Bob Clark Beyond: Inspiration

latest inspiration posts

2022 Reading List

I always enjoy using my downtime or travel time to immerse myself in a good book. It’s important for me to stay current with ongoing affairs, whether that’s related to politics, business, or interesting historical stories. Take a look at my 2022 reading list here:

Artists Find Home in Chicago’s Innovative Art World

Some of my great friends and favorite artists are featured in an article by Harper’s Bazaar about Chicago’s transformative art scene. Chicago is widely known as a “laboratory for architectural innovation and experimentation” for its architecture and art. Living in the city, it’s clear that its unparalleled designs translate to various unique projects, artwork, and influences. Harper’s Bazaar takes us into the creative minds of Chicago’s artists, gallerists, curators, community builders, and beyond. The feature analyzes how Chicago became an art-world capital without falling victim to cliches. Many of the incredible people mentioned are my personal friends or colleagues from whom I have procured artwork for the Clark Collection. Working in construction, I highly value the “Art and Science of Building,” and our team collaborates with local artists to incorporate community values in every development and form deeper connections between residents and the spaces we create for them to enjoy.

December Architect of the Month: Krueck Sexton Partners

The Architecture and Planning firm, Krueck Sexton Partners, is the featured December architect of the month on Bob Clark Beyond, and for a good reason. Since founding the company, Ron Krueck and Mark Sexton have made it their mission to contribute to Chicago’s architectural legacy. They make their mark on the city through transformative structures and by inspiring the next generation of young architects to learn and contribute to innovative discoveries. The company’s first project in 1981, A Steel and Glass House, was the first sign of how it operates with a different people-centric mindset. The firm works to uncover a project's potential by creating value and impact for the client and beyond.

Ayana V Jackson Contextualizes History through Curated Moments

Ayana V. Jackson is an American contemporary artist, photographer, and filmmaker who is among the most talented artists working today. She was raised in East Orange, New Jersey, where her family has lived for generations. Jackson’s family dates back to Lawnside, the first Black settlement in New Jersey. Her grandmother, Angenetta Still Jackson, is a descendant of Leah Arthur Jones, a member of the founding family in the region. Jackon’s grandfather, J. Garfield Jackson, was also a significant community member as Essex County's first African American principal, and there is an East Orange public school named after him.

September's Architect of the Month: Thomas Phifer and Partners

Source: Thomas Phifer and Partners Thomas Phifer founded Thomas Phifer and Partners in 1997. He takes a human-centered approach to design, connecting the built environment to the natural world. Thomas’s work has a sense of openness and community.

Book Review: URGING endless United States support to see Ukraine purge Putin from the West

The Splendid and the Vile Book Review There are few things more terrifying than watching history repeat itself – especially when that history is rooted in death, war, and xenophobia. After reading “The Splendid and the Vile: A Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz” by #1 New York Times bestselling author Erik Larson, I couldn’t help but make connections between the conflicts and turmoil experienced across Europe in the past and how it is happening before our eyes again today.

ARCHITECHT SPOTLIGHT

Jean Nouveau’s Dynamic Vision

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a building with a dome roof and a body of water

Beyond Book Club

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Cover of the book "Engineering in Plain Sight" by Grady Hillhouse, featuring a colorful illustrated landscape with bridges, tunnels, cranes, roads, and power plants representing various elements of the constructed environment.

Engineering in Plain Sight: A Book That Makes You See Things Differently

Medicine 3.0: how to live a long, strong and happy life

The Legacies of Two Great American Heroes

Inspiration

I have always had an insatiable curiosity

What causes me to get out of bed every morning is driven by inspiration. Ever since I was a little boy, I was inspired by my insatiable curiosity, which caused me to be a reader, a thinker, and a dreamer.

I can remember being inspired by seeing Bobby Kennedy on TV and watching videotapes of Martin Luther King Jr., and being deeply saddened by their assassination even though I was only 10 years old when I experienced all of this.

As a little boy, rocket flight was a big thing. I remember being fascinated by the moon and the stars and the astronauts exploring them.As humans we are achieving remarkable things that only a handful of years before were just in the imagination.

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