Mod Meetup - Chicago 2013
This past thursday, Ziggy, Richard, and David_S85 met up at Navy Pier on the lakefront of downtown Chicago. Richard was in town from his home in Spain visiting family here. Ziggy and I live somewhat close to Chicago, so it was only right that the three of us, with photo gear in hand, and with a very fuzzy plan to shoot stuff, get together and do just that.
Richard and Ziggy zero in on their subjects on the south side of the Pier
Chicago southern skyline, from the Pier, and weather getting hazy. This is the last we'd see of sunshine. Our day had only begun.
After walking the chilly outdoor perimeter of Navy Pier, and spending a few puzzling moments attempting to gain official entrance into the main Pier building from the "wrong" side, we arrived at our first and only pre-planned goal, the Smith Museum of Stained Glass.
Smith Museum entrance
About half of the south side of the Pier is devoted to the exhibit, which is loosely arranged through a somewhat confined corridor. That was very interesting for a while until hunger sent us looking for food. That done, it was time to again venture outdoors to wander and look for interesting things.
Another somewhat preconceived goal was to re-locate some cavernous underground Chicago views. Years before we had quite accidentally wandered upon some unreal scenes from far below the Lower Wacker Drive and Michigan Avenue vicinity.
Below is about what we had hoped to locate (from a previous outing):
But that was not to be for this trip. :cry Next time a better plan. :deal Famous Chicago Quote… "Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men's blood" - Daniel Bunham
A light rain was falling, natural light was becoming scarce, but the downtown still looked great.
We headed south along Michigan Avenue and decided to step into the Chicago Cultural Center to see what was happening inside. There are always art installations of some type there. What would it be this time? As luck would have it, the first exhibit we walked into was photography related - "Shutter to Think: The Rock & Roll Lens of Paul Natkin"
The Decisive Moment
A few years ago, at another Chicago Mod Meetup, we three plus Pathfinder visited the Art Institute's Henri Cartier-Bresson exhibit, so the "Decisive Moment" quote was familiar ground.
Another art installation one floor up was named "SHIFT - A New Media exhibit by Luftwerk"
This was also right up our alley, as it was clearly photography related. There were three large rooms, each with its own experiment with light.
First up was a twenty by twenty foot wall projection of a colored grid
Unofficial explanation:
This was clearly a preview of some experimental multi-color sensor filter array; far more complicated than conventional Bayer or Fuji arrays, probably consisting of more than 2048 colors, instead of the standard three or four.
Official explanation:
The second room consisted of black walls and what appeared to be a white floor. Several strong colored light panels focused downward towards the middle of the floor. Visitors were guided to walk through the center and to look down.
Unofficial explanation:
This was some white balance torture environment contrived specifically to test one's skill working their camera to overcome very difficult mixed light.
Official explanation:
The third and last room was even more strange.
My explanation:
Three walls were black. Intense white moving angled lines were projected on one grey wall with diverging and converging motion. Patterns became simple and then more complex in a four minute loop. I believe this room was intended to challenge a camera's sensor. A badly designed system would exhibit increased moire due to the highly contrasted and finely focused black and white lines.
Official explanation:
Honestly, this one reminded me of a recent video I saw on Vimeo, at about 2:24 in. Worth the watch! Richard walked right into the projected images against the wall although we begged him not to. He swears he was in there for only a moment, but we had waited nearly twenty minutes for him to emerge. He seemed fine afterwards.
With the rush hour beginning, it was time to part ways. Will there be another Mod Meetup? Sure, but we'll have to do better planning on that elusive Chicago Underground subject.
Ziggy and Richard will no doubt add to this thread soon with what they got out of the day.
Richard and Ziggy zero in on their subjects on the south side of the Pier
Chicago southern skyline, from the Pier, and weather getting hazy. This is the last we'd see of sunshine. Our day had only begun.
After walking the chilly outdoor perimeter of Navy Pier, and spending a few puzzling moments attempting to gain official entrance into the main Pier building from the "wrong" side, we arrived at our first and only pre-planned goal, the Smith Museum of Stained Glass.
