Taken on Michigan Avenue in Chicago. Â This statue, immediately recognizable by almost anyone in the civilized world, graces Michigan Avenue near the Chicago River bridge.
I often wonder how iconic Marilyn, and others, would have been had they lived a normal life span. Â Think of Elvis, Buddy Holly, etc. Â Had they lived might their popularity have dimmed somewhat?
Those of you old enough, remember how risqué this photo was thought to bewhen it first appeared?
Had a couple of good days in downtown Chicago while I was up there for the two art shows. Â Gina joined me for three days, and she enjoyed the trip. No town I like better than Chicago. Â Spent a lot of time at the Art Institute, and had a couple of great lunches at local Italian restaurants. Â I especially recommend the Italian Village at 71 W Monroe.
The Art Institute has an exhibit of Marc Chagall’s America Windows. From the Institute’s publicity:
“This fall, after a five-year absence, the Art Institute welcomes the much-anticipated return of one of the most beloved treasures in our vast collection, Marc Chagall’s America Windows. First debuting at the Art Institute in 1977 and made forever famous less than ten years later by an appearance in the film Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, the “Chagall Windows,†as they are more popularly known, hold a special place in the hearts of Chicagoans. Following an intensive period of conservation treatment and archival research, the windows return as the stunning centerpiece of a new presentation at the east end of the museum’s Arthur Rubloff building.”
Absolutely beautiful with the light behind them. Â The photos don’t really do them justice.
Another exhibit was the Soviet propaganda posters from World War II. Â From the Institute:
“Seventy years ago, in the immediate aftermath of the German invasion of the Soviet Union, a group of artists and writers in Moscow joined forces under the auspices of the TASS News Agency to help reassure and rouse the Soviet citizenry by producing large-scale posters—TASS Windows. Despite the brutal regime of Joseph Stalin, creativity flourished among these diverse artists and writers as they attempted to find purpose while working in and for a totalitarian state. Producing a poster design for nearly every day of the war with a labor-intensive technical virtuosity previously unheard of in poster production, these artists committed themselves to the defense of the motherland. In collaboration with the Ne boltai! Collection of 20th-century propaganda, Windows on the War marks the first time these enormous handmade posters have been displayed in the United States since World War II, bringing to the fore many Soviet artists little known in this country.”
Here is an example, a poster extolling Lenin:
A soviet woman supporting the war effort:
More interesting to me were the U.S. posters:
Â
Finally, the most disturbing was a Nazi poster, part of their propaganda campaign against the Jews:
The Nazi characterization of the Jew is pretty obvious from the poster. Â I think that translates as “The Evil Jew.”
Â
More later on a few street scenes.
Â
Â
Â
Â
Â
