Chicago Favorite Tips by deecat Top 5 Page for this destination

Harold Washington Library Center

Favorite thing: Harold Washington Library Center is Chicago's CENTRAL OR MAIN library which is named for the late Harold Washington [Chicago's first African American mayor, 1983-1987]/

Allan & I visited it recently and were astounded by its size & scope. It was opened to the public in 1991, costing $144 million dollars. It covers one full city block & is the largest municipal library building in the world!. Thomas Beeby of Hammond, Indiana, designed the building after his office won the competition held in the late 1980s to build a new central library in Chicago.

I learned so much visiting this architecture giant. It's open 7 days a week [Monday-Thursday: 9:00 AM-7:00 PM; Friday & Saturday: 9:00 AM-5:00 PM; Sunday: 1:00 PM-5:00 PM] and has over 9 million books, publications, collections, & microforms. Surprisingly, to me, I discovered that it is one of Chicago's top tourist attractions.

Loving architecture so much, I was fascinated by this neo-classical building that is anchored at the base by granite blocks. It's quite obvious that this structure was built to last. It has 5-story-tall arched windows that are linked together by cast stone ornamentation. In 1993, 7 ornaments were added to the roof [placed on the 4 corners. I noticed that the Plymouth Court side is a glass wall above the base.

I was literally overwhelmed by the interior & its massive lobby with a mosaic mural called "Events in the Life of Harold Washington". Also on this first level is the POPULAR LIBRARY that features current titles from bestsellers and biographies.

The SECOND FLOOR has a walkway above the main lobby and is a gallery of artworks by Chicago painters.Be sure to see the Thomas Hughes Children's Library on the SECOND FLOOR. He was a British author who was so moved by the Chicago Fire of 1871 that he organized an English campaign to collect books for Chicago. It turned out to be 8,000 volumes and was the beginning of the Chicago Public Library!

Fondest memory: For general information, you need to go to the THIRD FLOOR. There is a reference desk, the Interlibrary Loan Service, voter registration, computer Commons, newspapers, periodicals, and U.kS. telephone directories.

We also visited the FOURTH FLOOR with the Business/Technology Division.

If you need Socail Science periodicals and microforms, talking books, or government publications, then visit the FIFTH FLOOR.

Education, sociology, history, religion, psychology, philosophy, biography, genealogy, TRAVEL, parapsychology, and Chicago history are on the SIXTH FLOOR.

THE SEVENTH FLOOR was exciting for me, of course. It is Literature & Language Department with the largest collection of literature and fiction in the Midwest. They have a great Teen Edition section.

On the EIGHTH FLOOR, we discovered the Visual and Performing Arts Department. It has an Art Information Center, Music Information Center, piano practice rooms, chamber music rehearsal room, and a Listening/Viewing Center.

Oh, joy...on the NINTH FLOOR, you can enter the Winter Garden, a public space that rises over 100 feet through the TENTH FLOOR to a skylight. You can rent this space for special events. If you want info on Civil War, Chicago Theater, 1893 & 1933 World's Fairs, Chicago Neighborhood history as well as the Chicago Public Library Archives, this is the place for you.

I almost forgot to tell about the LOWER LEVEL and its 385-seat auditorium, an exhibit hall, a video theater, & meeting rooms!

Excellent Anniversary Present

Favorite thing: For our 44th and 45th Wedding anniversaries, our daughter Jill gave my husband Allan and I gift certificates for an hour massage for each of us at MARIO TRICOCI in Chicago

In August of 2008, as part of our continual quest for good health, Allan and I walked 17 blocks from our hotel near Millennium Park to the Tricoci Spa at 900 North Michigan Avenue. The added benefit is that we really enjoyed the luxury of the massages between the walk there and back to the hotel!

This is a beautiful spa with outstanding services. We were escorted to the spa area, given instructions and led to the appropriate dressing rooms. We were given lockers and instructed how to use the lock. Inside was a huge robe and sandals. After changing into the robe and shoes, we met at the "waiting area" and sat on a comfortable couch where soft music was playing; water and juices were provided. This year Allan and I were put into the same room, and we each had females who gave us the Swedish Massage.

