Sunday, February 23, 2014

four cities, two weeks --- chicago, day 4

our last full day in chicago. the skies were crazy blue and the temps were insanely low. but that shit ain't gonna' stop me from getting a donut. 

let me tell you something, kids. do-rite donuts is the freakin' bomb. they do small batches (36 donuts at a time?) so everything is super fresh AND they always have a vegan option which changes daily. check out the case. 


seriously, for a small bakery, do-rite is mighty/has everything. you can even pose inside a donut hole like leff!


and then you can sit outside like a freak and eat your delicious, delicious donut. (mine was pistachio meyer lemon.)


did you know that there was a complete bunch of pants down by the lake?


it's true. i am not sure that this underpass to the museums existed when i first went to chicago. (i seem to recall being stuck in the middle of lake shore drive?) so HIGH FIVE FOR THIS NEW (TO ME AT LEAST) UNDERPASS PARK


if we had had enough time, i would have liked to go to the field and the shedd (IT IS WHERE YOU KEEP FISH CHAT! XD) but we were really just there for the skyline. HAHAH THE LAKE WAS FROZEN ALSO LOOK AT ALL OF THAT SNOW (leff was standing on something in that picture. he completely disappeared behind the snow pile for a while. THAT IS TOO MUCH SNOW CHICAGO (i know that you agree with me.))


still, art waits for no one. (or maybe it does. (it pretty much just hangs around until someone gets there. (ugh, i am so tired.))) one more trip on the l and we were at the magnificent mile. hancock and water towers!


water tower had a show of julie murphy's work.


also, but maybe don't mention this to everyone, but water tower is a good place to pull up skinny jeans that have started to slide down because HAHAHA THEY ARE REALLY JEGGINGS WHY DID YOU BUY JEGGINGS YOU FUCKING IDIOT IT IS TOO COLD TO NOT BE WEARING REAL PANTS

eh, at least crystal was enjoying my noel fielding impersonation.

but onward! to mca! to the deborah butterfield and the amanda ross-ho!


here is more of the ho.


do i need to expound upon my great, great deeply abiding love for mca chicago? it is the only place where i have seen art that scared the shit out of me. (sadly, cannot remember the name of the artist or piece. have been trying to track it down for years.) also, the space itself is fucking lush. it's not all "grey box" (ugh) like the new upcoming moma travesty. it is on a human scale and places emphasis on WORKS OF ART AND NOT PEOPLE WATCHING.

plus, curation here is just mind bogglingly exceptional. case in point, the city self exhibit. not only was there john cage (this is a detail)


but there was heavy emphasis on local artists.


scott fortino, for example I AM IN LOVE WITH THIS MAN'S WORK check out these two sumptuous photos.



i believe that mr fortino used to be on the chicago police force? god, if we ever strike it rich, i'm buying some of his work. YOU READ IT HERE

mca also had a marisol/warhol while we were there.




the hand on this piece KILLED me.



AND ALSO lilli carre whose incredible ceramic pieces were so beautiful that i wanted to pick them up and hold them for a while. (i didn't.)




oh, yes. also calder. but, eh, when you have seen one calder mobile, you have pretty much seen them all, imho.

 


we watched a bit of lene berg's "stalin by picasso or a portrait of a woman with a mustache".  (i will have to track this down to finish watching it. i was too tired to sit still when we were in chicago. (if that makes any sense.))


while i was taking a break from the film, i found this



and promptly died laughing. (it currently lives on my bookshelf.)

what else, what else? OH YES "the way of the shovel". dear god, i wish that i hadn't been too tired to soak all of this up. (i don't even have artist details on these paper recreations of funerary items! D:)



i *do* know that this is a detail of moyra davey's "copperheads" which i could have been sucked into for hours.


yes, DO GO TO MCA IF YOU ARE IN CHICAGO it never ceases to be magnificent. (if i am honest with you, i love it more than tate modern and hamburger bahnhof (more about that exceptional beast later this week) WHICH IS REALLY SAYING SOMETHING)

anyway, enough about art stuff HI HEY HELLO RED GLOVE I WAVED BACK AT YOU


we had just enough time for a quick lunch at karyn's cooked before crystal had to catch her train back home. these are my potato pancakes with applesauce. (POTATO PANCAKES 4LYFE)


and back at the hotel CRYSTAL GAVE US AN OWL


but it was still crushing to have her leave. THANK YOU SOOOO MUCH FOR HANGING OUT WITH US IN CHICAGO CRYSTAL WE WILL HAVE TO DO IT AGAIN VERY SOON

that night, leff and i had packing to do as we were catching the red eye to BERLIN i had to clean my boots before i could pack them. ugh. road salt.


BUT we still had time for one last meal. what was it, you ask? FUCKING PORTILLO'S DAWG HAHAH GET IT IT IS A HOT DOG PLace.... heh


kittens, this right chere is a thing of fries with nacho cheese sauce. you know the last time i had good fries with nacho cheese sauce? it was in memphis. at exlines'. 80 BILLION YEARS AGO


so fucking delicious. but the main thing THE THING I HAD BEEN WAITING FOR THE LONGEST was a chicago dog. OH THE CHICAGO DOG


i try to make these at home when i get homesick for chicago (it usually happens during spring training, heh.) but i can never get them to turn out exactly right. i think it's the lack of poppy seed bun and atomic relish. whatever it is, the chicago dog remains one of my most absolute favorite food items ON THE PLANET

hey, i'm a simple woman with simple tastes.

TOMORROW--- we hop a ghost plane to berlin! JENS!!!!!!!!!!! EVERY CONCEIVABLE TYPE OF BAHN, THE PERGAMON NEUES MUSEUM BASICALLY THE WHOLE DAMN INSEL so much more happened that i am forgetting BUT I WILL REMEMBER BY TOMORROW PLEASE CHECK BACK SOON MY GERMAN WAS ATTROCIOUS HAHAHAHhhahahahaah :(

No comments: