Chi-Town Frozen Memories
Beauty in glass, steel and concrete. Strange words for a treehugger, no?
posted by Fouad at 11:35 PM
Welcome to My Lebanese Dream
When all is far, and all is empty, I set sail and dock on a familiar shore, somewhere in my imagination
Wednesday, September 14, 2005
Beauty in glass, steel and concrete. Strange words for a treehugger, no?
11 Comments:
You say:
"Beauty in glass, steel and concrete. Strange words for a treehugger, no?
Strange? I don't think so, for Chicago has some of the most dynamic and dramatic - and beautiful rchitecture of all the cities in the US. ..and even tree huggers can thrill at beauty!!(smile)
First, Chicago was the original professional home of Frank LLoyd Wright. He worked there under a great designer, Louis Sullivan, and produced a heritage of beautiful buildings and homes, including a Unitarian Church building, and the Robie house (one of my favorites).
Thanks to Hitler, Mies van der Rohe
had to leave Germany, so he left his "Bauhaus' and wound up in Chicago at, I believe, the U. of Chi. There he inspired a generation of students and designed some of the most beautiful buildings of the first half of the twenth century! (Mies was a progenitor and proponent of the 'LESS IS MORE' school of architecture.) His buildings also graced Chicago, and helped exand the architectural explosion there.
These architects are just two of the reasons why the architecture in Chicago is so beautiful; thank you for showing some of it with your pictures
barn
Chicago is one of the best cities in the world. I went to University of Chicago, and discovered the myriad facets of that city. Of course, my friends and I also paid homage to our heritage: al-Zeituna restaurant on 63rd and Kedzie was a main hangout, we would drive to Pharaon for argile on Lawrence and Pulaski multiple times a week (the equivalent of driving from Beirut to Saida for a good smoke), and of course Hyde Park's very own Cedars of Lebanon (which is Palestinian owned) which was right down the street from where I lived. It was always cool running into Elijah Muhammad's children (like Walid) when dining there.
I was in Chicago recently, as well. If you read my posts from the US, some were from Chicago.
a treehugger?! Oh I think I'm in love.
barney, thanks for the architectural and historic info. Are you an architect or a walking encyclopedia? :) yeah I am a big fan of architecture in general although I find it somewhat difficult at times to appreciate the architectural subtleties of very large constructions. I have a better taste for houses and relatively small structures. Except when it comes to Chicago where the overall beauty of the constructional ensemble even more so, to my eyes, than the individual buildings, is overwhelming.
L.P, I totally agree. I wish I had the chance to spend more time in the heart of the town and experience all the places you described.
janjoon, in love with a tree or a treehugger? :)
Tree huggers are going to need some 'weaning' to love a cityscape like that.
Great pictures. If you are still in Chicago, may I suggest you try out the best Thai restaurant that I have ever found? Thai Classic on Clark Street, past Belmont. Actually, it's closer to Wrigley Field. The spring rolls are amazing, as is the coconut ice cream. You won't be sorry.
I'm back jane but it doesn't matter. I'm pretty sure there will be a next time, so I'll keep it in mind. Until now, my favorite thai place is thai chili. It's in Atlanta. Hands down the best egg rolls and chicken coconut milk soup I've ever had. I don't know if anything can compare :) Thanks for stopping by. Do come back.
i love trees and then men who hug them...
how strange. I wrote about this in my journal after visiting chi-town.... I wrote of how man made beauty can also take your breath away.
how strange. I wrote about this in my journal after visiting chi-town.... I wrote of how man made beauty can also take your breath away. Beauty is beauty.
Couldn't agree more Aisha. Welcome to my lebanese dream :)
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