Michigan Avenue - Niche Media - Michigan Avenue magazine is a luxury lifestyle magazine centered around Chicago’s finest people, events, fashion, health & beauty, fine dining & more!
Issue link: http://digital.greengale.com/i/241240
NATIVE "I love L the West Loop so much" FOR AUCTIONEER EXTRAORDINAIRE LESLIE HINDMAN, THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE THE WEST LOOP. BY JASON A. HEIDEMANN 54 eslie Hindman has made a career out of spotting diamonds in the rough. Since opening Leslie Hindman Auctioneers in 1982—currently the largest auction house in the Midwest and the fifth largest in the country—she's pointed her clientele in the direction of countless good sales and made a few of her own along the way: Ten years ago, she relocated her auction house to a still-gritty West Loop, which today is surrounded by buzzing restaurants, eclectic art galleries, and chic residences. In February, Hindman's Palm Beach outpost will be grabbing headlines for handling the estate auction of late fashion icon Lilly Pulitzer while the auctioneer's crew here in Chicago prepares for sales of English furniture and Asian art. From her headquarters at 1338 West Lake Street, Hindman, 59, shares her passion for the neighborhood she discovered long before it became the place to be. "I love the West Loop so much. When I reopened my auction business 10 years ago, I thought, 'What neighborhood is going to be burgeoning?' I could tell the West Loop would be the next big thing. I drove around for a year looking for a building to buy because our business had grown quite a bit. I thought Lake Street was good because people recognized it because of the El, but it was a pretty terrible building. A lot of people would drive by and say, 'You've got to be kidding—why would you buy a building like that? It's awful.' But we put up skein on it and made a big LH logo and fitted it out perfectly for our firm. It's not too far from downtown, and we've got great access to I-90/94. Google is moving in; Whole Foods is opening soon. It's a practical neighborhood now. I have so many favorite places in the neighborhood. Next door to our building, there's a wonderful florist named Virginia Wolff, who's a good friend; we love her. She's done floral arrangements for me at home. I just renovated a house, and when I had a demolition party, she did all of these incredible decorations. She did tablecloths with paint splattered all over them, the continued on page 56 PHOTOGRAPHY BY GETTY IMAGES (ROAD); THE CHICAGO SCOUT GUIDE (HINDMAN) FROM LEFT: Leslie Hindman curates antiques from all over the world for her auction house, located on Lake Street in the West Loop adjacent to the CTA Green line tracks. MICHIGANAVEMAG.COM 054-056_MA_SP_Native_Winter_14.indd 54 1/10/14 5:02 PM