Chicago tips

A Swell New Place For Old House Salvage

shopping, architecture

I live in an old house, ca 1900 and nearly every day I despair over the new townhouses and apartment buildings that are being foisted on the unsuspecting, innocent (mostly) young Chicago buyers by developers seemingly addicted to shoddy construction.

I moved into my house a long time ago from another vintage row house so you might call me addicted which is fair enough.  I've refurbished these houses with vintage doorknobs, especially.  My son just bought a ca 1915 house in Brooklyn so I couldn't resist passing on my remaining doorknob collection to him and his understanding wife.  Their friends came over to visit and I could just tell that they thought Dan's mother to be slightly wacky, changing doorknobs for hours at a time.

About a week later my husband and I were riding our bikes on Hubbard Street, a usual route, when what should I see but Eric Nordstrom's new shop, Urban Remains at 410 N. Paulina.  Inside I found tons of doorknobs along with many, many assorted and useful pieces of vintage household hardware, not a reproduction in sight!

Eric says he has the largest collection of vintage hardware in the city and I don't doubt it.  I plan to comb my house for areas I might still be able to restore, thanks to this great new source.  You'll also find stained glass, lighting fixtures, millwork, ironwork and more.

Eric, in photo above, opened this place in August of  '06.  He plans to open an architectural museum on the second floor of the building.  Among things he plans to feature in the museum are old photographs, blueprints and renderings of furnishings, rare books on the subject and molds that were used to create the decor for vintage Chicago buildings.

If you don't have "this old house disease" you might stop by anyway because you'd learn some things about the city and its remaining treasury.  Who knows, you might even help to save some of its' history yourself someday.

Urban Remains, 410 N. Paulina.  Mondays-Sundays, 11-7.  312.523.4660.

 

Lonnie Holley Is Intuit's First Artist In Residence

art, culture, current calendar

Be sure to get over to Intuit:  The Center For Intuitive and Outsider Art to meet outsider artist, Lonnie Holley who's visiting Chicago from Birmingham, Alabama as their first artist in residence.  You can actually see him at work until this Friday when he'll be showing the results of his two week visit to Chicago at a 5 PM reception.

Holley has taken over the main gallery of this non-profit arts organization, a recent participant in Artropolis, to demonstrate how he makes his work.     With the aid of Lucy Slivinski, a mainstream artist who uses discarded materials in her work, he has toured much of the city and its' environs for appropriate salvage and any remnants of urban life he may want to use.

Holley is the confident survivor of an extraordinarily difficult life.  He was one of 27 children, lived for a time in foster care as well as in the Industrial School for Negro Children in Mount Meigs, AL., from which he ran away.  He left school before completing 7th grade and became a student of National Geographic magazine.

His art began with carving sandstone which was used as industrial waste and progressed to painting and sculpture using found or recycled material.

His work has been shown at the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, DC., the American Folk Art Museum in New York and the High Museum in Atlanta.

Do stop in to meet Holley while he's in town.  He's extremely articulate and is happy to answer questions.  The exhibit continues at Intuit through September 1, however.  Don't miss it.  The photo of his chair sculpture is included, courtesy of William Arnett.

For more information about Intuit and its' many activities, access its' website www.art.org.
Gallery hours are Tuesday-Saturday, 11AM-5PM and Thursday, 11AM-7:30PM.

 

Huge Rat Invades The Loop

architecure, culture, shopping

I'm always on the prowl for unusual happenings and earlier this week as I was emerging from my dentist's building in the Loop, I couldn't help noticing a giant rat being inflated right on the sidewalk in front of the Pittsfield Building at 55 W. Washington near Wabash.

There were some strikers there too so I asked one if the rat had some relation to their mission.

"Sure," he said, "there's demolition going on in the building and they're using non-union workers."

Not sure how to respond to that, I went across the street to take a picture.  It's not clear to me who's the rat, the building management, its' tenant, the workers or all three.  Mostly, I just loved the big rat there in such a public place.

