Trying
to get a good photo of the exterior of the Chicago Cultural Center was
frustrating, but for me, the real story was inside of this majestic building.
I
was immediately intrigued when I entered the building early one morning for an
all-day conference and vowed to explore beyond the cramped meeting room as soon
as I got a chance to do so.
Built
as Chicago’s first public library in 1897, the Washington Street building
became the cultural center in 1991 (Chicago’s main library is now at the Harold
Washington Library Center on State Street). The Chicago Cultural Center houses
a Visitors’ Center and serves as home to the Chicago Department of Cultural
Affairs programming. Art exhibitions, concerts, dance shows, theater
performances, films, lectures, conferences, weddings, and endless other events
cram the center’s schedule. It also seemed to be a favorite place for people to
catch a snack, meet with friends, or do a little work (yes, it looks like they
have Wi-Fi, but are a little short on outlets), judging from the scene we saw
on the main floor near the café when we visited.
The
real attraction for me, though, was the Beaux Arts-style architecture and
extravagant details like intricate tile work, moldings, grillwork, chandeliers,
and two stunning glass domes that allowed natural light to fill the large
ballrooms.
One
of the building’s best known features may be the Louis Comfort Tiffany art
glass dome. This 38-foot diameter dome underwent a $2.2 million restoration,
completed just before our visit this summer. Workers removed, cleaned, and
restored each of the dome’s 30,000 glass pieces, replacing them in the dome
with new leading. A new translucent exterior dome protects the precious Tiffany
glass, while allowing natural light into the Preston Bradley Hall.
Curtains
closed off the hall for orchestra rehearsals the day of our conference, so I
only caught a quick glimpse of the Tiffany dome. We returned later in the week
and got a closer look at the hall and the Tiffany dome as center staffers set
up for another event.
The
Tiffany art glass dome, billed as the world’s largest and valued at an
estimated $35 million, is one of the center’s wow-factor worthy sights, but we
stumbled upon the center’s other, and seemingly lesser-known dome, on the way
to checking out the Tiffany dome.
The
center’s G.A.R. Rotunda and Memorial Hall (a ballroom dedicated to the Grand
Army of the Republic, a fraternal organization of Union veterans of the Civil
War), sports its own art glass dome and over-the-top detailing like an
intricate ceiling, huge arched windows and fancy moldings. The dome here is stained-glass
in a Renaissance pattern.
Sweeping
staircases, sky-high ceilings and huge common areas gave many of the center’s
public areas a particularly spacious feeling. The hidden corners and
painstaking architectural details throughout the building gave it a
surprisingly intimate feeling at times as well.
The
Shepley, Rutan and Coolidge-designed building cost nearly $2 million to build. The
architects drew inspiration from the neo-classical styles at the 1893 World’s
Columbian Exposition held in Chicago.
The
Chicago Cultural Center draws approximately 800,000 visitors each year, earned
recognition as a Chicago Landmark in 1976, and is on the National Register of
Historic Places.
Three-foot
masonry walls with limestone facing and a granite base make it an impressive
looking building from the outside, but the interior details and quality materials
like hardwood, colored stone and mother-of-pearl inlays, marble, and brass are well
worth the visit for architecture, design and art buffs.
The
center offers several free docent-led building tours each week. We weren’t
there at the right time to take a tour, but it’s something I’d love to do
another time when I visit Chicago.
Be sure to check out Affordable, accessible art at the Art-o-mat in the Chicago Cultural Center
© Dominique King 2009 All rights reserved
