Elihu Vedder is one of my most favorite artists. A brilliantly creative and versatile talent, his origins are in the Dutch settlers of the Hudson Valley near Albany, yet he spent most of his life in New York City, later becoming a famous expatriate in Rome, Italy. Not only a prolific draftsman/illustrator, Vedder was also comfortable with painting in oils and watercolor as well as designing stained glass and creating bronze decorative objects and full-blown sculpture. He also wrote and designed several books including one of poetry. This cast-iron fireback is one of his best-known decorative commissions. I was thrilled to be able to place the piece at the Art Institut4e of Chicago, partnering with Elizabeth McGoey, the AIC’s curator of American decorative arts.