Tag: Art Deco

Art Deco in Chicago

Chicago is full of wonderful Art Deco, I just snapped a lot of photos. I realized that  sharing small close up images is better than the large whole building.P1110112Sometimes you want both most of  building, because it’s so beautiful. Carbide and Carbon building.Carbide and Carbon building, Chicago IllI love the details here so much, of course it’s hard to see until  one looks at a close up of a photograph.P1110114Of course the best way to attract attention to the tower is using gold, real gold leaf.  I took this picture in the late afternoon with the sun shining on the tower which makes it all shimmer like gold.P1100893This fabulous Art Deco fountain is next to the Chicago Board of Trade building. Wow!  Funny the man sitting in the background was confused as to why I was taking pictures. I just said: this is an amazing piece of Art Deco – I think I just confused him more.P1100894 Detail. I wonder if this is made from Mallechort, the same material used on the Oviatt Building here in LA. It looks like silver but it doesn’t tarnish.
P1100848I’m sure many a cattle future were determined in this building. Remember the  Chicago Stockyards? (sort of like Coalinga off the 5 Freeway in central California – just much much larger). What an amazing example of a  graphic Art Deco bull.P1110088Riverside Plaza,  as seen from the wonderful Architecture River cruise.  Once again, I couldn’t see the images well until I cropped the photos.P1110081A small portion of the enormous Chicago Mercantile exchange.P1100785I don’t remember the name of this building, it is on Michigan Ave. in the Magnificent mile.P1100926Art Deco interiors are wonderful as well. Bank America building.  I got yelled at cuz I shot a photo looking into the actual bank floor, this is not it.P1100924Look at the mailbox!!  It looks like an Art Deco building, not like the one it’s in though. Notice the lights in the high-rise? That lets you know where the elevator cars are. Function and beauty working very well together.P1100854Back in the Rookery, the elevator lobby was updated in the 20s to Art Deco style. Wonderful lamp as well as the elevator doors that are decorated with birds. Anything to get the idea of Rookery to stick.P1100889This one even has owls!P1100878How cool is this! Also in the Rookery, on the third floor, a perfect frame for the elevator buttons.

I’m breaking up my Chicago images, there was so much to see and to share.

Leah

Art Deco on Wilshire Blvd.

For my 36th anniversary (how did that ever happen! (Ok let’s say I got married at 15), Joel got me a new IPad. I had been using the original first generation, no camera, super slow.  I am having so much fun! I went to Mood to buy fabric (more about that in another post).  I’ve been thinking of the many pictures I can take in this city, having my iPad with me, as well as a good 45 minutes on the meter I went exploring. Desmond dept storeThis is the corner of Wilshire and La Brea, big busy intersection. I have no idea if Samsung still has anything to do with this incredible Art Deco, but their big blue sign sure disrupts the view. In the 1930’s Los Angeles was marching westward. This section of Wilshire is known as the miracle mile, it used to all be Art Deco. This was Desmond’s Dept store, this being the heyday of such stores. imageView from the front.imageRight across the street is this new mixed use building. As wonderful as Art Deco is, it can’t all be saved. Btw, this is what we use umbrellas for here, as sun protection.The DecoRight next door to the Desmond is this wonderful little gem known as The Deco.imageWonderful details, this little jewel was designed by Stiles O. Clements, maybe he had leftover tile from the Atlantic Richfield building downtown. That masterpiece was torn down in the 70’s when people were completely bored with Art Deco. So having this small example around is wonderful. image
The black and gold  in the ARCO building represented black gold – oil.  Which is why I think he must have had some left over, just enough for a small building.imageLike most of these buildings, the public facade is gorgeous, the side of the building, drab, and utilitarian. I went inside and asked to take pictures. I was told that wasn’t posible, I was very polite and commended them for taking such good care of this gem.imageA block up, on La Brea one can see this wonderful tower, View from Sycamore Ave over the roofs of old Spanish style homesimageToday this is a modern bistro, For years it was Campanile, and before that, an office building built in 1929 by Charlie Chaplin.  His studios were just up the street. imageOnce again, drab side but a nice view of the tower.

Leah