Sign for the A&T Restaurant, 7030 N. Clark

7030 N. Clark, Detail from A&T Diner Sign

I've been doing some drawings of building details in the neighborhood, so I thought I would take another look at my favorite sign on Greenleaf and Clark.  I've been worried about the condition of this sign since I moved to the neighborhood more than 15 years ago.  Some of the bulbs still light, but the neon looks to be damaged beyond repair.  I really hope this will be fixed, but it's more likely to disappear along with so many others of the period.

I'm trying to visualize the cost of repair, which would include a crane for removal and reinstallation,  replacing rusted sheet metal, replicating the neon, rewiring and refinishing. Not cheap.  Probably above $50,000. On top of that there's a good possibility it doesn't meet current sign code.

These signs were really scaled to auto traffic more than the neighborhood pedestrian.  Which is odd, since Clark was (and is) better suited for walking.  And just attaching this massive sign to the delicate 1913 brick and terracotta building must have been an amazing effort.

I've drawn this building and sign a lot.  Here are few I've posted previously, from large to small:

Southwest Corner of Clark and Greenleaf.  Grey tone added with marker.

A&T Sign. Colored pencil over a xerox with a digital gradient background.

Detail in colored pencil.

Every Lot Chicago

I've been fascinated with the Every Lot Chicago Twitter feed.  This is basically just an algorithm that looks up tax ID numbers and pairs it with an image, typically from Google Streetscape.  New posts are generated about every 20 minutes. I find the randomness really interesting.   These are my monochromatic studies of a few of my favorites.   I'm using markers so as not to overthink the details.

SE Corner of Lunt and Clark

Built: 1926
Converted and altered: 1944

I think I must have drawn this corner more than any other in Rogers Park. To me, it's the perfect representation of change in the neighborhood. On the Lunt side, it's still a limestone and granite bank, complete with columns. On the Clark side it's a terra cotta storefront from the 40s. In the background the bell towers of St. Jerome's watch over everything.  I've been looking for a photo of this building prior to the alterations, but all I've found is blurry microfilm scan in the Chicago Tribune archives.

We went to the Newberry Library book sale on Saturday. One of us would play with Felix in Washington Square Park while the other browsed the selection. The Bughouse Square Debates were going on too, but they're never as much fun as the book sale.

Oddly, there were about 5 or 6 people in the park painting with big portable easels. And most of them were painting trees. I would think that if you're painting in Chicago you could find something a bit more interesting than trees...