Mark Bradford has completed "City of the Big Shoulders," a monumental painting for the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago. The work, which took five years to create, maps migration patterns and structural racism, reflecting the city's strength and complexity through Bradford's signature abstract, layered style.
The painting is significant as a major public commission for a landmark institution, embedding contemporary art within a presidential library and community space. Bradford's focus on Chicago's social and racial history aligns with the Obama Center's mission to address systemic issues, making the artwork both a cultural statement and a historical document.