SPECIAL FOCUS

The Spirit of Urban Beauty

Chicago's "Spirit of Music Garden" draws lunch crowds, swing dancers,
artists and city folks just looking for a pretty place to sit

BY KATHERINE GIERUT

Hurt en Urbe, or "Garden in the City," has been the motto of the Chicago Park District since its inception in 1934 and remains the guiding principle of the district to this day. With a vast canvas to work with—26 miles of shoreline and more than 7,400 acres of land spread throughout 520 neighborhood parks the park district is in the business of urban beautification every day. The parks must be as inviting visually as they are culturally enriching, while catering to both the passive and active needs of the district's more than 20 million annual customers. Under the leadership of General Superintendent Carolyn Williams Meza, during the last two years the Chicago Park District has initiated an elevated landscape maintenance program and an extensive garden initiative. Designed to foster and maintain quality park landscapes, the program has resulted in some of the most beautiful gardens the city of Chicago has ever seen.

"Our parks must be a place where people come to enjoy... enjoy the tranquility, enjoy the gardens, enjoy our many activities, but most of all, enjoy quality time with friends and family," says Williams Meza.

"Therefore, we must constandy challenge ourselves to deliver the very best parks and programs we can for our customers: the citizens of Chicago and the world."

Among the many examples of new, innovative gardens in Chicago, stands one that embodies the concept of urban beautificarion. Located in Grant Park bordered by Balbo Drive, Michigan Avenue, Harrison Street and the former Illinois Central (1C) railroad tracks—this garden was basically a forgotten space that was not being used to its full potential.

The goal was to revitalize this area to make it more user-friendly for the growing community in the downtown and South Loop areas of Chicago. The South Loop, home to a number of colleges and businesses, has seen a boom in residential development and, in turn, a whole new group of people who use the park.

As the park district began working on preliminary plans for the new garden, a number of urgent issues came to the table. The city's Millennium Park Project was set to begin construction on a 16.5-acre space just west of Grant Park in early 1999 and continue through the year 2000. This posed a challenge for the city's Cultural Affairs Department to relocate a number of activities previously held on or adjacent to this site, including Chicago Summer Dance and Gallery 37 in the Parks. However, it also created a tremendous opportunity to make this garden much more than just an urban beautificarion

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At Left: Each year hundreds head to the dance floor as part of the Chicago Summer Dance program, which has Found a temporary home in the Chicago Park Districts Spirit or Music Garden in the South Loop area of the city. Photograph by Chris McGuins. Right: Larger than life murals are painted in the garden by youths from the Gallery 37 in the Parks program. Photograph by Chris McGuire.

When the music starts the garden fills with people

project. The garden would not only be beautiful, it would be the temporary home to these wonderful activities. And so the design priorities were reassessed.

In an effort to assist the Department of Cultural Affairs, the park district began to rethink the design elements for this Grant Park area. Starting in November 1998, a number of agencies came together to discuss plans for this space that would be called the "Spirit of Music Garden." Ironically, the name—in honor of the large bronze statue entitled "The Spirit of Music" that watches over the park embodies the concept of what the site would soon become: a multipurpose garden filled with music and a lot of spirit.

Dan Purciarello, Chicago Park District project manager for the Spirit of Music Garden, worked with the city of Chicago's Department of Cultural Affairs and Department of General Services, and the Mayor's Office of Special Events to create a garden that fulfilled program needs as well as a garden that was a unique draw in and of itself.

Chicago Summer Dance required the most space and materials for their three month long dance and music program. First, there was a need for a stage to hold the musical performers. This resulted in a wooden stage that was erected at the north end of the garden which includes a gently sloping ramp at the back. The ramp allows handicap accessibility as well as a perfect method for performers to move their equipment to the stage. Since this was a dance program, the grass would need to be covered by a hard surface. A large plastic dance floor made from recycled materials was placed directly in front of the stage. This cut down on the amount of space that would be effected by construction.

Since the dance program runs until 9:00 p.m., temporary antique lighting was installed at the corners of the dance floor to allow participants to enjoy the program well into the evening. And, because a number of people attending Chicago Summer Dance just want to sit back and enjoy the music, a seating area was designed near the dance floor that includes a reusable art piece by Dan Peterman called "Running Table." The interactive art is actually a number of recycled plastic picnic tables all connected together to create one large table. The concept is to bring all people to one table, but it also serves as a great new site for people to sit, relax and watch the fun.

"Gallery 37 in the Parks" is in neighborhoods throughout Chicago and offers cultural activities, enrichment and education for youths in a variety of mediums. Some Gallery 37 programs, like creative writing, don't require much more

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THE SPIRIT OF URBAN BEAUTY

At Left: A view of the garden under construction in 1999. Photograph countest of Chicago Park District. Right: View of the garden looking north, from the vantage point of the Spirit of Music statue, which inspired the garden's name. Photograph by Chris McGuire.

than a tent. To meet this need, a grassy space at the south end of the garden was ¦ left open to house a number of more passive activities in the Spirit of Music Garden. This strikes a symmetrical balance with the stage area directly to the north.

