Proposed Civic Center Square, Plan of Chicago 1909

This is Daniel Burnham’s Proposed Civic Center Square, Plan of Chicago, made with graphite on paper. I love a drawing, especially one that’s about imagining a city that doesn’t yet exist. The sepia tones and soft pencil lines create a dream-like version of early twentieth-century Chicago. The drawing feels tentative, unfinished, as if the city is still emerging. What I like about the marks in this drawing is how they build form from an accumulation of tiny details. Look closely at the crowds of people in the foreground, each one is just a scribble, but together they conjure a busy metropolis. There's something generous about how Burnham isn't trying to hide his process. The lines aren't too precise, you can almost see him thinking as he draws. It reminds me that art is not just about the final image, but also the messy, human act of making. Think of Piranesi, maybe, for the way the built environment, in this case, emerges as a kind of fever dream. Ultimately, art is a conversation, a dialogue across time, inviting us to participate in its ongoing creation.