A Photographic Exploration of Chicago's Elks National Memorial

For a weekend each fall, Open House Chicago offers the public the opportunity to visit historic, beautiful and/or otherwise intriguing interiors of places either not commonly available for touring or--as in this case--perhaps just beyond ready thought.

In visiting the website for the the 2017 edition of Open House Chicago, which was held October 14-15, on the home page I was instantly beguiled by photos of the Elks National Memorial, whose striking rotunda reminded of a capitol building.

I had long been aware of the round, colonnaded structure on Lakeview at Diversey; it's across the street from where an aunt long lived and close to where a couple of friends still do.

But much as I like to explore and photograph nifty places in Chicago, and far beyond, I had never considered what the inside of the memorial might look like.

Yet while the Open House would seem an ideal opportunity, it was on my birthday weekend and pre-existing plans precluded an Elks excursion.

But via the Elks Memorial website, I was able to ascertain that it is open Noon-4pm from April 15-November 15, with no admission charge.

So on a recent afternoon, I convinced my mom to join me and we went to take a look. This worked out well, as we had the place to ourselves, and learned that 3,000 had visited on Open House weekend (perhaps even each day of it).

A friendly tour guide helped show us around and told us about the building--designed by architect Egerton Swarthout to honor World War I veterans and victims with Elks ties--and a bit about the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.

The Memorial, whose adjoining structures serve as the national headquarters of the Elks, was constructed between 1924-26 and features sculptures by Adolph A. Weinman, Laura Gardin Fraser, and James Earle Fraser, and murals by Eugene Savage and Edwin Blashfield.

Along with the U.S. and state capitols, it reminded of the Pantheon in Rome, and the tour guide confirmed that to be an inspiration.

Although my photos below include some of rooms & exhibits representing the Elks organization, local lodges, charitable causes, etc.--as well as a couple nearby but unrelated sculptures--I do not feel inclined to broach much upon the fraternal order itself.

I simply don't know enough about it to offer a perspective--positive, negative or neutral--and my focus here is on the beauty of the memorial building.

As one of Chicago's most sumptuous interiors, I think you'll agree it well-worth a visit, but those unable to get there might value this Virtual Tour in addition to my photographs below.

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Flights of Fancy: A Photographic Foray Through Chicago's Rather Illustrious Fine Arts Building

In my previous post, I reviewed a Chicago Opera Theater world premiere production of The Invention of Morel, which I saw in the beautifully refurbished Studebaker Theater within the Fine Arts Building.

Given my love of Chicago architecture, arts, history, theater and cinema, this was somewhat surprisingly my first venture inside the building at 410 S. Michigan, also known as the Studebaker Building, as it was built in 1885 to display and sell carriages made by the Studebaker Company.

After extensive remodeling in 1898, the building came to house many artist studios, instrument makers/sellers and other businesses pertaining to the fine arts. I mentioned "cinema" above as the building had housed the Fine Arts Theaters from 1982-2000, with all screens now removed in the spaces turned into the Studebaker Theater and the World Playhouse.

With at least one sheet music store and a bookstore open to the public, even on a Sunday afternoon, I was able to take the manned elevator to the building's top floor--where beautiful murals remain from the 19th century--and work my way down to the ground level, where one enters the Studebaker Theater.

I did not venture into any studios or offices, most of which were closed along with the intriguing L.H. Selman gallery of fine art paperweights.

Open studios are available for the public to peruse on the second Friday of each month, from 5:00pm-9:00pm, and I'm sure a deft photographer with the right permissions could create a rather compelling gallery of artists and students at work within the Fine Arts Building.

But simply from an art and architecture standpoint--including glorious carvings throughout--I was pretty dazzled with what I saw. And hence the collection of photos below.

For Mass Consumption: What I Ate at the Taste of Chicago

Here's shocking news: I went to the Taste of Chicago today.

Yes, even though the Taste is smaller, shorter and a couple weeks later than it used to be, I still enjoy it, even if only for a single, sub-2 hour visit per year (at full bloom, I often went twice).

If you need a long preamble about my opinions on the Taste, and my dining strategies at it, please refer to my post about TOC from last year. Most of what I wrote then still holds true, and looking at it now, I ate some of the same things I did this year.

So while noting Phil Vettel's Taste Tips in the Tribune, which I largely heeded, here's a simple rundown of what I consumed for $24 = 36 Taste tickets:

Mongolian Beef Bao
from The Noodle Vietnamese
4 tickets
Rating: @@@@

Tortilla Encrusted Tilapia Taco with Tequila-Lime sauce and Red Pepper sauce 
from Carbon
4 tickets
Rating: @@@@@

Bhel Puri
from Bombay Spice
5 tickets
@@@@1/2

Chorizo, Frijoles and Cheese Empanada
from Beat Kitchen
5 tickets
Rating: @@@@

Rabbit Corn Dog
from Hearty Restaurant (a pop-up booth Wed/Thurs only)
5 tickets (Taste portion)
Rating: @@@@1/2

Mustard-Fried Catfish
from BJ's Market & Bakery
5 tickets
Rating: @@@@@

Watermelon 
from Dominick's
2 tickets
Rating: @@@@@

Chocolate Chip Crunch Dipper
from Eli's Cheesecake
6 tickets
Rating: @@@@1/2 (it seems to have shrunk from past years, yet costs more)

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Just in case anyone important -- in a civic sense -- sees this post, here's my previously-created suggestion for a Chicago marketing postcard:  

Hyde Park and Seek: Photographic Proof That I Went to the University of Chicago (at least for a day as a tourist)

I had a very nice day yesterday with my mom in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood, home to the University of Chicago.

