The Chicago water system played an important role in the city’s history and the development of the infrastructure. If you take a look down while you’re waking, you’ll see the different styles, patterns, and fonts used over the past century. Some are square, most are round, a few are rectangles. There are meter covers, hatch covers, and full access plates and they have been a fixture of the city and neighborhoods since the first pipes were laid.
This piece has 11 custom labels made from the water system in Chicago over the course of a few months in 2016. Each layer was printed, taken back to dry, and prepared for the next one. I wanted to put all of that design and history on one piece of canvas.
Here’s a little recap: