Over the past 15 years, I’ve had the opportunity to see many different aspects of Chicago (The Loop downtown, Ukrainian Village, Wrigley Field, Cabrini Green, Wicker Park, Oak Park, Highland Park) but yesterday was the first time I ever went to The Heart of Chicago. I was doing a video shoot in the Pilsen neighborhood, which is the mostly American Mexican community on the Lower West Side of Chicago. One thing that you can’t miss when you drive through the area is the large amount murals on the side of buildings. It adds a vibrant, colorful, creative vibe—and cultural context— to the area.
I actually can’t remember another community anywhere in the Unites States where I’ve seen more large murals in one concentrated area. I image a nod of sorts to artist Diego Rivera who helped establish the Mexican Mural Movement. (You can see his works in many museums throughout the world including Sao Paulo Museum of Art, Heritage Museum in Russia, the Detroit institute of the Arts, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Franz Mayer Museum, Mexico City, and the Art Institute of Chicago.)
A different kind of storytelling with pictures. (Anyone know who the artist is who did this mural?)
P.S. Though I was in Chicago less than 24 hours on this recent trip it was like going around the world. Stayed in Greektown (A little less Greek since they built a Walgreens in the My Big Fat Greek Wedding area), for breakfast I had southern style shrimp and grits at Wishbone (around the corner from Harpo Studios and a favorite place of Oprah’s), Mexican food for lunch, and pasta in Little Italy for dinner.
Related posts:
Screenwriting da Chicago Way
Ferris John Hughes & the North Shore
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Thanks so much!!!!
Reblogged this on umniakhan and commented:
I’m currently working on a project that is based in and on Chicago. This post reminds me what a living, breathing city it is.