Chicago is a city known for its fabulous architecture and public
sculpture by artists such as Picasso and Calder, but anyone who has seen
the gorgeous lunettes in the Auditorium Theater or the South Side's Wall
of Respect, which inaugurated the city's contemporary mural movement,
knows that Chicago has an equally rich tradition of mural painting.
Through these murals, the history of Chicago and the nation is writ in
churches and lobbies, on viaducts and school walls. Mary Gray's A Guide
to Chicago's Murals is the first definitive handbook to the treasures
that can be found all over the city.
With full-color illustrations of nearly two hundred Chicago murals and
accompanying entries that describe their history--who commissioned them
and why, how artists collaborated with architects, the subjects of the
murals and their contexts--A Guide to Chicago's Murals serves both a
general and a specific audience. Divided into easy-to-read geographical
sections with useful maps for walking tours, it is the perfect companion
for tourists or Chicagoans interested in coming to know better this
aspect of the city's history. Gray also provides crucial information on
lesser-known artists and on murals that have been destroyed over the
years, filling a gap in the visual record of the city's development.
Gray also includes biographies of more than 150 artists and a glossary
of key terms, making A Guide to Chicago's Murals essential reading for
mural viewing. From post offices to libraries, fieldhouses to banks, and
private clubs to street corners, Mary Gray chronicles the amazing works
of artists who have sought to make public declarations in this most
social of art forms.
A major lacuna in the history of art in Chicago has been filled, with
the thoroughness of the research proportionate to the richness of the
material revealed.--From the Foreword by Franz Schulze
Gray's book . . . can function as a guidebook, as the murals are
conveniently arranged according to the quadrants of the city. But the
book is also beautiful to look at and indespensable as art history and
Chicago history as well. . . . This book is a wonderful guide to
Chicago's rich and unique mural tradition.--Elizabeth Alexander,
Chicago Tribune Books
If you love art and history, this is a book you'll truly enjoy.--Al
Paulson, Utne Reader
