The artwork by interdisciplinary artist Ellen Rutt is just one of the developer’s colorful gifts to the community
Logistics Property Company, LLC (LPC), a logistics real estate platform focused on the acquisition, development and management of state-of-the-art logistics properties in key North American markets, is delighted to announce the unveiling of a mega mural at 3711 South Ashland Avenue, Chicago, Ill.
In the midst of the current global pandemic and an extremely tight construction schedule, LPC commissioned a 266-foot by 38-foot mural installation by interdisciplinary artist Ellen Rutt as a creative solution to a practical problem, which simultaneously provided a local community outreach opportunity.
“We’re thrilled to unveil our first strategic community initiative in the city of Chicago in the form of a public artwork,” said Aaron Martell, LPC’s Executive Vice President – Midwest Region. “Due to its proximity to our downtown Chicago national headquarters, 3711 South Ashland Avenue is a flagship property in our growing national portfolio, so it was important that we made it something really special.”
“Partnering with an artist of Ellen Rutt’s caliber—to turn our vision into a reality in record time during a global pandemic—was an unanticipated dream come true, thanks largely to our friend and producer Nick Marzullo,” Martell added.
This is the first big project Rutt worked on since the COVID-19 shutdown in March, so navigating the process of making sure that everyone involved felt safe and cared for in the midst of the pandemic was definitely new territory for her and for LPC.
At LPC, health, safety and environmental (HSE) compliance and risk mitigation are fundamental components of every activity. As part of the company’s commitment to protect employee health, safety and the environment, LPC requires that all work—performed by its employees and its partners—comply with all applicable Federal, State, County, City, office, worksite, and corporate protocols.
“This is definitely the largest mural I’ve ever painted,” said Rutt. “Every mural is unique because they are site specific – they become part of the built environment, and the surrounding landscape and communities.”
“I knew the size of the wall in advance, but somehow in person it was much larger than I had imagined,” said Rutt. “I put out a call for helpers on Instagram, and so many amazing artists contacted me, and I met some incredible creatives in the process.”
“I ended up hiring Nat Standiferd, a local textile artist; Shiraz Bhatti, an Anishinaabe/Punjabi artist and musician who also lives up the street from the property; Cortlyn Kelly, an activist and artist; and my friend Rachel Mulder, who is a designer and architect.”
Rutt titled the artwork, Tell Me About The World You Want To Live In. So, what does it all mean? Well, according to the artist, it depends on where you stand. It depends on how you look at it. It depends on how you feel at that moment. Like everything, the meaning shifts with time, with distance, and with new contexts.
As an extension of this strategic community engagement initiative, LPC and Ellen Rutt selected Chicago Public Art Group as the recipient of a $5,000 donation to further support local artists and businesses affected by COVID-19 and other challenges during 2020.
For more information on this flagship property, Tim McCahill, Principal, Lee & Associates and Terry Grapenthin, Principal, Lee & Associates are leasing the project.
About Logistics Property Co.
Logistics Property Company, LLC (LPC) is a logistics real estate platform focused on the acquisition, development and management of state-of-the-art logistics properties in key North American markets. The management team of LPC partnered with MIRA Real Estate – part of Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets (MIRA) – on the formation of the platform. LPC currently manages properties in key logistics markets including Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Kenosha, Mount Pocono and Seattle-Tacoma with an estimated end-value of over $1.5 billion. Headquartered in Chicago, LPC has offices in Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles and Seattle. For further information, please visit logisticspropco.com and follow @logisticspropco.
About Ellen Rutt
Ellen Rutt is a Detroit-based interdisciplinary artist and environmental justice organizer whose work surrenders to the possibilities and limitations of place in a tender call and response between control and improvisation. Through an abstract lexicon of layered shapes and primary colors, she facilitates conversations between materiality and movement, between place and process.
Rutt graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Michigan. She has exhibited at the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit, Detroit Institute of Arts, The Urban Institute of Contemporary Art Grand Rapids, the East Hawaii Center for Contemporary Art and has completed murals and installations in locations around the world including France, New York, Canada, and Hawaii, among others. She has been featured in Juxtapoz, Forbes, W Magazine, Alive Magazine, LOAM Magazine, and was recently named one of 24 changemakers in 2020 by Hour Detroit Magazine.
About Chicago Public Art Group
Chicago Public Art Group (CPAG) is committed to enhancing public space and public engagement in all of Chicago’s neighborhoods through community-based art. This work is rooted in the principle that everyone deserves to see great art, that every community deserves a voice, and that artmaking and public art encourage community investment.
CPAG was founded in 1971 to enhance Chicago communities through the creation of public murals. From the beginning, CPAG has focused on turning some of the most neglected urban spaces into artistic canvasses that express a community’s unique identity, vision and hope for the future. In the past half century, CPAG has produced nearly 1,000 projects (murals, sculptures, playgrounds, mosaics and earthworks) in communities as diverse as Little Village, Marquette Park, Hyde Park and Woodlawn.
Media Contact
Jude Fitzgerald
Chief Marketing Officer, Logistics Property Co.
+1 708 667 6972
[email protected]