Smith Museum entrance
About half of the south side of the Pier is devoted to the exhibit, which is loosely arranged through a somewhat confined corridor. That was very interesting for a while until hunger sent us looking for food. That done, it was time to again venture outdoors to wander and look for interesting things.
Another somewhat preconceived goal was to re-locate some cavernous underground Chicago views. Years before we had quite accidentally wandered upon some unreal scenes from far below the Lower Wacker Drive and Michigan Avenue vicinity.
Below is about what we had hoped to locate (from a previous outing):
But that was not to be for this trip. :cry Next time a better plan. :deal Famous Chicago Quote… "Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men's blood" - Daniel Bunham
A light rain was falling, natural light was becoming scarce, but the downtown still looked great.
We headed south along Michigan Avenue and decided to step into the Chicago Cultural Center to see what was happening inside. There are always art installations of some type there. What would it be this time? As luck would have it, the first exhibit we walked into was photography related - "Shutter to Think: The Rock & Roll Lens of Paul Natkin"
The Decisive Moment
A few years ago, at another Chicago Mod Meetup, we three plus Pathfinder visited the Art Institute's Henri Cartier-Bresson exhibit, so the "Decisive Moment" quote was familiar ground.
Another art installation one floor up was named "SHIFT - A New Media exhibit by Luftwerk"
This was also right up our alley, as it was clearly photography related. There were three large rooms, each with its own experiment with light.
First up was a twenty by twenty foot wall projection of a colored grid
Unofficial explanation:
This was clearly a preview of some experimental multi-color sensor filter array; far more complicated than conventional Bayer or Fuji arrays, probably consisting of more than 2048 colors, instead of the standard three or four.
Official explanation:
Spectrum
Our concern is the interaction of color; that is, seeing what happens between colors.
– Josef Albers
A strong focus of Luftwerk’s IEA residency was testing prints and processes that would allow for projection mapping onto a wall-sized color field. Upon entering “Shift,” viewers are greeted by a digitized and re-imagined color wheel made of 529 painted panels that, once illuminated, meld into more than 3,174 tones of red, yellow, and blue. This mutable continuum called Spectrum is a delightful sight, as projected light interacts with each panel, varying and mixing to create nearly endless possibilities for color.
The second room consisted of black walls and what appeared to be a white floor. Several strong colored light panels focused downward towards the middle of the floor. Visitors were guided to walk through the center and to look down.
Unofficial explanation:
This was some white balance torture environment contrived specifically to test one's skill working their camera to overcome very difficult mixed light.
Official explanation:
Synthesis
We are able to hear a single tone. But we almost never (that is, without special devices) see a single color unconnected and unrelated to other colors. Colors present themselves in continuous flux, constantly related to changing neighbors and changing conditions.
– Josef Albers
Viewers who experience Synthesis help shape the installation, as their movements through the gallery effect the color patterns of light projected onto the floor. Sound artist Owen Clayton Condon stimulates the senses further by highlighting the motion of Synthesis through an original sound score inspired by six colors of the light spectrum (red, yellow, blue, green, orange, and purple) and three musical instruments (glockenspiel, cymbal, and wine glasses filled with water).
The third and last room was even more strange.
My explanation:
Three walls were black. Intense white moving angled lines were projected on one grey wall with diverging and converging motion. Patterns became simple and then more complex in a four minute loop. I believe this room was intended to challenge a camera's sensor. A badly designed system would exhibit increased moire due to the highly contrasted and finely focused black and white lines.
Official explanation:
Threshold
The threshold is the place of expectation.
– Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Threshold, a site-specific work, playfully challenges our perception by examining how light moves and travels in a particular space. Two panels covered in mirror foil form a 90-degree angle to focus a viewer’s attention at the far end of the gallery, and our senses are bemused and enchanted again. When vertical beams of light meet the mirrored panels the light bends. Threshold gives the illusion that the gallery walls must contain a secret portal, perhaps to another world.
