Name Those Sculptures
The Chicago downtown is home to modern outdoor sculptures by Plensa, Calatrava, Picasso, Miro, Dubuffet, Calder, Chagall, and Kapoor. If you’re a Chicagoan (or a sculpture buff), can you match each artist with the name of their downtown Chicago masterpiece?
You can scroll down and check your answers.
Santiago Calatrava—Constellation at River Point office building, 444 W. Lake St.
Jaume Plensa—Crown Fountain at Millennium Park, 201 E. Randolph St., between Michigan Avenue and Columbus Avenue.
Pablo Picasso—The Picasso at the Art Institute of Chicago, 50 W. Washington St.
Joan Miro—“Miss Chicago” at the Brunswick Building Plaza, 69 W. Washington St.
Jean Dubuffet—Monument with Standing Beast at the James R. Thompson Center, 100 W. Randolph St.
Alexander Calder—Flamingo at the Federal Plaza, 50 W. Adams St.
Marc Chagall— The Four Seasons at the Chase Tower Plaza, 10 S. Dearborn St.
Anish Kapoor—Cloud Gate aka “The Bean” at Millennium Park 201 E. Randolph St., between Michigan Ave. & Columbus Ave.
Calatrava’s Constellation
The Spanish-Swiss Calatrava is an architect and an artist. Even Calatrava’s buildings are sculptural. His Milwaukee Art Museum and The Oculus in New York City are both incredible works of art. Constellation is his November 2020 contribution to Chicago.
Milwaukee Art Museum by Calatrava from blogspot.com
The Oculus in NYC by Calatrava from designboom.com
Constellation was commissioned by Ivanhoe, Cambridge, Hines, and Levy Family Partners. Constructed in aluminum in Cleveland, the sculpture stands 29 feet in height and width. It twists in an outward reaching spiral of overlapping leaflike elements that decrease in size as it ascends.
When asked about the sculpture, Calatrava said his intention was to simply have it grow from the ground. And it certainly does. The massive, layered spiral connotes both depth and movement. It fits beautifully in the 1.5-acre River Point Park facing the arching façade of the 52-story, 730-foot River Point Tower.
The Shot
In the spring, I was in Chicago with my drone photographing the Polar Plunge. With one battery remaining, I relocated to Wolf Point, at the intersection of the East, North, and South branches of the Chicago River downtown.
Initially, the elevated trains on the Lake Street bridge seemed to be a good subject. But then I caught sight of the mesmerizing Constellation. My favorite image framed a pedestrian in one of the colorful loops.
Thanks for looking,
Chuck Derus