Wednesday, July 13, 2011 | louise
anyone strolling down superior street in river north the past few months would have been hard-pressed to miss the construction of the poetry foundation's new digs. thanks to a generous $200 million donation from pharmaceutical heiress ruth lilly, the foundation had the luxury of splurging on a contemporary new building that would further its mission to promote the pleasures of poetry to new generations of readers. and now the day has finally come: the doors were flung open in late june, and the general public now has the opportunity to peruse a collection of over 35,000 volumes of verses, to take in the exhibitions, and to attend monthly poetry readings.
of course, we'd be lying if we said we camped out to get in on opening day. but one of us finally made it there this week and returned to the office with photographs and rave reviews. quite frankly, we've got to tip our cap to chicago architect john ronan for designing a sleek, minimalist, fully-functional building that stakes out new ground in a neighborhood traditionally wanting for better architecture. constructed with oxidized zinc and glass, the building admits soft northern light and affords generous views of the outside from all angles. there's a tranquil courtyard, an array of freshly-planted trees, and linear strips of green moss in the concrete floor of the plaza that leads to the entrance.
thanks to the foundation's "open door" policy, you don't need to be a poetry enthusiast to stop in for a look-see. naturally, the hope is that you'll be so smitten with your surroundings that you forget about your next appointment and curl up with some walt whitman, t.s. eliot, ezra pound, or, in our case, dr. seuss. the poetry foundation currently welcomes visitors monday through friday from 11am to 4pm, with expanded hours and a full event schedule commencing in september.
