Few things are more Chicago than taking the L. The city's system traverses from the North Side to the South Side, from Lake Michigan to Oak Park, and circles the famous Loop. One hundred year old structures slice through neighborhoods, bordering yards and alleys, looming over houses and streets, snaking through high rise canyons. The subway's tunnels create allure and mystery, providing glimpses into the city's underbelly and a vast array of colorful people collectively moving to different destinations.
The L defines the Second City's personality--at once rugged and brash--a symbol of unremitting strength.
Printers Row is located on the south end of downtown Chicago and features spectacular examples of industrial and commercial architecture from the printing era. Today it is more of a neighborhood, but the area keeps a connection with its past identity through a literary festival every year that draws thousands. While other areas of downtown are flashy with postmodern buildings and soaring skyscrapers, this area retains its historic character and authentic charm.
Technically the Printers Row Historic District, also calling "Printing Row," is between Congress and Polk (north to south) and Plymouth Court to the Chicago River (east to west). The printing industry needed to be adjacent to transportation, and here they had both the river and the trains. Also printing uses lots of water (and emits lots of waste), so the river was a necessity for that, too.
Each building in Printers Row tells a story worthy of the pages many were built to produce. They are rich with details exemplifying this era with warm earth tones, stone and brick masonry, and weathered to imperfection.
As a designer, I was trained to notice the patterns and textures that comprise the built environment. Often, these mimic the natural world--the organic forms that happen as a result of processes--while others are created by the juxtaposition of manmade forms and materials reacting to environmental conditions. Many moments are fleeting, so capturing them is gratifying.
Scenes from the street, inspired by the moment.
For a true Cubs fan, the first time seeing Wrigley Field is a magical experience. Nestled in a neighborhood and encompassing only a city block, it's hard to believe that this is a place where Major League baseball has been played for over 100 years. It's mystique is legendary--from the red marquee at Clark and Addison to the ivy on the outfield walls to the gigantic hand-operated scoreboard--much has been written about the charms of the Friendly Confines.
Wrigley has also been intrinsically linked to the Cubs' on-field struggles--the bad luck, the curse, the team's inability to win even when victory looked imminent. Until 2016, when it all changed. Wrigley Field, usually dormant by late September, hosted the World Series for the first time since 1945.
Even as the Cubs wrapped up their first championship since 1908 in Cleveland, Wrigley Field was the one that hosted the party for thousands of elated fans. It was the place people visited to bask in the afterglow of that World Series the entire offseason. And though Wrigley is always a star, it shined a little brighter, proving to be as gracious in victory as it always has in defeat.
As we walk through our cities, there are special places that are irresistible. You just have to see them, so you'll go out of your way, leave early for a meeting, or eat lunch in their presence. Sometimes you happen upon them when you aren't looking. These are the recognizable parts of the city--sculptures, bridges, buildings, plazas, or parks, that have a gravitational pull on us.
They aren't our reason for exploring, but are often the final destination.
“Yet once you've come to be part of this particular patch, you'll never love another. Like loving a woman with a broken nose, you may well find lovelier lovelies. But never a lovely so real.”
― Nelson Algren, Chicago: City on the Make
Photography is beautiful because it captures a single moment from a single perspective. The subject can literally be anything the person behind the lens finds interesting. A composition taken from a certain vantage point, focused on a particular element is similar to an abstract painting. It relies on color, tone, pattern, and form to form an expression.
