Texture and color in the city

To change things up a bit I'm posting images from a photo safari I took with my daughter Indigo to an area just west of my neighborhood in Chicago, underneath the Metra train tracks.

I like how this graffiti artist worked with the structure of the staggered block wall.

I am particularly entranced by the layering of type and imagery that create such beautiful complex images when cropped.

It's this concept of layering imagery that I've been exploring for the last couple years with my painting.

 These ones were really pretty with metallic bronze paint.

A discarded metal tree sculpture added another point of interest.

Suddenly a train went over head.

Rusty Bits
The massive chandelier was another interesting addition to this urban space. It's probably about 8 feet across with silk flowers entwined around it.

There were a lot of these weird little stalactites.

Believe it or not this is the base of one of the support columns of the overhead track. Most of the column is not as deteriorated, but quite a few of the other columns also looked like this.

I love these colors. I see things like this and want to remember it for a color palette for painting.

I love this texture and all the beautiful reds.

What fun to come across this blue heart with my initial on it. 

I hope you find these images as inspiring as I do and see there can be artistic beauty hidden in plain site.