Photos

Cloud Gate, Chicago, September 2006

This is the celebrated installation by British sculputre, Anish Kapoor in Chicago's Millennium Park. This was opened to the public in 2004 and it has been a popular attraction ever since. During its first public opening, the seams of the steel plates that comprise the sculpture were still visible. They closed it for a little while, built a canopy over it in the winter of 2004-2005 so they can polish the seams. They basically had to invent a new technology to polish and clean the structure, popularly known as "The Bean." Inspired by liquid mercury, the sculpture is among the largest in the world, measuring 66-feet long by 33-feet high and weighing 110 tons.

It is a very interactive sculpture with people able to touch it, look at their reflection, go under it, photograph it ... the reaction people have to it is just incredible. I remember, even Anish Kapoor, during its public dedication last year, I remember having said that he himself was astonished at the emotions people have in reaction to the sculpture.

Please see my Mercury Rising series for a funky look at Cloud Gate over the years.