Recluse janitor Henry Darger spent more than 40 years in a tiny one-room apartment in Lincoln Park, writing, painting, sketching, collecting, and fantasizing.
A photo shows a room in Henry Darger’s apartment at 815 W. Webster Ave. in Chicago and was taken when his works were discovered, shortly before his death in 1973.
According to the suit, the Lerners have been illegally profiting from Darger’s works for nearly five decades, including his massive 15,000-page illustrated manuscript “In the Realms of the Unreal,” despite having no claim as heirs. Nathan Lerner, a photographer and industrial designer who first promoted Darger’s work, died in 1997.
Personal belongings and artifacts from Henry Darger are on display at the Henry Darger Room at Intuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art, as pictured on Jan. 31, 2017. “After all the research it just seemed like the right thing to do,” Slattery told the Times. “How can you let that just sit there?”By now, the story of Darger’s unlikely rise to world acclaim is well known. After he was born in Chicago in 1892, his mother died when he was 4. His father, a tailor, struggled with health issues. After Darger had behavioral problems at school, he was sent to what was then known as the Illinois Asylum for Feeble-Minded Children in downstate Lincoln.
He was obsessed with the weather and was a voracious reader of newspapers and magazines, according to the documentary. He wore the same threadbare army coat and could often be seen prowling alleys near the apartment, looking for collectables in the trash. At night, when he’d return home from work, neighbors would hear voices coming from his room, like a large group of people having a boisterous discussion. It was Darger, immersed in his world, talking to himself.
“He looked at me like I’d sucker-punched him,” Berglund remembered. “He looked at me and said, ‘It’s too late now. It belongs to Mr. Lerner.’”Darger died on April 13, 1973. He’s buried at All Saints Cemetery in Des Plaines, where his headstone is inscribed with the words, “Protector of Children.”
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Judge rules UC Berkeley can clear People's Park, site of 1960s protests, to build housingThe historic park has been given a judge's approval to be transformed into student dorms and housing, but an appeal and further protests are likely.
Read more »
Judge gives UC Berkeley OK to build at People's ParkAn Alameda County judge ruled Friday evening that the University of California at Berkeley can build housing on People's Park, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Read more »
CPD officer and 17-year-old boy injured in East Garfield Park crashA CPD squad car was headed west on Madison Street, with its lights and siren activated, when it collided with a sedan headed south on Central Park Avenue, police said.
Read more »
New Carrollton business park will bring six buildingsSan Francisco-based Prologis plans to build six warehouses in the Carrollton project.
Read more »
Rare Petco Park power display lifts Padres over TwinsPadres' five home runs are most at home since June 2021; Blake Snell allows one run in six innings
Read more »