Open House Chicago (OHC), a dream weekend for architecture fanatics, just wrapped up a couple weekends ago. If you’re unfamiliar with what this is, the Chicago Architecture Center organizes one weekend each year where some of the city’s best architecture is open to the public, giving you access to locations you can’t see any other time of year.
This year I was a little limited on time so I only made it to a couple locations, and only photographed one. I typically like getting downtown since there are so many great stops and a large number of options. However, my limited time allowed me the chance to get to some destinations outside downtown that I’ve been curious about for years.
My first stop was the Brewster Apartments in Lincoln Park. Built in 1893, and the backdrop for films Child’s Play, Running Scared and Hoodlum, it was pretty cool to check out this space. The atrium and glass block walkways are some of the best features. My son particularly liked those glass blocks and was intrigued by the manual elevator. He wasn’t too excited to do any of the OHC exploring, but the second we walked in here he was in awe. So, if a 7 year old thinks it’s cool, it must be 😉
My focus was on those glass blocks and the ornate ironwork of the railings in the walkways. There’s a similarity between the shots below, but my favorite might be the one at the beginning of this post. Which, I got the idea for from my cool son 😉 He was taking pics with his iPad in that area and I was curious what he saw. I asked him if it was the shadows…indeed it was. Good eye my little guy has!
