Casey Kaplan
Caroline Kent’s Daydreaming, a public mural at Chicago’s Union Station commissioned as part of the Art at Amtrak public art initiative, is now on view through summer 2025. The mural adorns the station’s lower level hallway and track facing windows.
Daydreaming covers over 40 panels with abstract shapes that overlap soft pinks, blues, and yellows with richer shades of dark blue, gray, and deep green. Where these colors intersect, new hues emerge, reflecting the vibrancy of cityscapes. Inspired by various elements encountered during travel—architectures, landscapes, the horizon, sculptures—Kent’s shapes invite interpretation and imaginative associations. The overall mood conveys serene, bright, and sentimental introspection—a reflection of the emotional states experienced by travelers, whether weary or filled with anticipation. Daydreaming’s layers create depth and complexity, symbolizing the layers of experience one encounters while journeying through life and how they are embedded in memory.
More information can be found at Art at Amtrak.