– Lee Ann Norman (August 2013)
Honestly, this one reminded me of a recent video I saw on Vimeo, at about 2:24 in. Worth the watch! Richard walked right into the projected images against the wall although we begged him not to. He swears he was in there for only a moment, but we had waited nearly twenty minutes for him to emerge. He seemed fine afterwards.
With the rush hour beginning, it was time to part ways. Will there be another Mod Meetup? Sure, but we'll have to do better planning on that elusive Chicago Underground subject.
Ziggy and Richard will no doubt add to this thread soon with what they got out of the day.
My Smugmug
"You miss 100% of the shots you don't take" - Wayne Gretzky
"You miss 100% of the shots you don't take" - Wayne Gretzky
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The following are some of my own photographic interpretations of the day (captions on top):
Downtown Chicago, "Residents of Chicago"
From here it was a relatively short walk to Navy Pier, at the lakefront.
Sculpture Near Navy Pier
On the pier itself:
Detail of a mooring
One of the lake excursion ships
Still in love
Almost flying full
There was a lot of construction going on at the pier, and we had to walk around some storage units, discovering ...
What are "you" looking at?
Inside Navy Pier is an eclectic microcosm of stores and eateries, as well as the "Smith Museum of Stained Glass Windows", the "... first American museum dedicated solely to the art of stained glass windows."
Richard H. Driehaus Gallery of Stained Glass
"Christ and the Apostles" - Tiffany Glass & Decorating Company (Louis Comfort Tiffany), c. 1890
"Girl with Cherry Blossoms" - Tiffany Glass & Decorating Company (Louis Comfort Tiffany), c. 1890
"Polychrome painting of the face, drapery glass for the dress, opalescent glass for the blossoms, streaky glass in the border, fracture-streamer glass in the background, and what may be iridescent glass in the beads."
The following images are of art in which I did not fully document the source. Many of the pieces are from houses and commercial buildings in the Chicago area, and recovered before those buildings were demolished.
Roger Brown Silhouette Window
Fairy Tale of the "Snowgirl"
Tiffany, "Four Seasons" - Alphonse Mucha - (1907-08)
Moderator of the Cameras and Accessories forums
"You miss 100% of the shots you don't take" - Wayne Gretzky
Love the pictures.
Moderator of the Technique Forum and Finishing School on Dgrin
We heard you were on your way back from a workshop. Hope that went well. Would have been great to have you aboard. The temps were 22F when I set out, went up to about 45 and then was actually nearly snowing when we were done at 3:30. Utah was colder?
"You miss 100% of the shots you don't take" - Wayne Gretzky
does not allow photography. The museum contains "The world's most comprehensive
collection of works by Louis Comfort Tiffany".
Once a year, the museum displays some of their Tiffany stained glass outside in
a nearby park and photography is allowed there.
http://tonycooper.smugmug.com/
Nice shooting, guys. It was great to see you again.
Sorry we missed you, Jim. Maybe next year.
As I mentioned earlier, there weren't many people around and even the props were getting ready for winter.
But there are always a few photographers to be found:
The architecture of Chicago is wonderful. Here are a couple of iconic old buildings (Wrigley and Tribune) being trumped by the Trump Tower:
The mirror-like facades can be surreal. This one reminded me of a well-known Magritte painting:
Besides the neat Luftwerk light show that David mentioned, the Chicago Cultural Center also had an exhibition of curious works by Chicago quilter/painter Ken Ellis:
Strange stuff.
Cheers.
www.adamstravelphotography.com
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The quilts were one of the most hideous art exhibits I've ever had the displeasure of walking through - although that's not exactly accurate. They were assembled and sewn very well and with quality materials. The display area was well lit and description tags were smartly displayed by the artist's work. Ample room was given to show his complete vision. Yet, I was just very afraid to turn the corner and see what might follow next. That last shot Richard posted doesn't hardly even begin to cover the horrors that were there. I didn't waste one electron on pictures in that gallery, however I'm somewhat glad that Richard did, just to convey more of the day's explorations.
"You miss 100% of the shots you don't take" - Wayne Gretzky