BRIGHT LIGHTS, SECOND CITY

To those native Chicagoans who dismiss the Riverwalk as a tourist destination, or take their daily background scenery for granted, take heed. Art on theMART is certain to capture your attention. The largest digital art projection in the world is back, casting its brilliant displays across theMART’s 2-and-a-half acre façade (for reference, that’s roughly the size of two football fields). The free public art project gives everyday pedestrians access to the work of celebrated contemporary and classic artists. This year includes a collaboration with Arts of Life (a nonprofit community for artists with intellectual and developmental disabilities), along with iconic artworks by Claude Monet in alignment with the Art Institute of Chicago’s exhibition Monet and Chicago. Projections are visible from Wacker Drive and along the Chicago Riverwalk. For up-to-date schedule information, visit artonthemart.com.

SHADES OF YOU

Warby Parker’s newest 2020 collection, the Nesso Series, includes five new optical and sun styles, featuring two distinct materials and an interlocking end piece sculpted just for these dynamic frames. Crafted in Italy, the palette of saturated acetates are bonded to metal detailing through three nuanced design elements, highlighting the dramatic shapes and soft angles of the frames. warbyparker.com/nesso-series

GREEN THUMB

On 25 acres in Washington, D.C. sits the garden paradise envisioned by Marjorie Merriweather Post after purchasing the Arbremont estate in 1955. Working with prominent landscape architects, Post set about mapping out the estate grounds using a diverse array of trees, shrubs, and plants. When Post, an art collector, businesswoman, social figure, and philanthropist, left the estate to the public, she endowed the country with the most comprehensive collection of Russian imperial art outside of Russia, an exquisite 18th century French decorative art collection, and acres of beautifully landscaped gardens and natural woodlands. A Garden For All Seasons: Marjorie Merriweather Post’s Hillwood, published in partnership with Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens, is the first book on the history and design of these remarkable grounds. © A Garden for All Seasons: Marjorie Merriweather Post’s Hillwood by Kate Markert, Rizzoli New York, 2020. Images ©Erik Kvalsvik. rizzoliusa.com

HISTORY MAKERS

To mark the 400th anniversary of the voyage of the Mayflower and the founding of Plymouth Colony, this year’s history essay writers imagined being one of the passengers on the Mayflower. Congratulations to Barrington middle school first-place winners: Hough Street School 5th grader Abagail S. Betz; Barrington Middle School Station Campus students: 6th grader Kalyani Manjunadh; 7th grader Tyler Chang (also the winner for District 4, and the Illinois State Champion); and 8th grader Jainik Shroff. barrington220.org/station