The Chicago Open House was organized by the Chicago Architecture Center, where we are getting all our tours. They’ve been doing it for 10 years and it is wonderful. More than 170 sites are participating this year, opening their private clubs, behind-the-scenes business enterprises, lobbies, and dining rooms of architectural interest, and more, it’s just wonderful and when I visit Chicago again I will book during Open House weekend.
We were standing in this line and then Lill got a text with Membership Passes from one of our tour guides(!) so we went straight to the head of the line! Thanks!!
The University Club of Chicago. There are 12 of these huge stained glass windows in their magnificent ballroom.
They’re setting up for a wedding.
A view of the section of the Riverwalk from where the Chicago Architecture Center runs it’s river cruise.
Marsha and I took the Elevated Architecture: Downtown ‘L’ Train offered by the CAC, again a knowledgeable, personable, likable fellow told us stories.
See the four facades starting with the red brick. They were built within a few years of each other, each in its own style. Now-a-days they save the facades and build modern towers just inside them. You can see the glass tower in the upper middle. It makes for a more interesting and historic streetscape.
Fun how the station here complements the library.
Finished with the tour we met up with Lill for some snacks and an especially tasty Black and Tan.
Then we went to our next Open House, the Seventeenth Church of Christ, Scientist, built in 1968, located at 55 East Wacker Drive. Say Wacker like you were about to wack someone. Wacker. I said it oh, about, 1000 times. Wacker. My friends wanted to take a detour so we would not find ourselves on Wacker Drive and have to hear me say…Wacker.
We were sitting peacefully in the audience of the church quietly admiring the pipe organ when, breaking the calm, booming cords filled the room, and it was this little lady making it happen.
Next Open House stop was an architecture firm where no photos allowed, below is looking out their window. It was so interesting, they had staff doing small tours and all the scale models of their projects past and future were on display.
Gathering in the lobby was this group of architects preparing for the Arts in the Dark parade. Wow, we hit the big time with CAC Chicago Open Houses and Arts in the Dark. We punked out on the actual parade…
…but here are some pictures from the internet. I see this is the 10th parade as is Chicago Open House, the 10th year. Probably not a coincidence.
