Why is there a big bean in Chicago?
Why was the Bean in Chicago built? The Bean is one of the best ways to capture Chicago’s beautiful skyline while still being in the photo . Designed by the London-based artist Anish Kapoor, the work was selected out of two proposals that were submitted in 1999 for a “showpiece” sculpture that would sit in Millennium Park.
Why is the bean so shiny?
The Bean’s reflective surface was inspired by liquid mercury. This shiny exterior reflects the people moving around the park, the lights of Michigan Avenue, and the surrounding skyline and green space — perfectly encapsulating the Millennium Park experience.
What is the history of the Chicago Bean?
Chicago Bean History: The Inside Story behind Cloud Gate
- Choosing the Bean. Millennium Park, in some ways, is a misnomer. ...
- The Artist behind the Chicago Bean. Born in 1954 in Bombay (now Mumbai), India, Kapoor moved to London in the 1970s. ...
- Creation of Cloud Gate. Creation of Cloud Gate lasted two years, spanning 2003 and 2004. ...
- The Bean Is Unveiled. ...
Where is the bean located in Chicago?
The Cloud Gate aka the 'Bean'. 201 E Randolph St, Chicago, IL 60601. (312) 742-1168. Claim this business.
Why is Chicago known for the Bean?
What does The Bean mean? The Bean's reflective surface was inspired by liquid mercury. This shiny exterior reflects the people moving around the park, the lights of Michigan Avenue, and the surrounding skyline and green space — perfectly encapsulating the Millennium Park experience.
What is inside the bean in Chicago?
The interior of the Bean is largely wooden The exterior has been welded shut and polished to be seamless, and terms state that the 168-piece structure remain standing until 3006. Whatever junk is left behind inside will just have to serve as a time capsule for our alien overlords.
What does a bean symbolize?
Once planted, beans can represent resurrection and reincarnation since they grow spiritually upwards. Beans are also phallic, especially when they are green and can symbolize male sex organs, and can connote immortality. Can be thought of also as an elementary food or way of counting.
Do they clean The Bean in Chicago?
How do they clean the Chicago Bean? The sculpture gets a deep cleaning and is washed with 150 liters of liquid detergent twice a year. On a daily basis, city workers give it a good power hose and wipe down.
Why is Cloud Gate called The Bean?
Constructed between 2004 and 2006, the sculpture is nicknamed "The Bean" because of its shape, a name Kapoor initially disliked, but later grew fond of. Made up of 168 stainless steel plates welded together, its highly polished exterior has no visible seams.
What did happen with The Bean?
Straw, Coal, and Bean Go Traveling He would lay himself over the water, and the others would walk across him, first Coal and then Bean. Coal walked ahead, and Bean came tripping after. But when Coal reached the middle of the straw, it caught fire and burned through. Coal fell into the water hissing, and died.
What does Cloud Gate represent?
Often people term it as the belly button. Kapoor calls it Cloud Gate because eighty percent of the surface of this sculpture reflects the sky. He sees this work as an intersection between sculpture and architecture. Cloud Gate is an iconic piece representing the cultural value of the city in the public space.
How much did The Bean in Chicago cost?
$23 millionThe final steel shape reached 66 feet in length, 42 feet at its widest point, and rose as high as 33 feet. Its total cost—well above initial estimates—reached $23 million, with an array of donors picking up the difference. The long process began with a wooden model; that model transitioned into a digital image.
What is the Bean in Chicago?
Cloud Gate, aka “The Bean”, is one of Chicago’s most popular sights. The monumental work of art anchors the city’s downtown park, reflecting the city’s famous skyline and the surrounding green space. Here’s everything you need to know about The Bean, including where it came from and where to see it.
Where is The Bean?
The Bean is located in Millennium Park, the lakefront park in Chicago’s downtown Loop. It sits above the McCormick Tribune Plaza, directly behind the Park Grill Restaurant at 11 N. Michigan Ave. If you’re walking on Michigan Avenue between Randolph and Monroe, you really can’t miss it.
What is the reflective surface of the Bean?
