Monday, July 30, 2012

Navy Pier [ USS Chicago Anchor]


USS Chicago Anchor
Location: Navy Pier [East end]







The plaque reads..
This 8 ton anchor is from the third warship named after the City of Chicago. The first "Chicago" was part of the Great White Fleet and saw service from 1889 to 1928. The second was commissioned in 1931, and after distinguished service in WW II was sunk by enemy action in 1943 in the Guadalcanal area. The third "Chicago" from which this anchor was salvaged, was commissioned in 1945 as a heavy cruiser, and after WW II action was converted to a guided missle cruiser (CG-11). She saw service in Vietnam and received the Navy Unit Commendation. She was 671 feet long with a 71 foot beam, and displaced 17,700 tons. She was decommissioned in 1980. This anchor is dedicated as a memorial to each ship named "Chicago" and to the thousands of men and women who served their nation in maritime service.




The USS Chicago anchor.
In the background is a Chicago landmark Bldg. Navy Pier Headhouse and Auditorium. For more on this, click here.. 









Sunday, July 29, 2012

Temporary Exhibit: Navy Pier [BIGart 2012]


Brushstroke Group - by Roy Lichtenstein
1987
Painted and fabricated aluminum
360 x 210 x 108 in.


BIGart at Navy Pier
Temporary Exhibit: May to October 2012.
Location: Gateway Park, Navy Pier

BIGart at Navy Pier, an annual, free outdoor art exhibition.  For this year’s exhibition, Navy Pier is pleased to partner with the Gagosian Gallery to display the artistic talent of world-renowned artist Roy Lichtenstein. A signature Lichtenstein sculpture – Brushstroke Group – is one of the sculptures on display. 


Brushstroke Group - by Roy Lichtenstein
1987
Painted and fabricated aluminum
360 x 210 x 108 in.
For more.. click here..




Blazon - by Anthony Caro
1987-90
Steel painted red, unique
139 x 113 x 59 in.
For more.. click here..



Monochrome for Chicago - by Nancy Rubins
2012
Aluminum boats, stainless steel armature, stainless steel wire cable
19 x 34 x 36 ft.
For more, .. click here..



Face Off (Facade Box I & II) - by Almond Zigmund
2012
Foam, aqua resin, acrylic, wood, steel
8’ x 16’ x 12’
For more..  click here..




Galloon - by Steed Taylor
2012
Carefully painted in yellow on asphalt
Approximately 23 x 640 ft.
For more.. click here..


 

ChiTown - by Gajin Fujita
2012 /  15 x 120 ft
Spray paint mural on concrete
For more, click here..
 
 
 
Lust/ Rust/ Dust [after Robert Indiana] - by Alexis Smith
2012 / Enamel paint on MDO panel
40 ft. 6 in. x 13 ft. 10 in.
For more.. click here..

RELATED LINKS..
Brushstroke Group - by Roy Lichtenstein.. click here..
Blazon - by Anthony Caro.. click here..
Monochrome for Chicago - by Nancy Rubins.. click here..
Face Off (Facade Box I & II) - by Almond Zigmund .. click here..
Galloon - by Steed Taylor.. click here..
ChiTown - by Gajin Fujita.. click here..
Lust/Rust/Dust - by Alexis Smith .. click here..

Saturday, July 28, 2012

BIGart 2012: Temporary Exhibit at Navy Pier [Brushstroke Group - by Roy Lichtenstein]


Brushstroke Group - by Roy Lichtenstein
1987
Painted and fabricated aluminum
360 x 210 x 108 in.
 
 
One of the sculptures as part of.. BIGart at Navy Pier
Temporary Exhibit: May to October 2012.
Location: Gateway Park, Navy Pier
For the other sculptures and murals, click here..



 


 


RELATED LINKS..
BIGart 2012 at Navy Pier.. click here..

BIGart 2012: Temporary Exhibit at Navy Pier [Monochrome II Chicago - by Nancy Rubens]

Monochrome for Chicago - by Nancy Rubins
2012
Aluminum boats, stainless steel armature, stainless steel wire cable
19 x 34 x 36 ft.

