An apartment rental agency located in the trendy/funky/arty neighborhood of Wicker Park needed a visual representation of the high points of the immediate area to assist them in renting local properties. They contacted me to produce a 20-foot wide mural of the nearby attractions. The dozens of images in this collage include churches, school, restaurants, clubs, signage, nightlife, public spaces, and people simply enjoying the vibrant neighborhood.
In the late fall 2014, the Revival Social Club opened in Chicago’s Edgewater neighborhood. The owners wanted to bring a retro environment to the neighborhood where people could hang out comfortably in a warm and inviting setting. The interior was conceived by Platinum Interior Design of Chicago. The menu features an abundance of breakfast and brunch options, but also an array of enticing comfort food for lunch and dinner. Come hang out for coffee or a drink and you will feel like it’s your own private club. Update: Unfortunately, like so many restaurants in Chicago, this lovely place has closed down.
For the past dozen years, Randolph Street just west of the Loop became the de facto Restaurant Row, fueled by Oprah’s Harpo Studio, the United Center, and a boom in residential development. Now that expansion is exploding onto the nearby Fulton Street Market area making awkward neighbors of the upscale restaurants and the historic meat packing plants and produce markets. With the advent of new restaurants and galleries, rents are rising and the meat and produce companies are feeling the pinch. They provide so much of the character that brought the new tenants to the area in the first place, it would be a shame to have them chased from the neighborhood. Adding to this mix is the soon-to-be-completed Google headquarters and the showplace Morgan Street transit station; growth is inevitable and change is in the air.
Over the past two months I have been photographing commercial real estate for Transwestern. I had the opportunity to shoot office complexes, shopping centers and strip malls in some of the lesser-known Midwest vacation meccas. These include Schaumburg IL, Blaine MN, Columbus IN, and Southfield and Farmington Hills MI.
I photographed this upscale vacation / corporate rental apartment in Chicago’s River North neighborhood for the G2G Collection. What is unique about this company is that it donates a percentage of its income to the charity of your choice. So while you are relaxing on a tropical beach or taking in the view of the Golden Gate Bridge at sunset, you know you are helping underprivileged kids or breast cancer research. This residence has an eye-popping view of downtown Chicago and was located just steps away from the hottest restaurants and clubs.
In the week leading up to St. Patrick’s Day, about two dozen Chicago buildings and icons were illuminated green to showcase Chicago’s Irish pride. This Global GREENing project (locally called ShamROCK Chicago) also saw famous landmarks around the world also lit green, such as the Sydney Opera House and the Eiffel Tower. I was commissioned by Tourism Ireland to document all the local buildings glowing green; an amazing project except that the Chicago winter was cruel that week and my fingers were turning green from frostbite. That might be a lot of Blarney, but these photos are colorful evidence that Chicago is the most Irish city this side of Dublin.
Located in Chicago’s Greektown, Athena has been serving tasty Greek food (“cuisine” might be too extreme) for 17 years. The enclosed patio is one of the biggest attractions, offering a bright and cozy environment in the dead of winter, or a cool respite on those hot summer days, all with a view of Chicago’s skyline. I had the pleasure of photographing Athena recently, and it offered such a nice range of photo possibilities from the warm interior, the colorful central bar, to the cocktails and delicious Greek dishes. The fried calamari will blow you away–best I’ve ever tasted. OPAH !!!
Forty-two stories of sleek black glass have risen between the Hotel InterContinental and the NBC Tower in Chicago’s Streeterville neighborhood. The Optima Chicago Center designed by architect David Hovey commands a strategic location close to Michigan Avenue, Navy Pier, Millennium Park and Chicago’s lakefront. Plus the views are nothing short of breathtaking. I spent a few weeks earlier this month documenting this building from inside and out; it was a joy except for the fact the elevators weren’t working yet. I never realized the 42nd floor was actually up 42 flights of stairs (sound of heavy breathing).
Urban farm, it almost sounds like an oxymoron, but trust me, it isn’t. These farms are sprouting up (no pun intended) all over Chicago and other urban areas, and represent an efficient way to re-purpose under-utilized warehouse space in the city, often in economically distressed areas. Plus, they offer a tremendous opportunity for small-scale organic farmers to ply their trade in a supportive and mega-green environment.
I recently had the occasion to photograph two such urban farms: The Plant and Iron Street Farm. The former calls itself “a net-zero energy vertical farm and food business operation” whose purpose is to “promote closed-loop food production and sustainable economic development through education and research.” Now that’s a mouthful (no pun intended). And the later is a “seven-acre site on Chicago’s south side that produces local, healthy, and sustainable food year-round with a focus on serving, training, and engaging vulnerable populations.” Urban farms produce a wide range of products including cheese, vegetables, mushrooms, honey, beer, compost, and even fish. I suspect when we sang “Old McDonald had a farm” this wasn’t exactly the type of farm we were referring to.
I am fortunate to live just a few blocks from one of the world’s great universities. Students lovingly describe this institution of higher learning as the place where “fun comes to die”. Personally, I think they make this proclamation to mislead their parents so they can justify the $40,000 per year expense. Nestled in the leafy neighborhood of Hyde Park–home of Barack Obama and the first A-Bomb–the university is a mix of Gothic and modern architecture. There are more Nobel Prize winners here than neighborhood bars–how many large universities can make that claim? In fact U of C has the most Nobel winners of any school in the world. The university offers a never-ending subject for my photography as new buildings appear on a regular basis, and each season brings new discoveries.
