Ellen Harvey: The Disappointed Tourist

“Is there some place that you would like to visit or revisit that no longer exists?” This is the question posed by The Disappointed Tourist, an on-going project by artist Ellen Harvey presented in nearly 300 paintings at the Chicago Architecture Center.

Visitors encounter a curated selection from nearly 300 paintings Harvey has completed to date, all depicting places and sites nominated by the public. With submissions from over 30 countries and several new Chicago-specific works commissioned for this exhibition, each painting is reminiscent of an old postcard, evoking themes of nostalgia and love for our built environment. 

For a deeper story, access the personal accounts behind each painting, or step into booths where you can hear some of the stories that inspired Harvey’s work and from Harvey herself. Contribute to the tapestry of beloved spaces that have disappeared by recording your own story, writing or sketching on a postcard of a place you would love to visit that no longer exists. 

Connecting themes of nostalgia, memory and historic preservation, the exhibition leaves us with a renewed sense of the value of the spaces we inhabit, and the importance of taking an active role to protect them.