One of the sculptures as part of.. BIGart at Navy Pier
Temporary Exhibit: May to October 2012.
Location: Gateway Park, Navy Pier
For the other sculptures and murals, click here..

BIGart at Navy Pier, an annual, free outdoor art exhibition. For this year’s exhibition, Navy Pier is pleased to partner with the Gagosian Gallery to display the artistic talent of world-renowned artist Roy Lichtenstein. A signature Lichtenstein sculpture – Brushstroke Group – is one of the sculptures on display.




RELATED LINKS 
BIGart 2012: Temporary Exhibit at Navy Pier.. click here..

BIGart 2012: Temporary Exhibit at Navy Pier [Face Off - by Almond Zigmund]

Face Off (Facade Box I & II) - by Almond Zigmund
2012
Foam, aqua resin, acrylic, wood, steel
8’ x 16’ x 12’

One of the sculptures as part of.. BIGart at Navy Pier
Temporary Exhibit: May to October 2012.
Location: Gateway Park, Navy Pier
For the other sculptures and murals, click here..



 




RELATED LINKS..
BIGart 2012: Temporary Exhibit at Navy Pier.. click here..

BIGart 2012: Temporary Exhibit at Navy Pier [Blazon - by Anthony Caro]

 
Blazon - by Anthony Caro
1987-90
Steel painted red, unique
139 x 113 x 59 in.
 
 
One of the sculptures as part of.. BIGart at Navy Pier
Temporary Exhibit: May to October 2012.
Location: Gateway Park, Navy Pier
For the other sculptures and murals, click here..
 
 



 
RELATED LINKS..
BIGart 2012: Temporary Exhibit at at Navy Pier..  click here

BIGart 2012: Temporary Exhibit at Navy Pier [Galloon - by Steed Taylor]

 
 
Galloon - by Steed Taylor
2012
Carefully painted in yellow on asphalt
Approximately 23 x 640 ft.
 
One of the sculptures as part of.. BIGart at Navy Pier
Temporary Exhibit: May to October 2012.
Location: Gateway Park, Navy Pier
For the other sculptures and murals, click here..
 
 
 
 

 
RELATED LINKS..
BIGart 2012: Temporary Exhibit at Navy Pier .. click here..

BIGart 2012: Temporary Exhibit at Navy Pier [ChiTown - by Gajin Fujita]





ChiTown - by Gajin Fujita
2012 /  15 x 120 ft
Spray paint mural on concrete


One of the murals as part of.. BIGart at Navy Pier
Temporary Exhibit: May to October 2012.
Location: Grand Avenue viaduct wall under the Lake Shore Drive.
For the other sculptures and murals, click here..



 
Fujita uses Chicagoans' passion for their favourite sports team as a way to delibrately draw people into the art. Here's mural details from one left to right..











 


 
It reads..
Art can imitate life in unexpected ways with stunning results. Mural artist Gajit Fujita, Japanese American and native of Los Angeles,  used dozens of spray paint cans and inspiration from graffiti to create this bold ChiTown for the BIGart Exhibition at Navy Pier, here at the Grand Avenue viaduct wall under the Lake Shore Drive.

Fajita never knows what the final work will look like until it's done. He works from a rough idea that evolves as he works on the piece. Chitown is a work that combines Fujita's style [a mixture of traditional Japanese imagery, pop culture and contemporary graffiti art] and his passion to connect art to people experiencing it. Fujita does that and more in ChiTown by using all Chicagoans' passion for their favourite sports team as a way to delibrately draw people into the art.

"I've never worked on anything that long of a scale", Fujita said, "I'd like to conquer that ,  be midfuil to make the people of Chicago interested and happy about art. I like to reference things from my heritage and fuse them together. "

Curatot Dave Hickey is excited to bring all the  works of BIGart to the extraordinary setting of Navy Pier. "It's an opportunity to display public art and expand the whole idea of what you can put outdoors", Hickey said.

ChiTown is a part of BIGart at Navy Pier. BIGart is a free public celebration of the outdoor art.

RELATED LINKS..
BIGart 2012 at Navy Pier.. click here..