After being arranged correctly on the massage table, the extraordinary Swedish Massage began.
What a treat it was....it is so relaxing and creates better blood circulation.

After the massage was done, the available services include:

A steam room
A "rain-forest' shower
A quiet room for relaxation
juice drinks

In the Relaxation room, Alland and I talked about this wonderful experience and how much we appreciated this lovely gift.

Fondest memory: Other services that are available at Mario Tricoci would be:
Manicures
Pedicures
Facials
Hair Design
Makeup Services
Nail Enhancements
Glycolic Peels
Microdermabrasion
Collagen injections
Body Polishes
Masks and Therapeutic Wraps
Waxing Services

Also available are Classic Spa Packages which include a basic manicure, basic pedicure, and a Swedish Massage

It certainly would be "heaven" to have such a massage once a week [dream on, Dee]

Lake Point Tower

Favorite thing: For many years (since the 70's), I've admired Lake Point Tower apartment building near Navy Pier. Believe it or not, although it was built about 1967-1968, the concept began about 50 years earlier.

How? Well, famed architect, Mies van der Rohe in about 1921 made plans for a glass-clad tower for offices made of free, curving forms. That building was never built because he could not find financing for it.

However, the actual architects associated with Lake Point Tower were former students of Mies at the Illinois Institute of Technology. Some of them actually worked in his practice.

This is a sleek, very sophisticated tower that, at one time, was a lone sentinel in Navy Pier Park. At the time that it was built, Navy Pier was at its low and in disrepair, horribly neglected. Of course today after a $200-million investment of public funds, Navy Pier, is now one of Chicago's most popular attractions.

Fondest memory: Lake Point Tower Apartments is really tall (645-feet high). There are 900 very expensive apartments here. Atop the building is the exclusive Citi Restaurant (We ate dessert with coffee there once, and the bill was over $40.00!)

The building really has only one wall, and it is a completely smooth curtain of glass that literally flows around "a 3-lobed, clover-leaf plan with a central, triangular core."

I remember the the 1970's going there to see one of our neighbor's grandparents, and I was awe-struck...I still am today!

From Morton International to Boeing International History, Architecture, & Landmarks Review

Favorite thing: Originally the Morton International building and now the Boeing International Headquarters, this 1990 structure has unusual exposed roof trusses that support the south end of the building as well as adding a decorative touch intended to reflect the architecture of the river bridges.

It is located between Randolph and Washington Streets at 100 North Riverside Plaza.

It's a 36-story mixed-use skyscraper. This site presented many challenges to the architect, Ralph Johnson. The location is long, narrow, irregular. In addition, it is bounded by the Chicago River on the east. But, the biggest obstacle was the passage through the site by the Metra commuter railroad line!
They literally had to build over existing railroad tracks and rights-of way.

The building uses simple rectilinear blocks with geometric patterns on gray granite, glass, and metal exterior. The blocks are connected by a pedestrian arcade of 15-foot repeating columns and by a cool clocktower that is placed asymmetrically toward the northern end of the building.

Fondest memory: "Since structural columns could not be placed where the train tracks curved, a rooftop truss was used to redistribute loads."

Thus, there is an exposed form that reflects the structure of the nearby Chicago River bridges.
According to city mandates, there must be public access to the riverfront; thus, a linear park at the river's edge was retained with stairways leading to it from the street level.

It's not my favorite building by far; however, I do admire what the architect had to do to overcome all the difficulties of the site.

311 South Wacker Drive Building History, Architecture, & Landmarks Review

Favorite thing: For the longest time, I wondered what was the name of the building with the glass cylinder crowning its tower and lighting up the Chicago Skyline. I found out on the Architectural River Tour. It's the 311 South Wacker Drive Building!

It stands in the shadow of the legendary Sears Tower, but it's almost as popular with locals. This 65-story building is the tallest reinforced concrete structure in the world!

It's one of three projected sixty-five story buildings designed for the block adjacent to the Sears Tower. (The other two have not been built).

I love the red/pink granite cladding and its brightly lit glass cylinder crowning its tower. It looks good in the sunlight and the moonlight.

The main entrance to the complex is a barrel-vaulted winter garden that fronts on Wacker and leads into the tower. There are giant palm trees, a waterfall, and a restaurant. Glass galleries run to the north and southeast from the glass-enclosed interior garden.

