WICKER PARK — A 21-foot-long endangered Pacific bluefin tuna is the latest image to grace the exterior wall of The Violet Hour and intrigue passersby just south of Wicker Park's Milwaukee, Damen and North avenues intersection.
"It's interesting; I like how vibrant the colors are and I am enjoy watching the process," said Jeremy Blake, an artist and Wicker Park resident who stopped to watch artist Juan de la Mora Jr. work on the mural around 12:45 pm. on Sunday.
De la Mora Jr., a visual designer for locally-based Studio Gang architects, spent most of Sunday and early Monday working on the now completed mural, which features a bluefin against a gold backdrop.
Stopping for a quick break, de la Mora told DNAinfo Chicago that he wanted to give more attention to the plight of the Pacific bluefin tuna, which faces extinction due to overfishing. Bluefin tuna, which travel from Japan to Mexico and eventually California, are often captured before they can reproduce or reach their full size, according to reports.
The speakeasy-style lounge, which opened in 2007 and traces its name to a phrase in a T.S. Eliot poem, camouflages its facade and entry door with artwork every six to eight weeks.
Previous Violet Hour murals have included a piece inspired by Chicago Ideas Week focused on visual brainstorming, a deer similar to Bambi, a twilight-hued nightclub scene, as well as abstract designs that have been the target of taggers.
Since January, the wall has featured a homage to a graffiti tagger, Nekst, as well as large colorful faces from surfer/artist Rex Flodstrom that brightened up a long winter.
Over the summer, Amsterdam-based artist Digital Does, a former pro soccer player, offered up an abstract design, which was replaced by an underwater diver.
In other Violet Hour news, the bar recently introduced an Absinthe frappe, their version of an "adult snow cone," available from 6 to 8 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays.
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