However, Gallery 37 also has activities like the mural program where youths paint on large metal panels to create larger-than- life works of art. These large panels are mounted on a temporary structure built at f the rear of the garden and will be left up for the duration of the program. At the completion of the program the wall will be ¦ removed and no trace will be left behind.

Given the temporary nature of these programs, at the core of the design of the Spirit of Music Garden is its garden. The park district uses a combination of annuals and perennials that will guarantee a splash of color throughout the summer. The garden layout incorporates a geometric design that pulls the visitor into the center of the garden, where they can easily access all other areas. Classic-looking wooden umbrellas, tables and chairs circle the center of the garden, encouraging people to sit and enjoy their surroundings.

When the programs are over the park district will still have a beautiful urban space. The dance floor, tents, temporary lighting and mural will be removed but- because the layout was designed with this in mind—the garden will stand on its own merit. Turf replacement will need to be done on the grass that was under the dance floor and tents and in high-traffic areas, but, other than that, the garden will show no trace of what was once there.

"Programs in urban spaces are often force into an available space, which sometimes may not be the most conducive to the project," says Dan Purciarello.

"But the Spirit of Music Garden was a unique project that took the programs as well as their absence into consideration."

The real success of this project can be seen in the people now filling the once quiet area. Students from nearby colleges use the space for their art projects, a number of people sit at the tables and enjoy the sunshine and others just stroll through the garden admiring the beautiful flowers.

When the music starts the garden fills with people. Dancers hit the floor while others enjoy just watching the action. Michael Orlove, Cultural Affairs program director, estimates that between 300 and 500 people turn out for Summer Dance every Thursday through Sunday night during the summer.

"This site has really energized the South Loop area," says Purciarello.

"Working with these other sister agencies, we have really created a working garden that gets people involved and beautifies the city."

"To have functioning programs in such a beautiful site is wonderful," says Orlove.

"We receive compliments on a daily basis about the programs, and everybody loves the flowers."

While the Chicago Park District works on urban beautification everyday, the Spirit of Music Garden is a picture-perfect example of "function with grace." The garden is as practical as it is beautiful, and serves as a tremendous model for parks facing similar design challenges.

KATHERINE GIERUT

is a communications specialist for the Chicago Park District.

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Chicago's District-wide Urban Beautification

Flowers Everywhere

Annuals and perennials are planted in gardens in parks throughout the city of Chicago—from Grant Park, to Jackson Park, to Lincoln Park. These sites provide lush, colorful landscapes that enhance the cityscapes. The floral beds in front of the Chicago Park District Administration Building are planted year-round and reflect the types of plants featured at the five annual flower shows at the park district's Garfield Park and Lincoln Park Conservatories. Highlighted below are three innovative, district-wide urban beautification projects.

School Garden Initiative Encouraging Children To Think Green This program builds upon the Mayor Daley School Park Program by creating gardens on school grounds to serve as training and learning resources. A school garden links classroom learning with the creation, maintenance and study of a garden. This program is a joint effort with the city of Chicago's Department of Planning and Development, Chicago Botanic Garden, Chicago Public Schools, Garfield Park Conservatory and Openlands Project Green Deed Tree Dedication Project Adding To Park Green Space This program allows people to purchase a tree to be planted in one of over 500 parks and playgrounds in the city. Buyers receive a "Green Deed" certificate of ownership that describes the tree planted, the location, and the person or event being honored. The program, which has already resulted in hundreds of donated trees, is an environmental way to beautify the city and celebrate loved ones. Trees are available starring from $250. For more information call 312.747.2728.

Osaka Garden

Cultures Embracing Beautification

The first foreign government to lead the way in support of the 1893 World 's Colombian Exposition was Japan. As part of their commitment to the fair, the Japanese government built a replica of the famous Phoenix Hall in Uji Japan on Jackson Park's Wooded Island. The replica was called "Ho-o-den Pavilion." As part of their gift they also added minor landscape improvements to complement the structure, and this was the beginning of the Osaka Garden. The area was further developed into a Japanese Garden in 1934 as an attraction to visitors attending the Century of Progress World's Fair. The Ho-o-den Pavilion stood in Jackson Park until it was destroyed by fire in 1944. In 1981 the Park District renovated the garden and added a waterfall and in 1992 Chicago officials renamed the area Osaka Garden to honor their Sister City. Osaka donated $250,000 for a new entrance gate. The new garden gate is of typical Japanese design, heavily influenced by the traditions of Buddhism and Shintoism. There is currently an Osaka Garden Committee, which includes representatives from Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio, the Museum of Science and Industry, Chicago Sister Cities International Program, Friends of the Parks and others who are working with the park district to develop programs and activities to bring additional visitors to the garden.

- by Kotherine Gierut
Photograph: Flower beds color the front of the Historical Society in Lincoln Park. Photograph courtesy of the Chicago Park District.

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