So Chicago is the home of some amazing architecture. I took a scenic river boat cruise about Chicago Architecture and it was really beautiful, relaxing and informative. It was probably too much information for me to completely retain, but it was great to see the city from the river perspective.
We passed Navy Piers and the infamous Ferris Wheel (though this one's from 1995, not 1893) that marks the site of the Chicago World's Fair. This was the setting of The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic and Madness at the Fair that Changed America by Erik Larson. The novel also highlights the story of the Exposition's architect, so any fans of Larson's work would probably love this river experience.
Speaking of architecture and literature, even though Ayn Rand's The Fountainhead was NOT set in Chicago, the views and descriptions of the architecture definitely made me think of Howard Roark, the amazing young architect, and his idea that nature can be perfected. Ayn Rand wrote, "The creator's concern is the conquest of nature. The parasite's concern is the conquest of men." Now, not that I agree with this necessarily, but when the riverboat guide pointed out the organic feel of one of the buildings along the river, I thought of Howard and his beautiful creations that seemed to grow out of the ground and, apparently to him, look more beautiful than a mountain or tree.
You'll also notice the picture of the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry and the picture of park grounds. These are the actual grounds of the Chicago Exposition and the Science and Industry Museum building is the only original structure still left from the fair days.
1 comment:
Is the building where the "devil" from the "white city" was living duirng the World's Fair still there?
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