You might want to stop by and take a look, especially if you're downtown anyway.

Be sure to check out the inside of the Pittsfield Building,  a Chicago Landmark.  The unusual five story lobby atrium is ablaze with elegant brasswork and marble.  The building is Art Deco style and also includes Neo Gothic elements.  It was designed by the noted architectural firm of Graham, Anderson, Probst and White and completed in 1927.

You never know when you might need to "rent a rat" or another inflatable creature but this one is from Big Sky Balloons and Searchlights in Plainfield.  You can reach them at 800.769.8000 or at www.bigskyballoons.com.  No price list there but plenty of ideas for the adventuresome advertiser or party giver.  My personal favorite is the cockroach.

Homemade Pizza Is Great But Needs Help

food and drink

I've been a fan of Homemade Pizza for a long time, although my pizza days were curtailed for a couple of years due to extreme carb consciousness.

A special thing about this pizza is that you bake it yourself, resulting in a marvelous fresh taste, piping hot.  Additionally, there are many options from which to choose; creating your own custom pizza is a cinch.  This is thin pizza and personally I find the flavor more delicate and intense at the  same time. You may pick it up, as I prefer, or have it delivered.

Choose from three bases;  tomato, olive oil or pesto.  Some of the more intriguing ingredients include wild mushrooms, roasted garlic, poblano pepper, vidalia onions, chevre and pine nuts.  Normal ingredients too, of course.   Check out their web page www.homemadepizza.com  and you'll find some special suggestions, even a  mini cheese pizza for children.

Homemade suggests a fresh herb pizza as an hors'd oeuvre for your guests.  Cool thought.  No one I know has ever even heard of Homemade Pizza, so my hostess chic is bound to expand.

All this began at an immaculate-looking storefront on Belmont.  As a former retailer, I could tell immediately that this location wasn't ideal...not enough boutique pizza traffic in the area.  The owners were scouting out better space from the outset and now, some years later they've got a small Chicago area chain, (a chain but not a chain) up and running.

The spare look continues at the 850 W. Armitage location, so much so that you may be wowed by the modernist interior as you enter.  In fact, one of the pizzas is called "The Miesian."

Branches have now appeared at 3430 N. Southport, 1953 W. Wabansia, 3314 N. Broadway and in Evanston, Glencoe and Highland Park.  The website tells all.

I have two serious complaints, based on a recent visit.

At 5PM this last Monday, the Armitage location was overwhelmed with phone calls and my order was delayed at least 15 minutes past the promised time.

Also, when I got home I discovered that the ingredients ordered were actually skimpy, definitely different than my early experiences with Homemade.  I did call a couple of days later, found out that these were "portion controlled", a scary sounding term in my book and defined as 1/4 to 1/2 cup, depending on pizza size.  I could ask for more at the time of pickup and would be accommodated without charge, said the phone person.

These things should not deter you, however and forewarned, you can allow for them.  The pizza is really terrific!

Chicago Greeters Are On The Job

I've been travelling a lot lately with horrific stories to tell about cancelled flights, lost luggage, etc.
I'll spare you that and instead tell you about something cheerier.

Once again I was keeping an eagle eye on the luggage carrousel at OHare when I spied a hopeful sign right there in the middle, indicating that a group called Chicago Greeters is on the job to help visitors.  The Chicago Office of Tourism sponsors this free service which offers two to four hour visits to various neighborhoods.

Many volunteer greeters have expertise in particular neighborhoods or field of interest and the group asks that you or your visitor fill out an online form to enable them to give you the best match for your request.  You may include 1-6 people per visit.

Check out their website, www.chicagogreeter.com and do the following:  click on "Greeter Visitor Registration" in the right hand column;  then click on the purple oval that says "Visitor Registration Click Here".  (shortcuts for info).

There is also a last minute weekend visit available.  Click on "InstaGreeter", also in the right hand column.  As you know, Chicago loves visitors and this is a swell way to connect.