Hi friends, Im forwarding this request written by my wife Gay on behalf of her familys quest to restore a historical, cultural/artistic artifact that is intimately connected to the Guard family. Please take the time to read her appeal and contribute if possible. Its become a very real campaign for and about family, art and Chicago history. Just a reminder that time is short for you to act. The following is Gays formal request: Dear friends: I send eblasts like this very rarely but this is on behalf of my father, and his very worthy Kickstarter campaign. Although you may not know my dad, Sam Guard, you may have heard about him and his passion for Chicago architecture over the years, particularly the work and life of sculptor, designer, and architectural collaborator, Alfonso Iannelli. If you dont think you know who Iannelli is, you certainly know his work which can be seen throughout Chicago, including the famous rock bas-relief on the side of the Prudential Building , and the zodiac signs around the Adler Planetarium. He was best known for his work on Midway Gardens with Frank Lloyd Wright (who never paid him!) and has only recently been getting some of the attention he deserves with the 2013 publication of Alfonso Iannelli: Modern by Design by author David Jameson, a show at the Cultural Center and, frankly, because of my dads decades-long dedication. Iannelli is especially near and dear to my fathers heart as he was a very good friend of Sams parents and a mentor to Sam. I was lucky enough to have visited Alfonsos Park Ridge studio as a young child which made a huge impression on me. WGN-TV Channel 9 aired a 4-minute story this week that describes how when my grandparents first child, Georgia, died at age 7 of strep throat, in the days before penicillin was available, Alfonso created a lovely statue of her, a mosaic birdbath and gravesite in the paupers section of the Park Ridge IL cemetery. My paternal grandparents are also buried there, it is where my father and his wife plan to be buried someday. It is believed that Alfonsos body is also interred there in an unmarked grave; the hope is there will be at least a memorial plaque installed in his honor. The broadcast is available on the WGN website wgntv/cover-story/. Check it out - in my opinion, its one of the better stories theyve ever done! As mentioned, there is a Kickstarter campaign ending this Sat. at 10 a.m. to raise funds to preserve this decaying monument. My dad cant rest until this is done. He feels it is his legacy to the art world, to Chicago, and to posterity. I hope you will consider adding any amount -- even one dollar helps and there are some nifty architectural premiums to boot! More importantly, if you can promote it through your social media networks, that would be tremendously helpful. If you know anyone passionate about art, sculpture or architecture, they might be particularly interested. kickstarter/projects/1608842874/restore-alfonso-iannellis-guard-memorial Thank you for your consideration. Gay p.s. Heres another link to an excellent article in the Park Ridge newspaper today -- journal-topics/news/article_7aefb9a8-5189-11e3-ac8e-0019bb30f31a.html
Posted on: Wed, 20 Nov 2013 18:15:12 +0000
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