Chicago: Seeing and Photographing the Windy City
by Steve Geer
Photography with Prose Narrative ~ 96 pages
Price: $25.99
Publisher: America Through Time
ISBN-13: 978-1-63499-622-8
To Order: Amazon.com
ABOUT THE BOOK:
Chicago: Seeing and Photographing the Windy City provides a visual exploration of one of the most photogenic cities in North America. Photographer Steve Geer shares his pictorial knowledge of Chicago in the twenty-first century, a city he clearly loves. It is a book for anyone interested in looking beyond the standard views of downtown Chicago and includes useful tips for those wanting to take their own unique photographs of the city. The text describes how the city came to be the way it is; the Loop; the river, lake, and parks; places of interest near the Loop; the elevated railway; industry; how to get bird’s-eye views from high vantage points; and the people on the streets of Chicago. The images show the striking Chicago architecture; the river frozen in winter and dyed green for St. Patrick’s Day; the beautiful lakefront and the lake in its various moods; the world-famous parks; and Chicagoans are work and at play. Together, the text and images provide inspiring snapshots of Chicago.
ADVANCE PRAISE:
Having lived my entire life in central Illinois farm country, about two hours south of Chicago, I admit to a farmer’s opinion of big cities. I don’t like them! Illinois is the Prairie State. However, Steve Geer’s seminal album of pictures and narrative has slapped me “upside the head.” He arrested my attention, opened my eyes to forms of beauty, history and humanity that I would otherwise not have known.
–Michael Escoubas, author of Monet in Poetry and Paint
Chicago: Seeing and Photographing the Windy City is a gift. Having been away from the “City” for more than 40 years, Steve’s book returns me to those years, when in my early twenties, I lived and worked there. While so much has changed during the intervening years, photos of the Loop, Lake Michigan with the boats and yachts at anchor, Lake Shore Drive, construction projects, the El and so much more, pique my desire for a return visit. I’m sure to purchase two copies: one for myself, one to give away.
–Sharmagne Leland-St. John, author of A Raga for George Harrison
“In this gem, Steve Geer turns a practiced photographer’s eye on both familiar and unfamiliar Chicago scenes. It’s part travel guide, part artistic tour de force. Coupled with Geer’s instinct to get to the heart of things visually, his broadly representative images of this Mid-West “City in a Garden” all together bear a stunning originality. It’s not only the city’s skyscrapers, parks, and industry captured in an unusual snapshot of our time. The images also celebrate the Chicago River artery lifeline that over time went both to and from Lake Michigan. With a spare contextual commentary, you get not only a core history of the city’s geography and its related economic development, but also tips on what a picture taker should look out for and where. Whether you’re a native Chicagoan or viewing it from afar, this is one look at Chicago you’ll never forget.”
–William J. Bowe, retired Executive Vice President and General Counsel of Encyclopaedia Britannica
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Steve Geer is a scientist and photographer living in Chicago. He has exhibited photographs in more than thirty solo and group exhibitions in the U.S. and in Europe, has published his work in numerous photography magazines, and is on the board of directors of the Perspective Fine Art Photography Gallery in Evanston, IL. In 2019 Steve was a founding member of the P2 Collective, a group of photographers and poets producing an ekphrastic dialogue in which poems and inspire photographs that then inspire further poems, and so on. Steve is a Fellow of the Royal Photographic Society (FRPS). To see more of his work, visit his website www.stevegeer.com
FROM THE BOOK:
Excerpted from Section 4 entitled “The Parks”
by Steve Geer
When Chicago’s motto “Urbs in horto – City in a garden” was adopted in 1837, Chicago was not much of a city and not in anything like a garden. However, in modern times Chicago, with its extensive park system, lives up to its motto. There are parks throughout the metropolitan area, but the main ones are along the lake: Lincoln Park on the north side, Grant Park in the Loop, and Jackson Park on the south side. A statue of President Grant presides over Lincoln Park, which is somewhat ironic since President Lincoln’s statue presides over Grant Park.
Osaka Garden (also called "Garden of the Phoenix") in Jackson Park. April 2025.
Clarence F. Buckingham Memorial Fountain in Grant Park. October 2024.
Fountain of the Great Lakes in the South Garden of the Art Institute of Chicago. June 2022.
The Pagoda in Ping Tom Memorial Park. April 2025.
|
