Chicago architecture becomes easier to read when you compare questions rather than collect famous names. Frank Lloyd Wright’s Robie House and Ludwig Mies van der
A green park does not necessarily begin with a green history. In Chicago, a pond can sit beside an old quarry wall, a walking path can
Palais Longchamp makes an everyday necessity look magnificent. A great central arch, curved colonnades and a monumental fountain turn water into the subject of a public
Chicago’s cultural museums are not simply smaller versions of its large downtown institutions. Many ask a different starting question: how can a community collect, interpret
At the entrance to Marseille’s Old Port, two fortified sites face each other across the water. Fort Saint-Jean occupies the northern side; Fort Saint-
A famous musical address can look surprisingly ordinary. A compact recording building, a residential house and a former industrial façade do not explain their importance through
Chicago’s tall buildings do not speak with one architectural voice. A dark masonry wall, a pair of rounded concrete towers and a glass building edged
The golden figure above Marseille is familiar long before you reach its hill. It appears beyond the boats, between buildings and over the everyday movement of
Chicago’s World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893 has a powerful afterlife in photographs: pale monumental buildings, water, bridges and carefully arranged views. Visit Jackson Park
A good Marseille trip needs a few firm decisions, then room to enjoy the city. An island crossing, access to Sugiton, an architecture tour and a
Chicago’s Great Fire is often reduced to two images: a cow beside a lamp and a small stone tower standing amid destruction. Neither image is
On a hot Marseille day, change the rhythm before adding more places. Give the Old Port a short morning walk, choose one genuinely available indoor museum
