Striking Photos Documented Life of African-Americans in Chicago’s South Side in 1941
The Great Migrations from 1910 to 1960 brought millions of African-Americans from the rural South to Chicago, where they became an urban population. The mass exodus radically transformed Chicago, both politically and culturally. Continue reading »
Amazing Vintage Photographs Capture Chicago Night Clubs’ Scene From the Mid-1970s
Between 1975 and 1977, sometimes five nights a week, photographer Michael Abramson traveled from his northern Chicago suburb to the South Side, rambling from nighttime hotspots like Perv’s House and the Five Fingers Social Club to the High Chaparral and the New Jazz Showcase Lounge. Continue reading »
“Compliments of Chicago”: Gang Business Cards from the 1970s and 1980s
In the 1970s and 1980s, gangs in Chicago advertised their presence and membership on business cards. This was criminality with a dash of style and wit. Meet the Almighty Playboys, the Royal Capris, The Almighty Hells Devils and the Almighty Playboys. Or rather, you’ve been met by them, their signature calling card tucked into their victim’s pocket. Continue reading »
Stunning Black and White Photos of Chicago in 1988
“A look at a man plunged into a rugged city in the diversity of his urbanism” is how the sociologist and historian Henri Peretz describes Chicago. Continue reading »
Amazing Color Photos Capture Chicago’s Street Scenes During The Blizzard Of 1979
The Chicago blizzard of 1979 was a major blizzard that affected northern Illinois and northwest Indiana on January 13–14, 1979. It was one of the largest Chicago snowstorms in history at the time, with 21 inches of snowfall in the two-day period. Continue reading »
Architects Have Collaborated To Realize The Transformational Design Of McDonald’s HQ In Chicago
Part corporate headquarters, part cultural center, school and history museum, the new McDonald’s office illustrates the power of place to bring people together in a common purpose. Studio O+A, IA Interior Architects and Gensler have collaborated to realize the transformational design of McDonald’s headquarters located in Chicago, Illinois. Continue reading »
Fascinating Photos of Chicago’s Tri-Taylor Neighborhood From 1971
These photos of the Tri-Taylor neighborhood on Chicago’s Near West Side were taken by Lou Fourcher as a graduate student while participating in the University of Illinois-Chicago’s Valley Project. Continue reading »
Wayne Sorce’s Cityscapes Captured NYC And Chicago In Gorgeous Color
1984. Dave’s Restaurant, New York. IMAGE: WAYNE SORCE/JOSEPH BELLOWS GALLERY
Born in Chicago in 1946, Wayne Sorce studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and went on to have a distinguished career in photography.
In the 1970s and ‘80s, Sorce explored the urban landscapes of New York and Chicago with his large format camera, making precisely balanced compositions of color, geometry, and light that also recorded the era’s particular styles of signage, advertising, and automobile design. Continue reading »
New McDonald’s Building In Chicago Draws Comparisons To Apple Stores
Fast-food chain McDonald’s has replaced its iconic restaurant in Chicago with a building by Ross Barney Architects that is “unlike any in the company’s portfolio”. Continue reading »
Nike Transforms West Side Church In Chicago Into Basketball Facility
A former church has gotten a new lease on life – as a basketball facility. The Church of the Epiphany in the 200 block of South Ashland Avenue was built in 1855, but closed and desanctified in 2011 because of dwindling membership. Earlier in 2018, Nike took over the building and turned it into a world-class basketball facility. Continue reading »
Marvelous Portraits Of Ballerinas Practicing On The Streets Of Chicago By Peter Hinsdale
Awesome street portraits of ballet dancers by Peter Hinsdale a.k.a. chippercentral, a gifted portrait photographer, and retoucher based in Chicago, Illinois. Continue reading »
Photographer Michael Salisbury Visualizes Chicago As An Abandoned City
Chicago is the home of over 2.7 million people, making it the third most-populated city in the U.S. What would the bustling metropolis look if it were abandoned? Continue reading »
Vibrant Photos Of Chicago In 1941 Through The Lens Of Photographer John Vachon
John Vachon/Library Of Congress
In the depths of the Great Depression, the United States government created the Resettlement Administration to help provide relief for drought-stricken and impoverished farmers. The RA was restructured and renamed the Farm Security Administration in 1937. Continue reading »
Chicago From Above: Stunning Drone Photography By Razvan Sera
Razvan Sera is a talented 22-year-old aerial photographer who was born in Romania and currently lives and works in the Chicago suburbs. Razvan has always had a fascination for sharing his unique perspective, and aerial photography offers him the perfect medium to do so. Sera uses DJI Phantom 4 Drone. Continue reading »
Photographer Mike Meyers Captures Melancholic Mood Of Chicago In Dark Photos
Chicago photographer Mike Meyers shot some amazing views of the windy city this winter, capturing unusual ice patterns on Lake Michigan, trains blasting through snow, and skyscrapers swallowed by clouds. Continue reading »
Vietnam Veterans Dog Tag Memorial In Chicago
Photo: Charles Rex Arbogast
At the Harold Washington Library in Chicago is a new art installation called “Above and Beyond” featuring over 58,000 replica dog tags — one for each American soldier killed in the Vietnam War. The dog tags, each hung one inch apart, are suspended from the ceiling from a 410-square-foot rectangle. Each dog tag lists the soldier’s name, military branch and date of death. Nearby is a touch panel display that allows visitors to look up a veteran’s name and find generally where the soldier’s dog tag is hanging. It is the only memorial other than The Wall in Washington, D.C., that lists every individual killed in Vietnam. Continue reading »
Artist Buys Abandoned Chicago Bank to Transform It into Public Arts Center
Till recently, the 17,000 square feet (1,580 square meters) Stony Island Savings & Loan Bank on Chicago’s South Side was just an old, abandoned construction. Built back in the 1920s, it has been vacant since the 1980s and has remained in a deteriorating state for all these years. Who could imagine that this decaying structure would soon become an amazing art center? Continue reading »
Stunning Welding Art By 23-Year-Old Welder From Chicago
Richard Lauth loves to weld. The 23-year-old Chicago resident is a welder-artist and Local 150 ASIP Operating Engineer that has a talent for working with metal: his creative work includes abstract and themed sculpture, decorations, and models. Continue reading »
Orphaned Sea Otter Pup Finds Home in Chicago
Weighing in at just under 6 pounds and at 22.6 inches long, the female pup arrived at Shedd in late October from Monterey Bay Aquarium in California, where she spent the first four weeks of her life being stabilized. The pup has been doing well since her arrival, receiving continual care behind the scenes of Shedd’s Abbott Oceanarium. Currently referred to as “Pup 681”, Shedd’s animal care and veterinarian teams are providing the continual, round-the-clock care she needs to thrive. Photos used with permisson from Shedd Aquarium. (Photos by Brenna Hernandez/AP Photo) Continue reading »
BP Bridge in Millennium Park of Chicago
Clad in brushed stainless steel panels, Frank Gehry’s BP Bridge complements the Jay Pritzker Pavilion in function as well as design by creating an acoustic barrier from the traffic noise below. Connecting Millennium Park to Daley Bicentennial Plaza, east of the park, this 925-foot-long winding bridge, Gehry’s first, provides incomparable views of the Chicago skyline, Grant Park and Lake Michigan. Continue reading »
