I'm just back from a glorious week in Chicago and must say, in spite of all the wonderful food and fashion, am glad to be home. I stayed at a hotel on the corner of Michigan and Huron which is a prime location for shopping -- if you're not beset with a horrid cold. The most money that I spent was at Walgreen's on cold medicine. No new Tory Burch ballet flats or a ridiculous Ferragamo bag for me. But with a whirlwind schedule of meetings and dining out ... I had a lovely dinner at
Quartino, which, if you live in Columbus you would be interested to learn that Cameron Mitchell lifted the concept for his restaurant
Marcella's. Imitation is the best form of flattery, no?
I also only took about three pictures, literally, which is a shame. Luckily for me, one dinner event was held at the
Museum of Contemporary Art where I got to see some pretty sublime art. One funny thing I overheard while there, "Columbus? This must be a real culture shock for you." Exciting, yes, but
culture shock? You know, things have improved tremendously around here since we got electricity and indoor plumbing, oh, about a hundred years ago. But I love a town with a
champagne bar, don't you?
Having recently seen Finding Vivian Maier, I find myself asking a lot of questions about where chronicling the human experience intersects with the responsibility of the artist. If you have not seen the movie, I won't spoil it for you, but Ms. Maier was clearly a damaged person, and as a very private person, photography allowed her to participate in life on terms that she could negotiate. Obsessed with "the folly of humanity", she photographed prolifically on the streets of Chicago, taking the children in her care (she was a nanny) into stock yards and dangerous parts of town. Most of her work remained unprinted, and much of it wasn't even developed, until after her death. And it can be argued that she currently enjoys the greatest popularity of any street photographer. What would she say?
