Plate 91 from The Plan of Chicago, Chicago, Proposed Diagonal Arteries 1909

Daniel Burnham's ‘Plate 91 from The Plan of Chicago’ is an early 20th-century proposal for the city’s diagonal arteries, laid out in black and red lines over a map of the city. I can really imagine Burnham here, leaning over this large piece of paper, his mind buzzing with urban possibilities. This isn’t just a map, it’s like a drawing—a mental space made visible. He's using these bold lines to slash through the existing grid, suggesting new pathways, new ways of moving through the city. The red lines feel softer, like possible routes that might disappear, whereas the black lines seem more assertive, like the artist is willing them into existence. It’s like he’s redrawing the city according to some grand vision. It reminds me of the work of other visionary artists and architects who used drawing to speculate about the future. What’s really interesting is how artists can have a conversation with the world, projecting their desires and anxieties onto the urban landscape. Burnham did that with this map, and now we can do it too, thinking about how we want to shape our cities and our lives.