The Chicago skyline is something of a miracle that rose out of the ashes of the Great Chicago Fire in 1871. In this horrific event the entire center city was burn to the ground and hundreds of people were killed making it one of the greatest tragedies of American History. However, with the vision of men like Potter Palmer and Marshall Field the city was able to take up its vision of being a great metropolis and moved forward to build what was at the time the most modern city in the world.

The Chicago Fire was in many respects a great thing for the City of Chicago because it was able to make a clean slate and start all over again. The great architect Daniel Burnham came up with his visionary plan entitle “Plan of Chicago” where he laid out a proposal for this great new city. Chicago today still look much like what Daniel Burnham had envisioned.

One of the greatest inventions of the time that proved to be a wonder for Chicago was the elevator. With this new marvel people could be lifted from the ground to floors many stories high making possible the construction of tall office towers. When you look along Michigan Avenue today you can see many of the buildings that started this great skyline. To name but a few of the great architectural landmarks there are the Rookery, Auditorium Theater, The Chicago Club (original home of the Art Institute of Chicago which collapsed in 1928), Monadnock Building, and Reliance Building to mention just a few. Today Chicago can boast to have the tallest buildings in the United States and a steady cluster of office towers surrounding these Titans.

Across Michigan Avenue on the east side is the world-famous Art Institute of Chicago home to some of the most famous paintings in the world including the internationally celebrated “American Gothic” by Grant Wood, whose image is second only to the Mona Lisa by Leonardo DaVinci in public recognition. The Art Institute is the only permanent building permitted to be on the east side of Michigan Avenue in a declamation my Montgomery Ward who owned all of the property from Michigan Avenue to Lake Michigan. If any structures were ever to be built aside from the Art Institute the land would revert to the family of Mr. Ward. Looking at this great skyline today it is amazing to think that a little over 100 years ago it was burned to the ground.

A great way to celebrate the beauty of Chicago is through art and here at Condren Galleries Ltd. I have large selection of artwork ranging from watercolors, pen & ink, pencil drawings, and oils to choose from. Please take your time to look though all that I have to offer and if you should have any questions please contact me.