Below is a photo recap, covering:

• Robie House, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright - We took a tour but interior photos were not allowed
• Rockefeller Chapel
• Oriental Institute Museum
• Smart Museum of Art
• Various sights around campus, including Henry Moore's Nuclear Energy sculpture

Robie House

Charles Harper Center, across from Robie House

Rockefeller Chapel

Above the entrance to the Oriental Institute

 

My Mummy with a Mummy

Who knew I was a god? Of course, my artifact was among the smallest in the museum.

Inside the Smart Museum of Art

Soldier at a Game of Chess by Jean Metzinger, French, circa 1915-16

The original dining room table & chairs from Robie House, now at Smart Museum.

Nuclear Energy by Henry Moore, at the site of the world's first self-sustaining nuclear reaction

A Freely Worthwhile Visit of Historical Significance

Museum Recap

Chicago History Museum
Visited February 9, 2013
Special Exhibits seen:
Shalom Chicago; Vivian Maier's Chicago

I love Chicago and relish exploring its rich history, so one might assume that I’m a big fan of the Chicago History Museum (formerly known at the Chicago Historical Society).

Yes and no.

I appreciate the CHM’s raison d’être and there certainly is a whole lot to learn and explore within its halls, whether you are a longstanding local or a first-time visitor to Chicago. But as I expressed in this 2010 review, the history museum could really use a good deal of modernization. I recommend much more in the way of interactive exhibits and videos offering user-friendly insights on topics such as The Great Chicago Fire, the 1893 Columbian Exposition, Chicago architecture, Al Capone, the Blues, Michael Jordan, Chicago-style pizza and more.

As such, I’d be hard-pressed to suggest that—unless there’s a terrific temporary exhibition—a visit to the Chicago History Museum is worth its standard $14 adult admission charge.

But especially if you can take advantage of Free Admission for Illinois Residents through the end of February, as well as on Monday, March 4—the CHM is also part of Bank of America’s Museums on Us program, offering free admission for B of A customers the first full weekend of every month—I think you might enjoy checking out a couple of nice temporary exhibits, as well as parts of the permanent collection. Like I did last Saturday.

Shalom Chicago is an exhibit that sheds light on the history of Jewish people and communities in Chicago, explaining how initially German Jews came to the city in the late 19th century, followed by considerably larger numbers of Eastern European Jews.

The exhibit primarily focuses on a handful of prominent Jewish residents, including those who founded notable synogogues and stores. A short film on Bessie Abramowitz, a button sewer who led a garment workers strike in 1910, was particularly interesting.

Overall, Shalom Chicago is solid, but short of spectacular or terrifically insightful. I was expecting it to provide more depth about topics such as the Maxwell Street market and explain when and why Jews migrated from the West Side to Rogers Park to Skokie and suburbs beyond.

As such, it was beneficial to partake of a docent-led tour of the exhibit, who was able to provide information beyond that which was posted on the display panels. (Check with the museum about tour schedules.)

Also well worth a look as part of a free visit—and like Shalom Chicago, running through the Summer—is a creatively-designed exhibit on a photographer named Vivian Maier.

As opposed to most photography exhibits that display same-size framed photos, Vivian Maier’s Chicago had several panels of oversized square pictures, complemented by film-roll-like sequences of Maier’s photo series—shown little bigger than Polaroid size—wrapping around the gallery walls.

As evidenced by many of the show’s best pictures, Maier—an amateur

street photographer who pursued her passion around work as a nanny—had a real gift for capturing everyday people in a way that conveyed universal scenarios and emotions.

You can learn more about the exhibit here—which includes a link to see a selection of Maier’s photos—but while the single-gallery display isn’t extensive enough to justify paying the museum’s full admission, the content and curation of Vivian Maier’s Chicago does suggest it be seen in person. 

If you go, the CHM’s permanent collection is worth a walkthrough. The displays don’t seem much altered or augmented since my visit nearly 3 years ago, but you are again able to see the bed upon which Abraham Lincoln died.

Other Abe artifacts, including a life mask, can also be seen along with a gallery called Lincoln’s Chicago.

On March 16, a new temporary exhibit called Inspiring Beauty: 50 Years of Ebony Fashion Fair will open at the Chicago History Museum.

Perhaps if I can arrange to see it on a Free Day, I will.