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By Brent Hoffmann, Class of 2005

“After moving from Michigan to Chicago in 2012, I wanted to volunteer somewhere,” said Riah Dunton.  “But I knew, with my new job, I wouldn’t have time to be active with the Chicago Architecture Foundation. Instead, I started volunteering at the Lincoln Park Zoo, where I still do two-to-three-hour stints, nearly every week, as a zoo ambassador.  I get to educate people while enjoying the outdoors.  I’m usually stationed by the lion house or one of the other animal houses to answer questions, hand out maps and orient visitors to the zoo.  

“Sometimes, we ambassadors are assigned to monitor animals to see how they’re behaving.  I helped monitor the polar bears, with the result that their exhibit area has been improved to be more comfortable.  Previously, it was thought that the bears spend more time in water than on land.  But by monitoring their activity, we found that they prefer land over water, while only using the pools for fun and relaxation.   

“The most common question I get,” continued Riah, “is ‘Where are the elephants?’ I explain that, in 2010, our last elephant was shipped to another zoo, so Lincoln Park could focus on saving the endangered black rhinoceroses who now live in the elephants’ former enclosure.  The second question, usually from kids?  ‘Do you get to play with the animals?’  Also no, as that’s the job of professional animal keepers.

Tour the Zoo

“The Lincoln Park Zoo has beautiful architecture that’s worth a visit in itself, and it’s free,” she said.  Just north of the zoo entrance is the Lincoln Park Conservatory, a huge garden under glass, dating from 1895 and designed by Joseph Silsbee.   Within the zoo is the lion house, 1912, designed in the Prairie style by Dwight Perkins.  It’s a decorative brick building with elaborate iron detailing – plus mosaics of two lions facing each other across a huge arch.  A short walk away is Perkin’s Café Brauer from 1908, also in the Prairie-style.  South of that, near the Farm in the Zoo, is the Silsbee-designed Carlson Cottage of 1888.  This charming little brick building with overhanging eaves and a shingle roof now serves as a shed for gardening and maintenance supplies.  Studio Gang is represented by the new Nature Boardwalk around the Victorian-era South Pond by the Café Brauer.  Nearby is Jeanne Gang’s curvaceous, wood-ribbed South Pond Pavilion – a favorite for open-air classes, yoga practitioners, wedding photographers and other outdoor gatherings.

 “Talking and helping people at the zoo has definitely prepared me to be a CAC docent,” said Riah, class of 2020.  She leads the Must-See tour and Walk Through Time tours.  “I enjoy Must-See because it incorporates artwork and sculptures that, as a visitor or Chicagoan, you can appreciate without having to go into a museum or gallery.  On Federal Plaza, the Flamingo sculpture by Alexander Calder seems to float.  Even Mies would enjoy its placement.”

Art & Architecture

Riah, who grew up in Michigan, attended the Kalamazoo Institute of Art, then studied AutoCAD, a computer-aided design and drafting software application, at the Arts Institutes in Houston, Texas.  She followed with a B.S. in architecture at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.  “I’ve been in the architecture and engineering industry for over 25 years,” she explained.  “I work part time with the Weaver Consultants Group in Chicago.  I’ve been involved in a broad range of projects, including the design of site layouts, buildings, roads, infrastructure, landscaping and municipal codes.  It’s opened my eyes to see that architecture isn’t just limited to buildings.”

Triple R 

In 2022, Riah opened an art gallery at 5031 W. Montrose Ave. in Chicago.  “I named it the Triple R Gallery – which stands for art that’s restored, repurposed and reimagined,” she said.  “I showcase local artists and have some of my own paintings, photographs and purses on display.  By painting purses, I take artwork off the walls and turn it into wearable art.” On the first Fridays of the month the gallery hosts receptions for artists whose for-sale work is then shown for two months.  Riah has promoted her gallery and their art with notices in Block Club Chicago, Instagram, Yelp, Facebook, Reddit and the Chicago Gallery Magazine.    

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