Loop District in Chicago in Cook County, Illinois — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Daley Center

C.F. Murphy Associates, architect; Pablo Picasso, sculptor; 1965, 1967 (Chicago Picasso)

— Chicago Landmark —

Daley Center Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sean Flynn, February 29, 2024

1. Daley Center Marker

Inscription. This building is an exceptional example of the International Style and was Chicago's first major public building to be designed in a modern, rather than historically-derived, style. Innovative for its time are the building's eight-seven foot spans of steel framing, its exceptional internal spatial flexiblity, and the first-ever use of self-weathering Cor-Ten steel as an exterior "skin" for a skyscraper. The monumental sculpture on the building's plaza, also fabricated of Cor-Ten steel, was designed by Pablo Picasso, one of the most influential artists of the 20th century.

Erected 2002 by Commission on Chicago Landmarks; City of Chicago.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Arts, Letters, Music • Government & Politics. In addition, it is included in the Illinois, Chicago Landmarks Commission series list. A significant historical date for this entry is August 15, 1967.

Location. 41° 53.037′ N, 87° 37.819′ W. Marker is in Chicago, Illinois, in Cook County. It is in the Loop District. It can be reached from Washington Street near North Clark Street. The marker is inside

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the lobby of the Daley Center, facing south towards Daley Plaza, accessible only after going through the security checkpoint. It is visible and readable from the outside through the building's ground-floor windows. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 50 West Washington Street, Chicago IL 60602, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the American Midwest

and on the Great Lakes.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Viceroyalty of New France,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

and the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Eternal Flame Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker); The Rotary Club of Chicago (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); The Rev. Jesse Walker (about 300 feet away); Founding of the First Methodist Church (about 300 feet away); The First Church Building of First Methodist Church of Chicago (about 300 feet away); Founding of the Arthur Dixon Bible Class

Photographed by Sean Flynn, February 29, 2024

2. Daley Center Marker

The marker's location in the first-floor lobby of the Daley Center is visible from the plaza through the windows.

(about 300 feet away); Second Church Building of First Methodist Church of Chicago (about 300 feet away); Founded by This Church (about 300 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Chicago.

Regarding Daley Center. The iconic Pablo Picasso sculpture — which Picasso, 85 years old when it was unveiled, never assigned a name — stands in the same spot it has occupied in front of the Daley Center in the center of Chicago's downtown Loop neighborhood for almost 60 years. Its unveiling on August 15, 1967, is memorialized in the writing of columnist Mike Royko, whose legendary description of the sculpture’s introduction, at what was then known as Civic Center Plaza, was printed the next day in the Chicago Daily News. The sculpture, commissioned almost four years earlier and unveiled months after Richard J. Daley was elected to his fourth term as mayor, was described before its completion to be a symbol of the city's rebirth. Royko wrote in the column, titled "Picasso and the Cultural Rebirth of Chicago," of the moment when the sculpture was revealed: "There was a gasp as the light blue covering fell away in several pieces.

Photographed by Sean Flynn, February 29, 2024

3. The Picasso

Pablo Picasso never assigned a name to this sculpture, which has sat in Daley Plaza for nearly 60 years.

But it was caused by the basic American fascination for any mechanical feat that goes off as planned. In an instant the Picasso stood there unveiled for all to see. A few people applauded. But at best, it was a smattering of applause. Most of the throng was silent." The column continues with some mockery and criticism before (with echoes of Carl Sandburg's famed poem "Chicago") offering grudging acceptance of the steel art piece as an apt and honest description of the city's ugly side — the slum owners and drug dealers and corporate executives and city officials — and what actually keeps Chicago ticking. "Everybody said it had the spirit of Chicago. And from thousands of miles away, accidentally or on purpose, Picasso captured it." In the conclusion, Royko wrote: "It is all there in that Picasso thing the I Will spirit. The I will get you before you will get me spirit. Picasso has never been here, they say. You'd think he's been riding the L all his life."

Also see . . .
1. Picasso and the Cultural Rebirth of Chicago. A reprint of Mike Royko's column, printed on August 16, 1967, in the Chicago Daily News and included in

Daley Center image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sean Flynn, February 29, 2024

4. Daley Center

The marker is visible through the ground-level windows on the left side of the building in this photo.

a compendium of his columns, titled One More Time: The Best of Mike Royko.

Excerpt: "The silence grew. Then people turned and looked at each other. Some shrugged. Some smiled. Some just stood there, frowning or blank-faced. Most just turned and walked away. The weakest pinch-hitter on the Cubs receives more cheers. They had wanted to be moved by it. They wouldn't have stood there if they didn't want to believe what they had been told that it would be a fine thing."

(Submitted on February 29, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)

2. Chicago Architecture Center: Richard J. Daley Center. (Submitted on February 29, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)

Additional commentary.
1. Commission on Chicago Landmarks
This marker is included as part of the Commission on Chicago Landmarks series of historical markers.

— Submitted September 26, 2025, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.

Daley Plaza (2016) image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sean Flynn, October 24, 2016

5. Daley Plaza (2016)

The fountain on the west end of Daley Plaza was dyed Cubbie blue in 2016, when the Chicago Cubs baseball team made its first World Series appearance in 71 years. The Picasso statue is in the background.

Chicago’s Picasso awaits its unveiling image. Click for full size.

Records of the U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, August 15, 1967

6. Chicago’s Picasso awaits its unveiling

A photo of the Picasso sculpture hours before its official unveiling in 1967. This photo was a document in the filing for a court case, The Letter Edged in Black Press, Inc. v. Public Building Commission of Chicago, which ultimately found that the sculpture was free and open to the public, and the city of Chicago did not hold its copyright.

Credits. This page was last revised on May 25, 2026. It was originally submitted on February 29, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. This page has been viewed 1,348 times since then and 43 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on February 29, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.

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