Marina City Towers Chicago Black and White Photography
Curved Balconies Rising Above Downtown Chicago
From below, the Marina City Towers barely look like conventional skyscrapers. What caught me was the repetition of those curved balconies, stacked one above another until the two towers become enormous patterns rising into the Chicago sky.
I composed upward from the base of the complex, letting the buildings fill almost the entire frame. The larger tower dominates the right side while the second rises beside it, creating a strong relationship between the two forms. At this distance, individual balconies begin to merge into continuous vertical columns of curves and shadows.
That repetition is what makes Marina City so interesting to photograph. The architecture has tremendous scale, yet it is built from one relatively simple shape repeated hundreds of times. Look closely and the balconies remain individual spaces. Step back visually and they become part of a much larger geometric structure.
Black and white suited the scene immediately. Without colour, the bright edges of the concrete balconies separate sharply from their darker interiors, while the clouds behind the towers add movement to an otherwise highly ordered composition.
Chicago gives me endless architectural subjects, but Marina City is difficult to confuse with anywhere else. The towers have their own visual language.
For me, this photograph is about emphasizing that identity—looking past the broader skyline and concentrating on the curves, repetition and remarkable vertical rhythm that make these buildings so distinctive.
© Dan Kosmayer, 2024
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About My Fine Art Photography
Every photograph in my collection comes from my own travels, explorations, and years behind the camera.
I create my work as photographic art rather than mass-produced decoration. From street portraits and abandoned places to landscapes, architecture, and the unusual subjects I discover along the way, each image begins with something that made me stop and look.
My photographs are available in multiple sizes so the same image can work in anything from an intimate wall space to a large statement installation.
