Building an Icon: Construction Photographs of Millennium Park
New Collection and Exhibit
Since opening in July 2004, Millennium Park has attracted Chicagoans and visitors alike with its world-class art, architecture and public programs. The transformation of Millennium Park, from unsightly railroad tracks and an underground parking lot, into a breathtaking internationally acclaimed urban park is the subject of a new exhibit, Building an Icon: Construction Photographs of Millennium Park, opening on Saturday, September 26, 2009, at the Chicago Public Library’s Harold Washington Library Center, 400 S. State St. The exhibit will run until January 17, 2010, in the Congress Corridor on the Library’s first floor.
A total of forty photographs that dramatically illustrate the successive construction phases of the Jay Pritzker Pavilion and the Park’s other structures were selected for the exhibit. These photographs are from a collection of more than 5,000 construction shots made between 1999 and 2005. The images were created as U.S. Equities Realty oversaw the construction of Cloud Gate, Crown Fountain, Millennium Monument, Jay Pritzker Pavilion and BP Bridge. In 2006, Robert Wislow, Chairman and CEO of the company, donated the collection to the Chicago Public Library.
In addition, after the exhibit opens the full collection of photographs will be available on the Library’s website (chicagopubliclibrary.org, click on “Digital Collections”) and in the Special Collections Reading Room on the 9th floor of the Harold Washington Library Center. It offers researchers an unparalleled view of the development of Millennium Park. The processing and preserving of these images was made possible by a gift of the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation through the Chicago Public Library Foundation.
Millennium Park, managed and programmed by the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs, is an award-winning center for art, music, architecture, and landscape design. The result of a unique partnership between the City of Chicago and the philanthropic community, the 24.5-acre park features the work of world-renowned architects, planners, artists and designers. Among Millennium Park’s prominent features are the Frank Gehry-designed Jay Pritzker Pavilion, the most sophisticated outdoor concert venue of its kind in the United States; the interactive Crown Fountain by Jaume Plensa; the contemporary Lurie Garden designed by the team of Gustafson Guthrie Nichol, Piet Oudolf and Robert Israel; and Anish Kapoor’s hugely popular Cloud Gate sculpture. As of today, Millennium Park has welcomed more than 16 million people, making it one of the most popular destinations in Chicago.
The Chicago Public Library continues to encourage lifelong learning by welcoming all people and offering equal access to information, entertainment and knowledge through materials, programs and cutting-edge technology.
The Chicago Public Library is comprised of the Harold Washington Library Center, two regional libraries and 76 neighborhood branches. All locations provide free access to a rich collection of books, DVDs, audio books and music; the Internet and WiFi; sophisticated research databases, many of which can be accessed from a home or office computer; newspapers and magazines; and continue to serve as cultural centers, presenting the highest quality author discussions, exhibits and programs for children, teens and adults.
The Harold Washington Library Center, Carter G. Woodson Regional Library and Conrad Sulzer Regional Library are open 7 days a week, the remaining 76 branch libraries are open 6 days a week and patrons can access all of the libraries’ collections online 24 hours a day. For more information, please visit the website at chicagopubliclibrary.org or call the Chicago Public Library Press Office at
(312) 747-4050.
View Images from Building an Icon: Construction Photographs of Millennium Park
MEDIA CONTACT
Ruth Lednicer, Director of Marketing
(312) 747-4907
lednicer@chipublib.org
Leland Elder, Press Office/Marketing
(312) 747-4053
lbelder@chipublib.org