The octagonal tower is above the fifty-first floor; the midsection is rectangular; the base has an irregular shape. All these elements of design were bound together by repeating the horizontal banding at the BASE of the thirteenth and forty-sixth floors.

Fondest memory: I think that 311 South Wacker Drive is the most striking element in the city's western skyline. I certainly think that it compliments the starkness of the Sear Tower.

The Journey is Worth the Effort

Favorite thing: It had been literally years since Allan and I had visited the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry. It is such a long trip for us. We live in the northern suburbs, and the museum is on the far south side of Chicago. But, we knew we just had to see the great special exhibition called Body Worlds.

So, we drove to Andersonville on the north side, parked our car and walked two blocks to the red line. It goes all the way to 95th South. We got off at Garfield and took the #55 bus to the Museum. I would suggest taking the #10 bus from various locations in the city; it's much easier.

The Museum is MASSIVE. We had purchased tickets to the museum and the Omnimas Presentation of Human Body. We were about 13 minutes late, but they let us in. It's quite an informative film. But, we did not have tickets to the exhibit and the lines were quite long. Allan went up to one of the ticket people and asked for just tickets to the exhibit and got them for 3:45 pm. We had one and a half hours til then. We ate a small lunch at the food court and then went to see all the free exhibits.
Body Worlds is an anatomical exhibition of REAL human bodies presented by Gunther von Hagen. The exhibition features more than 200 authentic human specimens ["entire bodies, individual organs and transparent body slices"]. von Hagens replaces bodily fluids and fat with special reactive polymers, and then the plastinated specimens are dry and ordorless. This shows how the body workds when it is healthy and what happens when it is not healthy.

People donated their bodies upon death with the stipulation that they would remain anonymous.

We also saw the Train World, the petroleum world, the submarine, the old-fashioned town, and several other small exhibitions. It takes an entire day to enjoy the museum.

Fondest memory: The Museum of Science and Industry is located at 57th Street and Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60637-20933.

To make reservations to see any special exhibit call:
(773)684-1414 or visit msichicago.org

Sculpture Tour of Chicago's Loop Area Art Displays Review

Favorite thing: Each yr when I taught Freshman Honors English at WTHS in Gurnee, IL., the History teacher & I took our students on a field trip to the loop. I would take my group on a Sculpture Tour starting at the Richard J. Daley Civic Center Plaza on Washington Street between Dearborn & Clark.

Here, we would admire the Pablo Picasso "Untitled" sculpture which he donated to the city. It is 50 feet tall & made of steel [installed 1967] & most people in Chicago just call it "The Picasso". Some people say it looks like a woman; others say it looks like Picasso's hound, Kaboul. It's great & has now become an unofficial logo of Chicago.

Across the street next to the Brunswick Building at 69 West Washington street is a 39-foot statue of steel, concrete, wire mesh, bronze, & ceramic tiles which we refer to as Miro's Chicago. It symbolizes a great earth mother. One year I had a blind student, & she loved the bronze plaque with the raised outline of the sculpture which allowed her to "see" it.

Walk one block north along Clark Street to the James R. Thompson Center at 100 West Randolph St. to see Jean Dubuffet's "Monument with Standing Beast". It's made of fiberglass & stands 30 feet high. People enter it..so it's interactive. It has 4 motifs: animal, tree, portal, & Gorthic Church. {By the way, don't miss the inside of the Thompson Center & ride the glass-sided elevator & get a picture from the rotunda to the top!]

Since I taught Ancient Myths, I always pointed out 120 N. LaSalle St. & its colorful mosaic by Roger Brown at the entrance that is called "Art & Science of the Ancient World: The flight of Daedalus & Icarus".

The boys always love the work on the southeastern corner of Madison & Wells at the Paine Webber Tower at 181 W. Madison. In the lobby, you find two piece of low-relief sculptures fabricated from magnesium & aluminum, etched & painted by Frank Stella & are part of his Moby Dick series.

