Art Institute of Chicago
There’s nothing like a visit to the Art Institute of Chicago. Those magnificent bronze lions out front! Those iconic paintings we recognize immediately from the 1970’s board game Masterpiece! Even Ferris Bueller went to the Art Institute on his famous day off. Naturally, this place was high on our list, as we hadn’t been there for many years. We walked to the Art Institute on Saturday afternoon for a good dose of awe.
We started with the special exhibit featuring my favorite artist - Georgia O’Keeffe: My New Yorks. During the 1920’s, O’Keeffe lived (with husband Alfred Stieglitz) in high-rise apartments in New York City. She painted the East River that she saw from her window, and the skyscrapers she saw on her long, solitary walks. Along with these cityscapes, she also painted the natural landscapes she saw during summers in upstate New York and (later) New Mexico. She experimented with portraying small flowers and shells as monumental shapes, like the tall buildings. It was fascinating to see the role New York City played in the evolution of her work. (If you’re wondering about the Chicago connection, O’Keeffe attended the School of the Art Institute and lived and worked in Chicago for several years.)
After viewing the O’Keeffe exhibit, we wandered through a few nearby galleries for a taste of the permanent collection. There were familiar and beloved paintings everywhere! There were also some lovely O’Keeffe pieces and some intriguing works that were new to us.
After two hours surrounded by masterpieces, we came back to earth. They say that art is food for the soul; we had just gorged ourselves on a fabulous feast.
