art

Christine Marie Braniff /  by Michael Durr

Christine Marie (Dodero) Braniff passed away after an 8 year battle with ovarian cancer on January 17, 2018 at the age of 60 years, surrounded by her loved ones. She was born on December 24, 1957 in Chicago, IL, to Dr. Frank and Anna Dodero. On March 20, 1982, she married James T. Braniff, Jr.; together, they have two children. She is survived by her husband of 35 years, Jim; son, Jimmy (Shannon), and daughter, Brianna (Brett) Volini; two grandchildren, Bode and Brayden. She is fondly remembered by her brother, Frank (Doreen) Dodero; and by her sisters, Fran (Tony) Aquila, Sandy (Buck) Remi, and Roberta (Joe) Romano. Christine contributed her artistic abilities as a Graphic Designer to Hoffman Estates Park District, Willow Creek Community Church and Awana Clubs International. Christine enjoyed relationships with God, family, and friends. Her interests included drawing, painting, sketching, design, photography, and dance. Anyone who knew her was inspired by her compassion, generosity and faith. A Celebration of Christine's life was held between 2pm-6pm, on Saturday, January 27, 2018, at Awana Clubs International Headquarters, 1 E. Bode Road, Streamwood, IL. 60107. In lieu of flowers, donations in her memory can be made at National Ovarian Cancer Coalition. Read Chris's story at caringbridge.org/visit/chrisbraniff

Tributes to Christine from her daughter Brianna, son Jimmy and husband James

The Bob White Project /  by Michael Durr

Bob White approached me about a custom gift he wanted to create for his wife. I was very fond of his idea and agreed to take on the challenge. Bob's request was to create a photo collage of architectural images that were significant to him and his wife. Some of the shots included their old home in Little Italy, the location of the their first date, the hospital where there children were born, and the corner grocery store where they used to shop. The only direction Bob provided me with was that he wanted the front door of their old home to be the center of the collage and he really set me free on how to create the rest. Bob provided me with an image of where he wanted to hang the art work in his home and he also provided me with the dimensions. The final dimensions were 30in X 40in. I recommended he have the final piece printed on canvas because I felt it was the best medium for the location. Canvas is great because it doesn't reflect and holds up really well.

My wife and I ventured out on a beautiful Sunday afternoon to shoot the images for the collage. We biked from location to location all throughout Chicago. We even ate lunch at Rosebud's, which was one of the locations on the list. We ended at the house that was going to be the main focus of the piece. Bob also requested that we incorporate the Chicago skyline, from the vantage point of their old rooftop. We met Bob at the house on Sunday evening just as the sun was beginning to set and I got some great skyline photos from the roof.

I blended some of the select images into a seamless piece of art and the final piece turned out great. This project was a lot of fun for me to create because it was unique and there was a specific printed piece that we set out to attain. It seems these days that photos are rarely printed so I was excited to see it hanging above their fireplace.

Thanks for the experience Bob.