Life in Chicago is about to get brighter

A new art installation will fill one intersection with color.

When residents suggest that a city needs a makeover, few people imagine artists taking to the streets and painting office buildings in a spectrum of colors. Strangely, that’s just what’s going to happen to our city.

Chicago Loop Alliance’s upcoming summer art installation is like Jason Pollack meets Rainbow Bright and a melted box of Crayons. Could this possibly be a good thing?

The installation is called Color Jam, and for the moment it is only in the planning process. Multimedia artist Jessica Stockholder is the mastermind behind the project. She isn’t giving out too many details on her plans just yet. She has said that she aims to fill one particular intersection with color from top to bottom: buildings, the road, and the sidewalks. (Likely not fire hydrants and traffic signs as I’m sure that is all sorts of illegal.)

Stockholder won’t confirm the intersection or the colors but she has hinted that green, radiant red, and blue will be the leading colors of choice.

In a predominately gray city, having a splash or two of color might not be a bad thing. Years of studies conducted across the globe confirm that colors can affect our moods. Chicago is a city known for its stress levels so adding soothing blues, greens, and even pastel pinks could decrease stress levels and increase a sense of calm.

Are there colors that can decrease crime and road rage? Colors to decrease and regulate government spending? We suggest that Stockholder look into those palettes as well.

If Stockholder chooses her colors wisely, she could be doing the entire city a favor.

 

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