The Bean’s reflective surface was inspired by liquid mercury. This shiny exterior reflects the people moving around the park, the lights of Michigan Avenue, and the surrounding skyline and green space — perfectly encapsulating the Millennium Park experience. The polished surface also invites visitors to touch the surface and observe their own reflection, giving it an interactive quality.
What is the exterior of the bean made of?
The exterior of The Bean is made entirely of stainless steel. It was created using computer technology to precisely cut 168 massive steel plates, which were then fitted together and welded shut for a completely seamless finish. Inside, it’s made of a network of two large metal rings.
What is the Bean in Chicago?
The Chicago Bean is one of the major attractions in the city. Cloud Gate, commonly known as the Bean, is one of the most popular photographed attractions in the city for locals and tourists who visit Chicago to see its iconic sights.
How much did the Chicago Bean cost?
Originally, it was expected that the Chicago Bean would cost $6 million. However, its cost exceeded the original estimates, going up to $23 million. Many donors picked up this difference along the way, giving Chicagoans a new symbol for the city.
Why Is It Called the Bean?
The official name of this sculpture is Cloud Gate, but the locals and tourists call it the Bean. The Park opened in 2004, and people started visiting the area while the Bean was still under construction.
What is the bean in Millennium Park?
The Bean is made of 168 stainless steel plates that have been welded together. Millennium Park’s centerpiece was unveiled in 2004, during the Park’s opening. The exterior is highly polished and is entirely seamless, which is part of the reason it reflects its surroundings so well.
How many rings does a bean have?
On the inside, the Bean has two metal rings that form a grid-like network, stabilizing the structure’s shape. The exterior structure is attached to the interior grid through flexible connectors that let the Bean contract and expand as the weather and temperatures change.
What is the Bean's reflective surface?
The Bean’s mirrored surface is 100% reflective, which means that it reflects the surroundings of downtown Chicago.
What was the first of Kapoor's work installed in the United States and paid by private donors?
The Cloud Gate was the first of Kapoor’s work installed in the United States and paid by private donors.
What is the Bean Chicago?
The bean Chicago is one of the most notable architectural marvels. The Cloud Gate sculpture, also known as ‘the Bean,’ is one of the top things to see in Chicago. It now serves as a famous symbol of Chicago and is one of the city’s most photographed attractions. We will walk you through the 10 facts about this place so that you can climb up to ...
What is the inspiration for the bean Chicago?
The inspiration for the bean Chicago that he envisioned has been derived from the texture of mercury, and the surface is made in such a way to reflect light.
How large is the Bean?
Cloud Gate officially measures in at 66 feet long, 42 feet wide, and 33 feet high. It weighs approximately 110 tons, or about the same as a Boeing 757 airliner. That's one big bean!
What does the Bean mean?
Sir Anish Kapoor described liquid mercury as his inspiration for Cloud Gate. He sought to create a form that captured the movement in the surrounding park and the city beyond. The Bean's highly reflective surface, much like liquid mercury, appears ready to slosh about.
How to take a selfie at the Bean?
Consider positioning yourself on the west side of the sculpture looking towards Michigan Avenue or on the north side towards East Randolph Street. From these locations, you can capture some of the surrounding high-rise buildings including the Aon Center and the Chicago Cultural Center. Another option is to try to capture a selfie from the omphalos on the underside ; however, the distortions in the reflections from this perspective may not make for ideal photographic compositions. You are also likely to encounter many other people trying to do the same thing, meaning you’ll have to jostle for space. One additional recommendation is to visit the park in the early morning hours when the sunrise off Lake Michigan provides beautiful lighting.
What materials were used to make the Bean Chicago?
When the bean Chicago was initially in the design phase, there were several concerns as to what materials should be used to build the bean Chicago. The idea of using stainless steel was thought to be a bad idea because of the heat-absorbing properties of the same. The idea of getting it heated throughout the day, and getting it cooled throughout the night could have been devastating. So, the plan was made to get the inspiration from the old ships which were made of wood. The wooden framework would provide the necessary support when the outer support would shrink and expand. There was even an office inside the bean Chicago when it was in the construction phase. Bean Chicago’s outer surface was polished later to give the seamless finish of the bean Chicago which you can see today. There was also a statement by the team executing the project that the 168 odd pieces of the bean Chicago would stand strong till 3006, which is a millennium more years from today. The remains inside will surely be a time capsule for the future generation to explore.
