Chicago artist creates tourism posters for city's neighborhoods

(chicagotribune.com)

59 points | by NaOH 3 hours ago

10 comments

  • vogtb 1 hour ago
    This reminds me of another artist that did an isometric map of the city. I bought one and it hangs on my office wall. https://www.etsy.com/listing/1673296980/map-of-chicago-loop-...

    Always fun to have someone over who knows the city. We'll spend 20 minutes pointing to all the buildings we've worked in, places we've eaten, or where The Bear or The Fugitive were filmed.

  • tptacek 2 hours ago
    Not clear why this is hitting HN today, but these are popular enough in Chicago to be kind of a cliche. No matter how convincing the poster is, I think you'll be disappointed if you plan a trip to visit scenic Galewood.
    • perardi 42 minutes ago
      It’s a total cliché rite of passage to buy one of these when you move to Chicago.

      And I am typing that as I look at the Edgewater poster hanging right there over my desk.

    • prawn 2 hours ago
      This was bait enough that I jumped into Google Maps to look at a few random Galewood streets via street view. Obviously very suburban, but looks like it'd make for a nice stroll until you tired of the cookie-cutter layout. Hugh Hefner's childhood home as a bonus.
      • tptacek 2 hours ago
        I live across the street from it. It's fine! It's just one of the most boring neighborhoods in Chicago. Walking distance to Johnnie's Beef, though, which is the best beef spot in the city.
    • fnord77 2 hours ago
      The style is not novel either.
      • tptacek 1 hour ago
        Of Galewood itself? Yeah, no, though it's across the street from one of the most famous architectural areas in Chicagoland. But the posters? They're deliberately an homage to WPA style.
        • mikeaskew4 31 minutes ago
          South Shore Line ones, too…which may have also been WPA style. I should look that up…
  • 3eb7988a1663 2 hours ago
    For some less serious Chicago bulletins, there was SquirrelTruth[0]. A kickstarter was created to post signs in the CTA about the danger of squirrels. I am not sure how many variations there were, but the only one I ever saw was, "Statistically speaking, at least one 'person' on this train is actually 7 squirrels wearing a human suit. Don't be a victim."

    [0] https://www.squirreltruth.com/

  • stavros 2 hours ago
    > “I mean, it’s exciting any time anyone says they like my art. Obviously, people buy it, but it’s still astounding to me that people like the stuff I make.”

    I love this.

  • holtkam2 2 hours ago
    Moving from SF to Chicago this week. This made me feel a little more excited. TY for the share!
    • tptacek 2 hours ago
      Congratulations! I did Chicago (born and raised) -> SF -> Chicago -> SF -> Chicago (detouring through Ann Arbor).

      Where in Chicago are you moving? It's really an amazing city.

    • mikeaskew4 25 minutes ago
      Good luck. The Malört is as bad as advertised.
      • tptacek 23 minutes ago
        Don't drink Windex. It's not a good prank.
        • mikeaskew4 17 minutes ago
          Nobody was surprised when Jeppsons got in on the hand sanitizer effort during COVID. Didn’t even have to change the recipe.
  • cozzyd 1 hour ago
    If only the Loop one were centered on Madison instead of Monroe so it would have my condo in it...
  • binarynate 3 hours ago
  • reg_dunlop 2 hours ago
    Thanks! Just bought 4!
    • tptacek 2 hours ago
      Which four? (We have Beverly, where I grew up, and Garfield Park, just because it's cool looking.)
      • reg_dunlop 1 hour ago
        Lincoln Park, Lincoln Square (called those 2 neighborhoods home) then Summer and Caldwell Lily Pond. I spent many a summer evening under the promenade in front of the Frank Gehry Bandshell; And the Lily Pond...those posters are stunning. Really evoked a sense of place and love for the city.
        • tptacek 45 minutes ago
          Good picks. If you didn't already know, Ryan Duggan did a print series of iconic neighborhood pizza places. I've had Fox's in Beverly on my wall twice and both times I ended up having to give the print away to someone who was one-shot by it when they came to my house.

          https://www.ryanduggan.com/

          • mikeaskew4 22 minutes ago
            With both Fox’s and Milano’s, I don’t know how anyone in Beverly/Morgan Park/EP doesn’t have pizza at least twice a week.
  • wetpaws 1 hour ago
    [dead]
  • claudiug 1 hour ago
    what is sad, is that you an take the article, go to any LLM, ask to read and build an system prompt, from the images + text, and then you can replicate his work
    • reg_dunlop 1 hour ago
      I think what's more sad is someone going out of their way to NOT support the artist.

      Art is, among other things, a conversation starter. If someone sees an LLM generated thing hanging in the home or office and strikes up a conversation, it goes something like: "Yeah, i saw it online and I ended up ripping it off"...or the person lies to save face (also sad).

      Or, the conversation could be "Yeah, these were purchased directly from the artist...I bought them because....". (a much more interesting conversation)

      Both of these evoke an emotional reaction with an interlocutor.

    • mikeaskew4 19 minutes ago
      Yes, and it’d look like total crap. People eating NY slices, wearing Dolphins jerseys under palm trees in front of mountains.
    • jeffgreco 49 minutes ago
      Yeah, that would be a real scummy thing to do!