The Wrigley Building in Chicago from Wednesday Dec 13, 2023.The time was, not-quite-sure.
(Per Wikipedia) The Wrigley Building was constructed between 1920 and 1924. When work was begun, the Michigan Ave Bridge traversing the Chicago River due south of the building site was still under construction. It was chosen by William Wrigley, Jr for the headquarters of his chewing gum empire. In 1921, he became the principal owner of the Chicago Cubs and their playing field was renamed for him in 1926. His was the first office-building in Chicago to use air-conditioning.
Lesser known is Mr. Wrigley’s role as the developer of (Santa) Catalina Island off the coast of Long Beach, CA. In 1919, he bought a controlling stake in the Santa Catalina Island Company which also gave him ownership of the land itself. He is credited with modernizing the island’s infrastructure, adding a hotel and casino that opened in May 1929 (of note, the Great Crash of ’29 happened in Sept/Oct of that year). In keeping with the paradox of modern capitalism, he established a quarry and tile factory there while also initiating a tradition of island conservation. His son Philip K. Wrigley carried on that spirit with the Catalina Island Conservancy in 1972. It is rumored that he also founded the vaunted Catalina Wine Mixer.
From the movie “Step Brothers” (2008) starring Adam Scott.
The bronze replica of the Manneken Pis in Brussels showing the way.
I had chance to visit Brussels some years ago and predictably, guided by Fodor’s, sought out the famed Menneken Pis. Who doesn’t love kissing and/or pissing cherubs? Yet I’m sure I’m not first to leave disappointed. It’s awkwardly situated, undersized, and the water mechanism is clumsy. To sum, the history is much more impressive than the actual. Per Wikipedia, the original was made in the mid 15th century. The bronze version dates from around 1619, which has been repeatedly damaged, stolen and reclaimed over the centuries. A bronze replica (above) was stood up in 1965 after a thief broke the original bronze off at the ankles. It turned up the next year in the Charleroi Canal following an anonymous tip and is now kept dry at the Brussels City Museum. The stone niche was added in 1770, and the statue has become a recognized symbol of Brussels/Belgium (“belgitude” = the Belgian penchant for a whizzing self-mockery). The Manneken Pis is dressed in costume several times a week (about 1000 total, so far) according to a fixed schedule, all managed by a non-profit. Designs are submitted annually and The Order of the Friends of the Manneken Pis form the selection committee. There is now a special museum to house the many outfits. And while the town of Geraardsbergen claims an older version of the statue, the prevailing view is that they don’t have a bucket to piss in.
Get your Ya-Ya’s out!A Belgian beer company has capitalized on the image (photo from Paris in Sept 2022).Beerophiles describe notes of coriander and urea.Not to be outdone, there’s a female version called the Jeanekke Pis that was seated in Brussels in 1987.
For whatever reason, I was one day pondering the Manneken Pis — and the other peeing statues it has inspired around the world — and I wondered, “what about a shitting statue?” The Manneken Shit, as it were. The impracticality of the thing was immediately evident with the lack of predictable flow, hygiene issues, etc. But being undeterred, I hit upon a novel design idea while reading “Fleishman Is In Trouble” (see below). I would think it the first of its kind. And a real traffic stopper. Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to introduce to you the concept of the Manneken Piss-Butt! Maybe we could sell one to the Vatican. On Instagram, they’d call it “The Unholy See”…
My marginalia or midlife juvenalia. I would say it’s exactly what those spaces are for… inspiration!May we never grow old on the inside.And let me know if you’d like to join The Order of the Friends of the Manneken Piss-Butt!
“The Four Justices” (2012) by Nelson Shanks hangs at the National Portrait Gallery (photo from July 2023). From back left to front right are Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Sandra Day O’Connor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg. O’Connor was the first woman appointed to the Supreme Court after being nominated by Ronald Reagan in 1981. Ginsburg was nominated by Bill Clinton in 1993 while Sotomayor and Kagan were brought forward by Barack Obama in 2009 and 2010, respectively. Amy Coney Barrett would join the Court in 2020 under the eye of Donald Trump. At the time of this portrait, she was still practicing law in Stepford, Connecticut.Ketanji Brown Jackson was a Joe Biden era appointee. And her presence bucks the pervasive sense, among my tribe anyway, that all human progress halted and went full reverse during the Trump administration, the political equivalent of end-stage neurosyphilis (the grift that keeps on grifting).
The view looking east from the Confederate side on Seminary Ridge (photo from Nov 2023).The direction of the Confederate attack on the third and final day of fighting (July 3, 1863), commonly referred to as Pickett’s Charge, though sometimes called the Pickett-Pettigrew-Trimble Charge for the commanders of the three divisions in action. They were all under the overall command of Gen. James Longstreet. Gen. George Pickett’s fresh division, mostly Virginians, led the way and thus his name is most often associated with the failed assault. The North Carolina Monument on Seminary Ridge.The divisions led by Pettigrew and Trimble had troops from North Carolina, Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee. Imagine those cars in the background are horses. Looking west from the Union line on Cemetery Ridge. Lee chose to attack the center, hoping that simultaneous cavalry action in the Union rear and a coordinated attack on the Union right at Culp’s Hill would cause the enemy’s line to collapse. NOT!!The Union center was breached and there were two transient gaps in the line. The larger gap was filled by a counterattack from the 72nd Pennsylvania (a Zouave regiment whose monument is shown above) who forced the Confederates into retreat in a melee of close-quarter fighting that included bare fists and bayonets. The entire assault lasted less than an hour. The story goes that the Union soldiers waiting behind the wall were shouting, “Fredericksburg! Fredericksburg! Fredericksburg!” in memory of their own disastrous advance on the Confederate line at the Battle of Fredericksburg (Dec 1862). I’m imagining one wise-ass shouting, “Don’t fire ’til you see the yellow of their teeth!” And honestly, post-pandemic, I couldn’t run that far being chased by a bear. Any tour of a great Civil War battlefield inevitably ends in the gift shop. I’m sporting a Hot-Ass Abe pin that I now cherish. Oh, and I also bought a shot glass.