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Blog Views [July 26, 2012]



Blogviews, averaging roughly about 1,000 a day..
And this has been throughout the year 2012..
There are 850 published posts.. Mostly there are images from Chicago, but also some neighbouring  places and  places I visit in my vacations. What I love the most, is meeting with sculptors, going to foundaries and fabrication sites, and documenting installations.

I would like to make this blog,  as comprehensive as possible
If you are a Chicago sculptor, I would love to meet you..

Facebook forms a very small proportion in the Referring sites..
So the audience is much more than my FB friends, which I am very happy about!




Weekly Referring Sites [click on image to enlarge]



All-Time Referring Sites [click on image to enlarge]

There have been times, when blogviews have crossed, 2,000 or even 3,000 on a single day, click here..

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Leonard Crunelle [Various sculptures]




One of the hidden treasures of Chicago is a set of four figure fountains in the Grant Park, "Dove Girl, Turtle Boy, Crane Girl, Fisher Boy" .. by Leonard Crunelle .. click here..

Fascinating art and an inspiring life-story ..
Analogous to the rags-to-riches story is the coal-mines to art-circles story .. The story of Leonard Crunelle who was born in a coal miner family in Northern France and grew up to become a reputed sculpture, with works displayed in many art exhibitions around the world .. His family emigrated to Brazil, Indiana in 1882, when he was ten yeard old .. Soon they moved to Decatur, Illinois. Leonard helped his father in coal mining since the age of ten.. He went school in Decature, where his teachers noticed his drawing skills, and that was his opening to the world of art..

Shortly before the Columbian Exposition in Chicago, Lorado Taft delivered a lecture in Decature. After his address, some teaches of the town showed him the drawings made by Leonard ... Lorado Taft was impressed and took him under his tutelage. Soon Leonard started helping Lorado in the preparation of Columbian Exposition/World's Fair at Jackson Park .. After the Fair, Leonard took whatever daytime jobs he could get and attended the Art Institute night classes.

Soon he flourished as a artist. His speciality was making children's sculptures .. many times he used his own four children as models. His children helped him in making statues, the same way he helped his father in coal mines ..

Some of Leonardo Crunelle's works are:
Crane Girl, Fisher Boy, Dove Girl and Turtle Boy - by Leonard Crunelle.. click here..
Heald Square Monument [started by Lorado taft, completed by Leonard Crunelle] click here..
Victory Monument - by Leonard Crunelle..  click here..
Richard J. Oglesby - by Leonard Crunelle click here..
Baby Marguerite - by Leonard Crunelle [Oregon Public Library]
Sakakawea [North Dakota] - by Leonard Crunelle [This is at the National Statutory Hall, of the U.S. Capitol Bldg.. click here.. ]



Heald Square Monument, designated a Chicago Landmark .. was started by Crunelle's mentor, Lorado Taft and become Taft's last work. It was completed by Leonard Crunelle..
For more on Heald Square Monument..click here..







Victory Monument, also designated a Chicago Landmark...
This monument was erected to honor the achievements of the Eighth Regiment of the Illinois National Guard, an African-American unit that served in France during World War I ... Crunelle's birth town was destroyed in World War-I.
For more on Victory Monument.. click here..




Richard J. Oglesby - by Leonard Crunelle
For more,  click here..




Baby Marguerite - by Leonard Crunelle
As part of Eagle's Nest Collection at Oregon Public Library, Oregon, IL..click here..

This piece is presumed to be a bronze cast of a marble sculpture of Baby Marguerite executed by Crunelle in Loredo Taft’s Midway Studio.  [Ref. click here..]



Sakakawea [North Dakota] - by Leonard Crunelle
This is at the National Statutory Hall, of the U.S. Capitol Bldg.. click here..

RELATED LINKS..
Crane Girl, Fisher Boy, Dove Girl and Turtle Boy - by Leonard Crunelle.. click here..
Heald Square Monument [started by Lorado taft, completed by Leonard Crunelle] click here..
Victory Monument - by Leonard Crunelle.. click here..
Richard J. Oglesby - by Leonard Crunelle click here..
Sakakawea [North Dakota] - by Leonard Crunelle [This is at the National Statutory Hall, of the U.S. Capitol Bldg.. click here.. ]

REF: The Miner Sculptor.. by Isabell MacDougall..