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Inspired by Nature: The Garfield Park Conservatory and Chicago's West Side
One of the nation’s most stunning and intriguing botanical havens, the Garfield Park Conservatory celebrates its one-hundredth anniversary in 2008. Often referred to as “landscape art under glass,” Jens Jensen’s revolutionary design is a poetic interpretation of his beloved Midwestern landscape as it was in prehistoric times. The tropical plantings, water features and stonework were in shocking contrast to the showy displays of typical Victorian hothouses, and his Conservatory quickly became one of the region’s most captivating attractions.
The Conservatory is at the center of a larger how nature, urban design, and horticulture helped to shape one of Chicago’s most interesting neighborhoods. As early as the 1870s, architect and engineer William Le Baron Jenney began the verdant tradition of Chicago’s West Side by designing its seminal park and boulevard system. For more than a century, ideas and visions of nature have influenced the development of Garfield Park, its magnificent conservatory, and the surrounding West Side community. Today gardening and the greening movement are a catalyst for reviving this vital part of Chicago.
Published in honor of the centennial, Inspired by Nature blossoms into a living history that looks to the future, and covers everything from the history of the conservatory and Garfield Park to the revival of the surrounding community. This fascinating and comprehensive volume includes historical essays, archival photography and plans, as well as contemporary color photography by Brook Collins. Inspired by Nature also features vignettes by Chicago Public School students, who write about their experiences as members of the Garfield Park Community. A reflection of the passionate interest and partnerships behind the Garfield Park revival, as well as a celebration of nature’s important role in people’s lives, Inspired by Nature is an essential publication for anyone with an interest in Chicago history, urban parks and communities, and the botanic splendor of the Garfield Park Conservatory.
The Conservatory is at the center of a larger how nature, urban design, and horticulture helped to shape one of Chicago’s most interesting neighborhoods. As early as the 1870s, architect and engineer William Le Baron Jenney began the verdant tradition of Chicago’s West Side by designing its seminal park and boulevard system. For more than a century, ideas and visions of nature have influenced the development of Garfield Park, its magnificent conservatory, and the surrounding West Side community. Today gardening and the greening movement are a catalyst for reviving this vital part of Chicago.
Published in honor of the centennial, Inspired by Nature blossoms into a living history that looks to the future, and covers everything from the history of the conservatory and Garfield Park to the revival of the surrounding community. This fascinating and comprehensive volume includes historical essays, archival photography and plans, as well as contemporary color photography by Brook Collins. Inspired by Nature also features vignettes by Chicago Public School students, who write about their experiences as members of the Garfield Park Community. A reflection of the passionate interest and partnerships behind the Garfield Park revival, as well as a celebration of nature’s important role in people’s lives, Inspired by Nature is an essential publication for anyone with an interest in Chicago history, urban parks and communities, and the botanic splendor of the Garfield Park Conservatory.
160 pages, Paperback
First published November 30, 2007
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
December 29, 2024
A short but sweet overview of the history of the gem of the West Side, the Garfield Park Conservatory, the park it is within, and the community it anchors! The GPC is one of my favorite locations in the city, and this book did an excellent job talking about the history of how the Park was built, how the Conservatory got set up, and the challenges the community has faced since white flight and decades of disinvestment have hurt the West Side. Includes many wonderful photos showing life in the area over the last few decades!
May 16, 2025
An interesting look at the relationship between recreational space and communities. I've been to the Garfield Park Conservatory several times and it's a gem.
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December 1, 2011I'm very interested in the West Side neighborhoods and parks, so I had to get this. Anyone intrigued by it should definitely check out the recent guide Chicago's Urban Nature (parks and green spaces all over the city) and Block by Block (by Amanda Seligman, about neighborhood change in Austin/Garfield Park).
February 26, 2011
A history of Garfield Park, the GP Conservatory, and Chicago's West Side. The first two parts are well done, the last third seems like a perfunctory synopsis of topics not covered in the first two parts.
Still, I found it useful and interesting (as a new Chicago resident.)
Still, I found it useful and interesting (as a new Chicago resident.)
April 9, 2017
I very much enjoyed this book. Having lived in Chicagoland less than two years, I still feel a novice on Chicago history. Driving on Chicago's boulevard system and seeing the massive west-side parks made me very curious. This book answers my questions and more. The writing was solid and the pictures bold. If I was the authors, I would have dug deeper for more quotes from residents past and present and of better diction.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews