Adrian Aquino
Dr. Zabic
English 160 MWF 10:00-10:50
7 September 2014
Vivian Maier- Chicago History Museum Vivian Maier is a photographer whose work shows what everyday life is like in the great city of Chicago. Although Vivian is a New Yorker by birth, she has travelled all around the world documenting plenty of photos. Most notably, her Chicago photos have been documented through summer of 2013. Her photographs portrayed nothing less than a fractured community. A socially isolated person herself, Maier often found lonely faces on the streets of Chicago. Almost like a Cubist painter, she abstracted those faces from the crowds and sometimes portrayed them reflected in window panes. The museum did a good job displaying both individual photos …show more content…
(can be what?)Rule 1 Some people are just busy and occupied, but at the same time there are people who like to stop and think once in a while and ignore their surroundings(?). For example, one photo showed a woman carrying a shopping bag (assumption) down a road that looked like it was located within downtown Chicago. Also, there was another photo of a man just staring at something in his hands and being a little more focused into his own mind. Not all her photos seemed to show faces of people though. A couple of photos actually showed a parked car, and another one showed construction going on. The depiction behind those photos depict the style of living in Chicago from how buildings are being developed/added to just the style people were used to having around the city. One other style she liked were self-portraits. Numerous photos were taken of her (by her, of course) where she is just using a mirror and posing in front of …show more content…
Maier (born in New York in 1926) moved to Chicago in the 1950s where she worked for 40 years as a nanny to support her photography passion. However, Vivian also travels around the world in places like Bangkok, Egypt, and Italy. Knowing this, it can be assumed that her pictures could also depict urban living. According to the museum, “This exhibition puts Maier’s work in the context of her life during a highly creative period from the 1950s through the 1970s. In addition to her recognized street photography, the exhibit features a selection of images that show the artist’s relentless curiosity where she captured images that cover a vast range of subjects and styles. The exhibition presents Maier’s journeys from the pastures of rural France to the streets of Chicago. Maier’s unique ability to brilliantly capture the ideas and spirit of the period of the 1950s to the 1970s are particularly apparent in shots of Chicago’s famous Maxwell Street and protest scenes shot during the social unrest of