CHICAGO BOARD OF TRADE BUILDING

CNL Projects worked with Gensler and R2 to curate and manage the commissions of artwork by Luftwerk and Bob Faust for the iconic Chicago Board of Trade Building.

Golden Hour - Yellow Light to Dark is a dynamic ceiling mural installation that responds to the Chicago Board of Trade building’s iconic Art Deco style using its perspective gradient of yellow.  The color system for this mural follows the tradition of the Art Deco palette which referred to ancient Egypt for its color, specifically in its use of gold using orpiment. Orpiment is a rich deep yellow from the mineral auripigmentum (“aurum” meaning gold and “pigmentum" meaning pigment). Yellow Light to Dark uses Cadmium Yellow which is the modern replacement of orpiment.

Inspired by the history of the landmark Chicago Board of Trade Building, Faust created a large-scale, digitally printed, vinyl wall-work and a series of five prints—inspired by bond certificates—for the Chicago Board of Trade Building’s collection. The vinyl wall-work abstracts imagery of vault boxes, and each print was made to represent the commodities traded at the Chicago Board of Trade.

Image: Installation progress shot at the Chicago Board of Trade Building of Luftwerk’s Golden Hour – Yellow Light to Dark, 2024.