Discovering Art in Nature: A Walking Tour of the Chicago Athenaeum Sculpture Park

An architectural construction of cedar that soars more than 18 feet, Together is the gateway to the International Sculpture Park. The arch is comprised of two different cedar colors, which twist in a noble baroque gesture of endless time and space.  As a symbolic gesture to America and its communities, the top of the arch is interwoven.

Measuring eight feet high by nine feet wide, "The Diver" is constructed of aluminum, and painted in polychrome. Mr. Peart’s work has been exhibited in Chicago, Atlanta, Scottsdale, Schaumburg, and Seoul, Korea, and is characterized as highly lyrical and poetic, with large twisted, and bent masses.  Several of Mr. Peart’s commissioned works are located in Chicago’s downtown plazas.

German sculptor and stonemason Klaus Vieregge created a monumental work in Gothic. The work appears as a fragment of a large European Gothic cathedral that found its way to Chicago. It is eight feet high and weighs more than two tons. The sculpture is made from finely chiseled stone from the Obernkirchern region in Schaumburg, Germany. Many landmarks in the United States are made of this stone, a favorite material of architects in the late 19th and 20th centuries. Gothic is a gift to The Chicago Athenaeum from the German/American Society, Inc. in Germany to commemorate the Sister City relationship between Schaumburg, Illinois, and Schaumburg, Germany.

Made from bronze powder, and resin. Each of the two tongues measures 72 x 38 x 39 inches and follows anatomical research and recent contemporary works by the artist.

What Now is a circular structure made of steel and polychrome. What Now is 83 inches high, 56 inches wide, and 2 inches thick.  The 6,000 lb. sculpture rises dynamically in a circle with a cube at the top. It is composed of 400 steel balls — 7 balls in a row — with the circle constructed of 150 rows.

"Vinland" commemorates the 1,000-year anniversary of the Viking explorer, Leif Eiriksson and his discovery of the Americas in the year 1001 AD. Fifteen giant stones in varying heights, from 6 to 15 feet, are arranged in the outline of a Viking ship with cryptic signs and the position of the stars and planets in the years 1,000, 2,000, and 3,000 AD highlighted in gold leaf.

These works take the form of three chairs emblazoned with traditional Greek themes and images from the history of Mexico, Egypt, and Greece. Chairs are constructed of steel with silver and aluminum plaques.  Ancient civilizations exercise a peculiar attraction to modern man. Walking about the ruins of ancient cities or temples and strolling around old castles fill our minds with images and perceptions that take us back to when those civilizations were flourishing.

Evoking images of a lightning bolt that hit the earth and remained embedded in the ground, the 15-foot high "Athys III" was sculpted from cedar. The sculpture is strongly poetic, geometric, minimal, and representative of today's contemporary art in Switzerland.

Mr. Guðmundsson has chiseled an eight-ton gigantic six-foot head from Iceland’s prehistoric many-hued palagonite to resemble an ancient face from Norse mythology.  Quarried at the artist’s studio at Húsafell Valley in Western Iceland, the name of the sculpture comes from an old legend of the outlaw, Skúli, who escaped his enemies riding the good horse “Sorli” over the rough trail of Kaldidalur, from Pingvellirto Húsa fell, where the horse died from exhaustion. The Icelandic poet, Grimur Thomsen (1820-1896) wrote about this epic tale from Viking times. Mr. Guðmundsson strives for an authentic response both to his heritage, personal and national and to some of the most potent ideas of our times.

The spiritual work has a deep presence originating in ancient Judaic culture and iconography, but in an artistic language that is contemporary. Oded Halahmy, originally born in Baghdad, is one of Israel's foremost artists, has fashioned this work in bronze and it measures 87 inches high, 17 inches wide, and 57 inches in diameter. The work is lyrical and poetic. The artist is also known and revered for his liturgical works in precious metals.

Composed of stainless steel and a metallic sphere, the numbers “zero” and “one” are composed of stainless steel, but are fabricated in ten different sizes ranging from 5 cm to 14 cm. They are welded together making a cloud-like pattern with the perspective view of the larger numbers on the outside and the smaller numbers on the inside. The stainless steel quality of the numbers emanates light outward. The outer spherical form measures seven feet, three inches; the inner spherical form measures one foot, six inches.

The work soars 24 feet into the air. This narrow work resembles a totem or spindle but bends and tucks in a geometric form of contemporary grace and grandeur. The sculpture sits against the Park's natural forest backdrop with forceful elegance.

Awaking Muse is a sculpture, measuring 40 feet across and depicts a female figure inspired by Greek mythology.  At a monumental scale, this muse awakens from her sleep on the lawn of the Prairie Center. It is said that she whispers inspiration to anyone who sits in her hand.

EcceHora, which means ‘Behold the Hour,’ is an adjustable sundial, 12 feet high and 12 feet wide and is constructed of painted aluminum. The piece includes fanciful hand-painted figures that twist, dive, and somersault. They perform as if to say “If life’s just a shadow, make it dance!”

Fiber Wave is comprised of 50 carbon rods, each 4.5 meters high. They represent nature’s gentle beauty as they sway in the wind like a field of prairie grass. At the tip of each rod is a circuit containing a solar collector and LEDs which emit a blue light. As the rods gently sway in the night breezes, they emulate fireflies, with twinkling lights that also suggest stars in the heavens. The artist refers to Fiber Wave as environmental art, as it uses neither external electricity nor wiring.

Commemorating 10th World Tamil Research Conference - "Keezhadi Nam Thaai Madi" - July 4-7, 2019.  Jointly organized by the Federation of Tamil Sangams of North America, International Association of Tamil Research & Chicago Tamil Sangam.