Fondest memory: Two blocks to the west & south of Madison Plaza, enter the atrium lobby of the Sears Tower, 233 S. Wacker Dr. to see the moving wall sculpture of giant twirling flowers, spinning sun, & swinging pendulum by Alexander Calder called "The Universe"

Next door at 311 S. Wacker you can see Raymond Kaskey's "Gem of the Lakes". It's a traditional bronze fountain and sculpture..it's located in what's called the Wintergarden, 12,000 sq. ft. under an arched, multi-paned glass roof [85 ft high].

Follow Van Buren east to the One Financial Place Plaza at 440 S. LaSalle to see a bronze horse made by Ludovico de Luigi called "San Marco II". He used as his model a set of 4 horses at St. Mark's Masilica in Venice. His horse is posed in midstride atop a fountain outside the headquarters of the Chicago Stock Exchange.

On the northeaster corner of Jackson Blvd & Clark is a sculpture called "RuinsII" by Nita Sunderland [concrete and bronze]. It's not large, but very impressive.

Farther east on Jackson is the Federal Center Plaza, fronting Dearborn St. A vermilion-colored construction stretches across the pavement & is called "Flamingo" by Alexander Calder.

On Dearborn walk 2 blocks north to northwest-corner at Monroe [First National Plaza] is my favorite: "The Four Season" by Marc Chagall. It's a concrete monolith covered in mosaic of pastel-colored stone & glass. There are 6 scenes of Chicago. It's just wonderful!

MORE ON NEXT PAGE!

Sculpture Tour of Chicago's Loop Area II Art Displays Review

Favorite thing: Photo is not mine; it was take from the archives

Continuing the tour of sculptures in the Loop Area

The students were always surprised when I showed them "Lines in Four Directions" by Sol Lewitt that is located in a small inlet across from a building at 19 W. Jackson Blvd. This relief sculpture is nearly 8 stories high on the brick wall of a small building that faces the east facade of the Federal Building. You'll see a screen of white-painted aluminum slats that are arranged in geometric patterns which project 2 inches from the wall. They are divided into 4 equal section.

Go back to the Chagall "Four Seasons" and proceed north 2 blocks; 2 blocks east along Randolph St. Cross Michigan Aven; walk to 200 E. Randolph St. Here, you will find on both the east & west sides of the Amoco Building Plaza, a pair of environmental sculptures that were designed by Harry Bertoia called "Untitled Sounding Sculpture". These sculptures are made of thin copper rods; they stand upright in a reflecting pool & are activated by wind; then they vibrate at different frequencies that produce musical sounds. It's supposed to resemble fields of wheat blowing in the wind.

Return to Michigan Ave. & walk south; on the park side between Madison & Monroe is a great monument...it's the statue of Alexander Hamilton. It's a larger-than-life figure that has been here since 1918 Bela Lyon Pratt is the sculptor. Hamilton symbolizes America's modern capitalism. Many people pass this statue and take little notice of it, but I think that it is magnificent.

Fondest memory: Across Monroe Street at the foot of the Art Institute [Stanley McCormick Memorial Court], you'll see a tall bronze sculpture, "Large Interior Form" by Henry Moore. Experts say that "it explores the sensuality inherent in natural forms, an infatuation at the core of Moore's lifelong curiosity to understand 'what three-dimensionality is all about' ". I don't know if I really understand that concept, but I do know that I admire the sculpture.

One of the longest names for a sculpture in Chicago is called "Celebration of the 200th Anniversary of the Founding of the Republic" by Isamu Noguchi, It's located on the east facade of the Art Institute complex at Columbus Drive between Monroe St. & Jackson Drive. This relief was installed in 1976 to commemorate the American Bicentennial. It's really a stylized fountain that "integrates a Japanese garden with the precision of modern technology." This work is shaped from "3-million-year-old rainbow granite quarried in Minnesota. Besides the pool, there are an upright, L-shaped pillar & a low cylinder, split down the midddle; water flows through both of these into the surrounding basin. The pillar represents a tree, & the cylinder represents a natural spring.

I end the tour with Lorado Taft's fountain sculpture called "The Fountain of the Great Lakes" At the rear of the Art Institute courtyard on Michigan Avenue near Jackson Drive. He uses 5 classical female figures who carry conch shells that are positioned so that water flows from one shell to another. The artists describes the 5 women as the 5 Great Lakes, and he says, " 'Superior' on high and 'Michigan' on the side both empty into the basin of 'Huron' who sends the stream to 'Erie' whence 'Ontario' receives it.." This is a must see sculpture for anyone who knows and loves the Great Lakes.

