Much about this architectural icon of Milwaukee has been in the news lately, thanks to a conversation started by Mary-Louise Schumacher on Art City blog and in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
My opinion of this building has improved throughout the years. Growing up in Milwaukee, I was originally attracted to all the great art inside. Memorable field trips, trinkets from the MAM gift shop, and teenage chat sessions with my friends on the terrace overlooking the lake endeared to me all that it is.
Later––in the decade since I returned to Milwaukee––the War Memorial Center's modernist sensibility and striking mosaic facade have made it central to my understanding of the city. The structure is a gateway to the lakefront, imbued with meaning–both commemorative and nostalgic.
I tend to take lots of photos of the building and its approach flanked by American flags. I approach photography in much the same way as I do graphic design. Each image is about geometric balance, eye-pleasing lines, and appropriate white space. Shadows and light transform photographs from flat layouts into 3-D renderings. Saarinen's form offers many opportunities for successful image design.
The unique buildings that shape our city's liveliness are memorable and significant. Each one marks Milwaukee as a place of its own, unlike any other. Assisted by the Great Lake Michigan and a Midwestern practicality, our architectural palette has a lot to offer visitors and inhabitants alike.
Day 4. Excursion: Milwaukee County War Memorial Center.
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