City of Chicago Defaces Crown Fountain

There are many good places to put security cameras in Chicago's architecturally brilliant Millennium Park. Smack on top of Jaume Plensa's hyper-popular Crown Fountain is not one of those places.

But this winter, in its ongoing zeal to record seemingly every action occurring in Chicago's public realm--for your own good of course--the city has planted two ugly, obvious security cams directly atop the two celebrated video sculptures on each end of the fountain.

Now, instead of Chicagoans smiling down at the kids and tourists frolicking between the two towers: seemingly grinning Martians with big, bent, skull-topping antennae.

Who thought this was a good idea? What city planner, Millennium Park manager, or City Hall security zealot thought that defacing world-famous public sculpture for the sake of convenience was a good idea?

In the past three years, Crown Fountain has emerged as easily the most popular element of Millennium Park (apologies to the Bean), the throngs of amused Chicagoans, visitors, and most especially their children, barely letting up in the change from warm weather to cold. I'd really like to know what Mayor Daley thinks about this, or Plensa, for that matter.

Where, oh where, is Chicago Tribune architecture critic Blair Kamin when you really need him?

UPDATE: December 18, 2006, 2:00 p. m.

Good Lord and Oh My. Where is Blair Kamin? Apparently, tipped off to this design travesty by an email from Devyn (Blair is practically Devyn's hero--they met on the street last year and D. ended up quoted in an article about the development of Trump Tower and Block 37).

In the past hour, Blair emailed Devyn back, D. and I were interviewed by the Tribune, and as I type this, a Trib photographer is shooting away at Crown Fountain. Please, oh please, dear Tribune, give 'em hell.

Whoever thought a camera on top of Crown Fountain was a good idea was mistaken. Pick up your Tribs tomorrow, folks, and remember, you read it here first. ;-)

(See December 19 Update: The cameras are history!!!)