The Bean, Chicago

We had seen photos of The Bean a hundred times. In person it's every bit as fun to look at — and every bit as crowded. Getting a clear photo in front of it basically means timing your shot between other people doing the same thing. For the print, we made the call to clear all of that out and just let the Bean reflect the city the way it was designed to — the Chicago skyline curving back at you from that polished surface, nothing else in the way.

This illustration starts from a photo taken on that visit. Every line in the skyline, every curve of the polished steel, every window reflection was drawn by hand in our Fort Worth studio.

Cloud Gate — nicknamed The Bean for reasons that require no explanation — is a 110-ton elliptical sculpture by artist Anish Kapoor, installed in Millennium Park in 2006. Its seamless mirrored surface reflects the Chicago skyline and everyone standing beneath it in a single, gently distorted panorama.

The illustration captures the view from the plaza level, with the Millennium Park towers and surrounding skyscrapers filling the background.

This print works beautifully in a home office, living room, or as part of a travel gallery wall. It pairs naturally with other city prints in the Hand-Illustrated Stopovers series — Seattle, Paris, Rome, Tokyo, and New York are all available separately.

A natural wood or matte black frame lets the warm sky blue of the illustration breathe. Standard 8x10 and 11x14 frames are available at any home goods store, and we also sell oak and metal picture frames in both sizes.

This Chicago art print makes a memorable gift for anyone with a connection to the city — whether they grew up there, studied there, or made their own stopover. It is a popular choice as a Chicago housewarming gift, a going-away present for someone leaving the city, or a birthday gift for the Chicago lover in your life.

Ships same day in protective packaging. Free shipping on all orders.

Crane has been making paper in America for more than two hundred years, and Lettra is the sheet their reputation rests on. It is 100% cotton, with no wood pulp at all, and it has a soft, slightly toothy surface that most printing papers simply do not have. Pigment ink settles into the fibers rather than sitting on top, which is why the color reads with depth from across the room.

Printers reach for Lettra when a piece has to feel like something: letterpress invitations, engraved announcements, foil and embossing work. We use it because a hand-drawn illustration deserves a surface that feels handmade too.

Ours is 110 lb Cover in Fluorescent White, 297 GSM. Substantial enough to hold its own in a frame, and bright enough to let the color do its job.