Aesthetics in Context: Chicago Model City at the Chicago Architecture Foundation
Review by Lee Ann Norman
(The following post is an excerpt. Read the full article here.)
The Chicago Architecture Foundation's latest exhibit, Chicago Model City asks us to consider how culture, place, stratification and affiliation, and aesthetics underscore the lofty goals of good design and urban planning. Chicago is, of course, the city of broad shoulders, bold dreams, and consequently, big plans. Conversely, Chicago is also the most racially segregated city in the United States, and has the dubious distinction of being profoundly corrupt.
Power struggles, dominance, suppression, and oppression are par for the course here. Chicago Model City tries to analyze how all of these issues impact real lives on multiple levels by exploring planners' vision for Chicago: create a global, connected, green, beautiful, and new urban landscape. This idea is examined by looking closely at how many big plans have transformed Chicago over the years. The centerpiece of the exhibit is a 320-square-foot model of the downtown area that includes over 1,000 scale replicas of buildings. The model will be updated, as the Architecture Foundation hopes to make it a dynamic installation that will continue to grow and change along with the city.
Through historic photos and extensive background and informational text, the exhibit examines the role of corporations, city officials, big business, developers, and ordinary citizens in decision-making processes. While never overtly taking a position or saying things like "It's the Mob" or "Racism" or even "Machine Politics," the exhibit provides subtle references and inferences, which will be noticed by one who is aware. Photos are positioned with text in ways that ask viewers to consider what people are listened to and what ideas are brought to the forefront, as well as those that are dismissed or ignored.
"New City" explores the on-going plans for redevelopment of the south side. The images and text don't shy away from controversies surrounding neighborhood redevelopment, urban renewal, or any of the other code words for gentrification and transforming so-called blighted areas into viable community spaces. Particular attention is given to the IIT campus project, perhaps because of its contribution to Chicago's architectural legacy, however, we aren't asked to speculate about UIC's former Circle Campus expansion, a project that didn't necessarily contribute to the city's design legacy, but profoundly transformed communities nonetheless, and continues to do so.
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Tags: Chicago, chicagoArchitectureFoundation, LeeAnnNorman, modelcity
