image stabilization. I was surprised and delighted to be able to get the lightning, after many misses, but doing it all hand-held.
This shot was taken from the top of the John Hancock Building, which is located on Michigan Avenue, and it's taken facing north. The John Hancock has an observation deck on the top floor. It's well worth the price of admission, which is about $10.00 for adults and $6.00 for children. You can even purchase your tickets in advance, on-line, and avoid the wait in the ticket lines. (The John Hancock Observatory)Every August, Chicago hosts an air show and the Hancock provides a good perch to watch the Blue Angels performing their maneuvers. You'll see some residual exhaust in this shot from the jets that just flew by. You'll also notice the speckled sand, people dots! It gives you an idea of the beachfront area I was telling you about in my last post. The air show draws over a million people up and down the waterfront.I'm always amazed by Chicago's ability to absorb a million people for an event and still function. I can't even pull off a dinner for two without complications.
If you're new to Chicago, one of the first things you'll notice about the city is the lakefront, and the thing that is most striking about it is that it's a great, open expanse. By design, the majority of Chicago's prime real estate along the lake is designated to remain as public land, forever open and free from private development. Much of that land, over the years, has been transformed into sandy beachfront and walkways. On any given day of the year, you'll find Chicagoans, or its many visitors, out jogging, bicycle riding, or strolling along the lake's edge.Living in Chicago, that space along the lake becomes part of your backyard, the mental landscape of what you think of as your city. I think that single fact, the foresight the city's founders had in keeping that land as a park for all of its citizens, makes Chicago a jewel.If you'd like some more information about the lakefront and the many recreational activities offered there, here's a link to the Chicago Park District
I love Chicago. I don't know if you can have a love affair with a city, but I seem to be having one. This will be a photo journal of my wanderings around Chicago. Through my photos and writing, perhaps I'll be able to convey the reasons for my affection.
