the head of montgomery ward building's weathervane loaned to chicago's cultural center for exhibit
This entry was posted on April 28 2016 by Eric
the historically important 19th century "spirit of progress" weathervane head, which once crowned the chicago school montgomery ward building (designed in 1898 by schmidt, garden & martin) is once again viewable to the general public at the cultural center, thanks to eric j. nordstrom (bldg. 51 museum) and culturian historian tim samuelson. the hand-wrought copper head was crafted by john massey rhind to represent the goddess diana, or "progress lighting the way for commerce." it will be but one artifact in a show highlighting some of the observatory decks that once graced some of chicago's most notable 19th and 20th century buildings.
the stoic face of the montgomery ward building normally lives in private, as a component of the bldg. 51 american architectural artifact museum collection, but i was more than happy to deliver her to samuelson at the chicago cultural center, allowing a wider audience to view its scale, nicely aged surface patina, and finely executed design characteristics up-close. i've long discussed contributing our "girlfriend" with cultural historian tim samuelson, when he began putting together his "observatory" exhibition, which includes blown-up imagery sourced from the auditorium building and the (non-extant) masonic temple, among others.
the head of the montgomery ward building's weathervane is the only known and/or documented component that has surfaced, despite several fragments purportedly claimed when the thirty foot statue was dissected into several pieces in 1948, when the tower was demolished. the visually enticing exhibit is currently on display in the garland gallery of the chicago cultural center for the next few months.
This entry was posted in , Miscellaneous, Bldg. 51, Events & Announcements, Sales and Promotions, Featured Posts & Bldg. 51 Feed on April 28 2016 by Eric
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