Hope you enjoyed these two tips on the small sculpture tour of the loop that I used to give my students on their annual field trip.

Losing Another of Chicago's Finest

Favorite thing: Another loss for Chicago. The famed Carson Pirie Scott department store on State Street is closing [all the other Carson stores remain open]. The parent company [Bon-Bon Stores, Inc.] decided that this fabulous Louis Sullivan masterpiece for over a century was just not profitable enough; thus, it would be closed.

Rumor has it that "floors three and above will be converted to offices, but the lowest two floors will be preserved for retail use." I've also heard that some of the top floors will be used as residences. Who knows.

Joseph Freed and Associates bought the property and just spent millions restoring Sullivan's original recessed top floor arcade and cornice. Thank goodness.

I am so upset by this closure because it leaves too much room for the present owners to make the retail space a kind of "cookie cutter kind of chain store" where all of Sullivan's "sea of columns topped by ornate capitals" would be replaced. Now, that would, indeed, be a crime.

Yes, I know, the so-called "Big Box retailers do bring in people and profit but without any class. Carson's State Street Store brought architectual beauty and a kind of midwest elegance to Chicago. Hopefully, those in power will not take those positives away.

Fondest memory: Carson Pirie Scott & Co was started in 1854 by two Scotch-Irish immigrants. By 1940, the store had moved into the present Louis Sullivan-designed building at State and Madison. By 1991, the store [owned then by a Milwaukee-based subsidiary of a Swiss company] went through bankruptcy but reemerged with new owners. At that time, I thought things would improve for the State Street Carsons. But, alas, it did not.

What I like about the State Street store is that it is a great example of Louis Sullivan's work as a commercial architect. Sullivan designed the first phase of the building, which was a nine-story building. Today, it is a National Historic Landmark because of its elaborate ironwork ornament on the 1st and 2nd floor facades. The steel structure was remarkable because it allowed an huge increase in window area. I also love the rounded tower. Sullivan designed the corner entry so that it could be seen from both State and Madison streets. Sullivan is famous for merging beauty and function, which he did so well when he designed this building.

Carson, Pirie, Scott and Company has been around for more than 150 years...too bad this beautiful Sullivan structure at State and Madison will no longer be affliated with that grand old store.

Great Performers of Illinois, Millennium Park Local Specialities Review

Favorite thing: While Allan and I were in Chicago celebrating our 44th anniversary, we just had to visit Chicago's Millennium Park [located between Michigan Avenue, Columbus Drive, Randolph and Monroe Streets] It just so happened that on August 10-12, 2007, "Great Performers of Illinois" was being presented for FREE. It was presented as a showcase of the State of Illinois's diverse performing arts, foods, wines, and attractions. This is the second year that this activity has been held. It included music, dance, poetry, cuisine, children's program, and storytelling.

You can take a free park tour with Millennium Park Greeters. You could also taste regional foods and wines from Illinois.

There were presentations at origley Square Stage [pop music] and Grant Park Music Festival-Mahler, Symphony No. 5 at Jay Pritzker Pavilion.

The next day many musical events were planned. One of the most interesting, I thought, was Mr. and Mrs. Abraham Lincoln circulating throughout the park so that you could stop and talk to them. [Fritz and Linda Klein].

At the McCormick Tribune Plaza [2-8 pm] they would have Illinois wine tasting.

Sunday was also jam-packed with more events. I noticed that on all three days, they had several events just for children and a huge tent where kids could go to do crafts.

Fondest memory: Photographs:

1. People enjoying the symphony from the Great Lawn. Many brought their own food.

2. Jay Pritzker Pavilion with Conductor Carlos Kalmar and the Grant Park Orchestra performing Mahler's Symphony No. 5.

3. So many children were playing at the Crown Fountain...laughing, running, splashing, and we observers were smiling the entire time.

4. Close up of the inter-active Crown Fountain.

5. A reflection on the outside of "Cloud Gate" Sculpture of the buildings across from Millennium Park on Michigan Avenue.