“Urbs in horto” was an ambitious Chicago motto in the 1830s. Some of the era’s most visionary architects and landscape architects carried it out in neighborhood and lakefront parks, and miles of boulevards.
Their work is explored in “City in a Garden: A Photographic History of Chicago’s Parks” in the Atrium Gallery of the Chicago Architecture Center, 224 S. Michigan Ave., from Jan. 29 through March 31. The free exhibition will be open Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.; and Sunday, 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The exhibition is based on a recent book of the same name. Both feature contemporary photographs by Judith Bromley and James Iska, historic images from the Chicago Park District’s Special Collections, and narrative text by Julia Sniderman Bachrach, park district historian. Bachrach will present a free slide lecture and book signing in the CAC Lecture Hall on Thursday, Jan. 31, at 6 p.m. Bill Kurtis, who wrote the book’s foreword, will introduce the program.
The images and text demonstrate that the park system, like the Loop, boasts many designs by famous architects, some fully restored. In Columbus Park, Jens Jensen’s masterpiece at 500 S. Central Ave., an outdoor stage, wildflowers, stepping stone paths, a “prairie river,” and waterfalls have been restored. William LeBaron Jenney’s Garfield Park (originally Central Park in 1869) is once again famous for its conservatory, currently a complementary setting for a show of Dale Chihuly’s botanical-looking glassworks. Both Jenney and Jensen had a hand in Humboldt Park, which featured a prairie river, rose garden, music court, and boathouse. By contrast, the 1,200-acre Lincoln Park began as a makeshift cemetery for victims of cholera and small pox; its zoo began with the donation of two mute swans from New York’s Central Park.
The exhibition also looks at new parks, like the 1991 Ping Tom Memorial Park built on former railyards in Chinatown.
Reservations are recommended for the author’s lecture on Jan. 31. Call (312) 922-3432, ext. 930.
Printable Version