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The Picasso

The Chicago Picasso (often just The Picasso) is an untitled monumental sculpture by Pablo Picasso in Chicago. The sculpture, which was dedicated on 15 August 1967, stands in Daley Plaza in the Chicago Loop at 41°53′1″N, 87°37′48″W. At 50 feet tall, and weighing 162 tons^[1] it was the first such major public artwork in Downtown Chicago, and has become a well known landmark.

The sculpture was commissioned by the architects of the Richard J. Daley Center in 1963. Picasso completed a maquette of the sculpture in 1965, and approved a final model of the sculpture in 1966. The cost of constructing the sculpture was $351,959.17, paid mostly by three charitable foundations: the Woods Charitable Fund, the Chauncey and Marion Deering McCormick Foundation, and the Field Foundation of Illinois. Picasso himself was offered payment of $100,000 but refused it stating that he wanted to make a gift of his work,^[2] although he never explained what the sculpture was intended to represent.^[3] The sculpture was fabricated by United States Steel Corporation in Gary, Indiana before being disassembled and relocated to Chicago.^[1] The efforts of the City of Chicago to publicize the sculpture—staging a number of press events before the sculpture was completed—were cited as evidence in a 1970 district court case where the judge ruled that the city's actions had resulted in the sculpture being dedicated to the public domain.^[2]

• Maps and aerial photos Coordinates: 41.883611° -87.630000°
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1. ^ ^{a b} 1967 August 15--Picasso Statue Unveiled In Civic Center Plaza. Chicago Public Library (URL accessed 14 August 2005).
2. ^ ^{a b} The Letter Edged in Black Press, Inc. v. Public Building Commission of Chicago 320 F. Supp. 1303 (1970)
3. ^ Virginia Soto. Chicago Picasso. About.com (URL accessed 14 August 2006).