What was the name of the Chicago White Stockings baseball ground?
What would eventually become Millennium Park was once the famed Union Baseball Grounds, home to the Chicago White Stockings until it was destroyed in the Great Chicago Fire in October 1871. Having existed variously as a park, a rail yard, and a parking lot in the many decades that followed, the area was in need of a makeover when city planners decided to build a great urban park to celebrate the coming of the third millennium. Despite significant construction delays and massive cost overruns, Millennium Park eventually opened to the public in 2004. In overcoming these challenges, city planners managed to construct a widely praised public greenspace that would go on to earn a place in many a Chicago resident's heart.
What is the Chicago Bean?
Whether you live in Chicago or not, you have most likely seen the Chicago Bean, also known as the Cloud Gate. Do you really know what is the story behind it and why was it built? Living in the Windy City means you get access to all the wonderful landmarks and attractions the city has to offer. One of the most famous attractions in Chicago is ...
Where is the Chicago Bean located?
First off, where is the Chicago Bean located? It can be found in the heart of Chicago. Specifically, you can find it in Millennium Park, a lakefront park in the Loop or downtown Chicago. The Chicago Bean is 33 feet high, 43 feet wide, and 66 feet long. It also weighs a massive 110 tons.
Who built the Bean?
The Bean was designed by Anish Kapoor. He is an Indian-born British artist and sculptor. He is well-known for many of his large scale outdoor works of art. Many of these also include reflective surfaces. Moreover, the Cloud Gate installation is his first permanent public outdoor art in the United States.
Why is the Bean called the Bean?
This is due to its closed curve shape that is similar to a bean. The nickname then stuck.
What is the bean made of?
The Bean is completely made up of stainless steel. It was created by putting together 168 massive steel plates and welding them shut to create a seamless finish. The interior is made up of two large metal rings that connect by a framework. This framework is similar to what you might see on a bridge.
What is the most famous thing in Chicago?
One of the most famous attractions in Chicago is the Bean . This public art has become an icon to the city and is a must-see spot for many tourists visiting. The Chicago Bean is a unique site you can’t get anywhere else. Let’s explore the idea behind this installation and how it came to be.
How often do they wipe down the fingerprints on the Bean?
In fact, the Bean’s maintenance crew come to wipe down the fingerprints on the bottom sections up to seven times a day.
What is the Chicago Bean?
The final product, a gleaming steel mirror that bends the Chicago sky and skyline around its surface, had a long path to fruition, from selection to development. This is the inside story on Chicago Bean history.
When was the Chicago Bean unveiled?
The Bean Is Unveiled. The first, but not final, unveiling of the Chicago Bean occurred in July 2004 at the official opening of Millennium Park. However, not all seams had been yet been fully welded and polished.
When did the Bean get its final polish?
Still, the omphalos—the steel “navel” underneath Cloud Gate —didn’t receive its final polish until October, when the Bean attained its final form.
What was Kapoor's work in the Millennium Park?
His 1995 work Turning the World Inside Out, far smaller than the one proposed for Chicago, served as the conceptual basis for the polished metal work—a representation of liquid mercury, to some—that would become Cloud Gate.
What is the Chicago Bean?
The Chicago Bean stands as one of the world’s largest permanent outdoor art installations. And as one of Chicago’s most photographed landmarks, “The Bean” is a popular spot for tourists to enjoy during their vacation.
How do they clean the Chicago Bean?
The sculpture gets a deep cleaning and is washed with 150 liters of liquid detergent twice a year. On a daily basis, city workers give it a good power hose and wipe down.
Why is Cloud Gate called the Bean?
Cloud Gate got its nickname, “The Bean,” because of its shape. Kapoor originally disliked the nickname given to his artwork, but later grew to like it.
