Broughton Quarterly - Fall 2008 - (Page 29) Choses” (Force of Circumstance), she published a number of intimate love letters written to her by Algren, much to his chagrin. Perhaps it is the story it tells about Beauvior. Here was one of France’s most highly-regarded thinkers, slumming it on the mean streets of Chicago with Nelson Algren, a writer whose reputation could’ve been swapped with nearly any blue-collar hood—gambling, run-ins with the law, drinking. And the photo is taken, of all places, in the john, where Beauvior was preparing for a bath with the door wide open. Not very glamorous. Like much of Shay’s most highly regarded works, the moment he captures shows multiple dimensions by utilizing his literary acumen. Here, it’s irony. Sure, Beauvior was an intellectual feminist, yet classically sexual at the same time. Catching her nude in a Chicago bathroom—after Algren was unable to get her into a YMCA to bathe—isn’t exactly an expected place for such an esteemed woman. While the controversy has stirred, few have mentioned an important fact: that Beauvior knew Shay took her nude photo. He took more than one, in fact. Beauvior, upon hearing the camera click, turned to face Shay.“Naughty boy,” she told Shay, and went on with her routine. The discomfort Shay’s photo causes is in what it represents, the truth it readjusts. It’s reminiscent of one of Shay’s most recognizable photos,“Backyard Olympics.” Here you have six children playing in the trash-littered back area (one can’t call it a yard with a clear conscience) of a slum tenement building. The children are diving from a rickety first floor porch onto a stack of tattered and torn mattresses. Their expressions? Not despondent, nor resentful. Shay’s moment transforms the burdens of poverty, if only momentarily, into the effervescence— Q like floating from the sky onto a mattress—of joy. CHiCAGo’S NeLSoN ALGreN Photographs and Text by Art Shay Available on Amazon.com STAY IN THE CITY Experience past and present with a stay at City Inns of Chicago, three historic 1920s-era boutique hotels located in the exclusive Lakeview section of the city. Willows Hotel A graceful hotel with a european flare and upscale amenities. 555 West Surf, Chicago, 773.528.8400, Cityinns.com/Willows. Majestic Hotel The tranquility of an english country estate amidst the bustling Chicago city life. 528 West Brompton, Chicago, 773.404.3499, Cityinns. com/Majestic. City Suites Hotel A sleek, retro property characterized by its unique Art Deco style. 933 West Belmont, Chicago, 773.404.3400, Cityinns.com/CitySuites. BroughtonQuarterly.com 29 http://www.Amazon.com http://www.CityInns.com/willows http://CityInns.com/majestic http://CityInns.com/majestic http://www.CityInns.com/citysuites http://www.BroughtonQuarterly.com
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