“Both Members of This Club” (1909) by George Bellows at National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC.
Oddly enough, my grandmother, herself a docent at the National Portrait Gallery, much enjoyed the gritty works of George Bellows. Reserved and genteel by nature, she didn’t shy from controversial or grotesque art. Maybe it was the novel combination of a crudely impressionistic technique and harshly realistic urban scenes. Palpably raw but also smart. Frozen yet in action. Shocking and somehow beautiful. Apparently Bellows would frequent Sharkey’s Athletic Club, which was a saloon with a boxing ring at the back. Public fights were illegal in NYC at the time but clubs like this were a loophole. In this work, a brutal contest is given motion by his dynamic composition, with most of the attention focused on the blood-smeared combatants. And one cannot miss the racial overtones. It was the following year (July 4, 1910) that Jack Johnson famously defeated Jim Jeffries in the 15th round of the “Battle of the Century” in Reno, Nevada. It was a heavyweight championship bout that was fully promoted as an epic showdown between the two races. Johnson’s victory dashed dreams of a “great white hope” and triggered race riots in 50 cities that left at least 20 dead. There’s a lot going on in this painting and Mimi knew it!
After seeing the piece several times, I finally homed in on what was surely another theme of Bellows’ work. The crowd. A mob’s mentality. He conveys the frenzied spectators in various states of excitement from the morose to the ecstatic. We see ghoulish mask-like facies, cigar-smoking fat cats, crazed red-mugged punters, mouths in open scream (see Francis Bacon), and others in cadaveric repose. A real rogues’ gallery. A bettor’s noir, this abattoir. Great fun had by all! And this dodgy crowd scene somehow reminded me of the opening line of Al Stewart‘s song “Year of the Cat” (since all roads here lead to the 70’s):
“On a morning from a Bogart movie In a country where they turn back time You go strolling through the crowd like Peter Lorre Contemplating a crime“
All this to say, don’t forget to search the background/corners of paintings for rich but hidden details. Sometimes it’s where the real action lives.
But what was his meaning? What’s this say about us? That maybe we’re enjoying the carnage too much (looks like a damn Trump rally)…
Each man has his story. Each has his own reasons. But when will the fresh blood go out of season?
Detail images taken at National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC from July 2022.The nightmares ended in early September of that year.
They say, “Don’t hate the player, just hate the game.” Game says it’s people who pay that should bear the blame.
A building of, as yet, unclear identity in north Baltimore (Aug 2023). Dance hall? Soccer club?
The window features are certainly evocative of some sort of flag. And it turns out that many African flags use the trio of red, yellow and green. According to the pocket guide Complete Flags of the World (DK Publishing), “Pan-Africanism is the concept that African countries should embrace their mutual bond as Africans. Red, yellow, green and black are colors commonly used to represent Pan-Africanism.” The colors carry with them certain cultural meanings, as follows:
RED: the blood uniting all people of black African ancestry
YELLOW: a reference to the sun; the presence of precious resources, particularly gold
GREEN: the abundant flora and natural wealth of Africa
BLACK: a symbol of the African race
Many West African flags employ this color grouping, including Mali, Senegal, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Togo* (with a white star), Benin, Cameroon, Sao Tome and Principe, Congo, Zimbabwe* (white surrounds the Zimbabwe bird), Ethiopia* (blue star overlies), and Mozambique* (with white lines). But the one that most closely resembles our specimen is the flag of Congo with its diagonal fields of green, yellow and red (red/green inversion noted). That country is not to be confused with its eastern neighbor Democratic Republic of Congo, formerly Zaire, where George Foreman fought Muhammad Ali in 1974’s “Rumble in the Jungle” (Ali won in an 8th round knockout after debuting his rope-a-dope tactic). It should be noted that the majority of African flags do not employ that color scheme while some non-African countries do, such as Lithuania, Bolivia, and Myanmar* (with a white star). And if I solve the mystery of this curious building, you will be the first to know!
The flag of Congo holds some resemblance to our mystery building’s motif. Maybe the lightning bolt represents the chanting of “Ali, boma ye!” (“Ali, kill him!”) heard in neighboring Zaire back in ’74.
ADDENDUM:
The case has been SOLVED!! It took the brilliant detective work of my old friend JS who did a reverse Google search on the image (I had done a failed search on BING, not knowing Google had that feature, but of course they do!). The place, it turns out, is an inking parlour called Waverly Tattoo. Perhaps they will adorn your skin with your favorite world flag. Or you might go trendy with the banner of Wrexham AFC. Maybe you’ll collect all 54 of the official African countries (per the United Nations), if your back is big enough. Still not sure about the color scheme and painted windows. A phone call inquiry is in order. Watch this space…
Great Exudations 