An advertising capaign running in February 2008 included a whimsical depiction of Marina City as two towers of saucers topped with cups.

Downtown Partners Chicago designed five print ads for Chicago Convention & Tourism Bureau. They were part of a campaign called “make no little plans,” which is a quote attributed to Chicago City planner Daniel Burnham. (According to the Chicago Historical Society, the full quote is, “Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men’s blood.”)

The Marina City ad promoted Chicago as a dining destination. The text at the top of the ad read, “Welcome to the culinary capital of America. Saveur magazine and The Robb Report named Chicago America’s best dining city. And with the new McCormick Place West boasting everything from casual to fine dining, now’s the time to make your reservations. Make no little plans. Choose Chicago.”

Lee Hillerich, Account Manager for Downtown Partners Chicago, said the ads, “focus on pillars – Beauty/Eco, Theatre, Meeting Facilities and Culture/Ethnicity – that make Chicago unique.”

The ads were initially running in trade publications that target meeting planners. Hillerich said, “We are hoping to extend the campaign to a broader audience as well.”

Downtown Partners Chicago is owned by Omnicom Group. Creative Directors on the campaign were Joe Stuart and Jim Schmidt. Scott Drey was Art Director. Copywriters were Adam Moroze and Tim Bunker. Joe Wigdahl was the photographer.

 View larger version of the ad

An ad campaign unveiled in February 2008 for Hyundai Motor America showed its cars driving past Chicago landmarks, and one image featured Marina City.

The print ad appeared on the Hyundai web site. Other images in the series show Hyundai cars at Daley Plaza, Shedd Aquarium, and Grant Park.

(Above) A 2007 Elantra appears to drive south on Dearborn Street past Marina City. However, the car was probably layered into the image digitally.

Hyundai is based in Seoul, South Korea. Its advertising was handled by The Richards Group of Dallas. The agency’s work includes the television spots for Corona, set on a beach, with Corono beer bottles in the foreground.

  Hyundai web site

Poster for United Airlines, circa 1963, painted by Thomas Hoyne (1924-1983). Hoyne is better known as a painter of maritime art. A former Navy officer, he started out as a commercial artist, drawing advertisements for Green Giant and Charmin, as well as other posters for United. In the mid-1960s, he was diagnosed with cancer and given two years to live. He decided to focus his work on maritime art and lived 17 more years, producing dramatic paintings of America’s nautical past. Thanks to Peter Bernotas for this photo of the poster from his collection.