Visiting Millenium Park in Chicago was like a wake-up call to me about the potential of open public spaces in Tacoma. The park is beautiful, the location is perfectly placed between the Loop and the Lake, and the art is great. Great and big.
Cloud Gate (AKA The Bean) is a great blend of art and appreciation of the city's architecture and skyline. The picture below is pretty clear why. The Bean shows off the entire city.
And the fountains below, while a little odd and unorthodox, followed with the same idea: think big. (If the fountain had been on there would be a spout of water coming out of the guy's mouth, right in the middle of the LCD screen that created him.)
They've created a wonderful public space with just these two pieces of art. There are many other things to do at the park, of course, but their good use of art stood out the most.
4 comments:
I can't see the pictures :( Is that your problem or mine?
I am not able to see them either. I thought maybe it was my update to the RC3 of FireFox, but it appears not to be my fault.
Millennium Park is, indeed, forward-thinking and a wonderful use of space. It's been that way since 1892. If you haven't read it yet, I think you'd love Devil in the White City. It totally captures the zeitgeist of end of the 19th century focused through the lens of Chicago's efforts to re-invent/re-brand itself -- simultaneously, it deals with the emergence of America's first serial killer.
While I didn't make it to see The Bean when I was in Chicago last year, Millenium Park was absolutely wonderful. Seemed like the park never stopped, no matter how far you walked. Big is so much better when it comes to public space. Every large city that I've been to (Rome, Chicago, New York) all do great things with large public spaces, even if it's as simple as a sculpture or a fountain. There's something to be said for all the piazzas in Europe, big open areas in the heart of the city that a large number of people can enjoy. I would much rather see Tacoma move toward bigger and better open spaces rather than developing "pocket parks."
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