very modern: millennium park chicago; what i did on my summer vacation part 3

I know. You wish I would stop. But I can't. You see the problem is, I used to take pictures and put them in albums. Then I took pictures and made scrapbooks. When the digital age happened, I went online and made photo books.

I would make one for every single vacation. And then, one day, I didn't.


I still take lots of pictures. Thousands of pictures, in fact. They are on FaceBook, Instagram, my phone, my computer's hard drive, and, they are on this blog.

The Bean, in Chicago's Millennium Park, is downright spectacular. Its only purpose is to reflect back the beauty of the city and its visitors--in a somewhat distorted manner.

The sculpture is called "Cloud Gate" and is by Anish Kapoor and was constructed between 2004 and 2006. From the knower of all things, Wikpedia:

Kapoor's design was inspired by liquid mercury and the sculpture's surface reflects and distorts the city's skyline. Visitors are able to walk around and under Cloud Gate's 12-foot (3.7 m) high arch. On the underside is the "omphalos" (Greek for "navel"), a concave chamber that warps and multiplies reflections. The sculpture builds upon many of Kapoor's artistic themes, and it is popular with tourists as a photo-taking opportunity for its unique reflective properties.

 Here is the Omphalos.

Fun! Our next stop in Millennium Park was the lakefront, as my son wanted to see Lake Michigan.

We happened upon a sculpture that HAS to be by Orly Genger (much Googling reveals). However, there is no mention of her creating an installation in Grant Park. But it has to be her. Or someone blatantly ripping her off.

Weird huh?

We wandered back to Millennium Park...through Lurie Garden.

...to the famous Gehry bandshell which opened in 2004. Our cousins were waiting for us there (they passed on the trek down to Lake Michigan).

It is really named Jay Pritzker Pavilion after the large donation which convinced Gehry to take the commission. There was a ridiculous couple of local musicians playing head banging music, warming up for the main feature.

But, a massive thunderstorm was just getting ready to unload prior to this picture being taken. Alas, the headliner lady singer didn't even get to finish her first set. We hid in the underground restrooms out of the way of the huge lightening strikes directly to the Sears Tower and several of the other beautiful buildings.

My 15-year-old son had never seen a Midwest lightning storm before. He was suitably impressed (which is saying a lot if you happen to know 15-year-old man boys). A good day--worthy of documentation. Even if it is on a medium as vast and transient as the interweb.

Related Posts

• What We Did on Our Summer Vacation Part Two: Chicago Architectural Boat Tour
• Farnsworth House: Mid-Century Modern Minimalist Miracle