It’s raining color with return of Umbrella Sky Elmhurst

As the skies darkened and the rain fell over downtown Elmhurst last week, pedestrians scurrying through the alley of Schiller Court stayed largely dry under a canopy of hundreds of colorful umbrellas suspended high above.

The bountiful bumbershoots have become a familiar sight as the highlight of three displays that are part of Umbrella Sky Elmhurst, a public art installation in downtown Elmhurst.

Christy Sopko, the coordinating director of Elmhurst City Centre, said the installation is one of the most popular initiatives the group has brought to the community in over 25 years.

“It’s just been gangbusters for the merchants,” she said. “It brings foot traffic not only from the residents of Elmhurst but really from the whole region. We’ve even had people come from out of state to see it.”

It’s the third year for the installation in Elmhurst.

Created in Portugal in 2012, the display has been seen in countries around the world, including France, Japan, Norway and Spain.

Sopko said Elmhurst officials got the idea from a resident who saw it in a small town in Portugal. She said they have received many suggestions from the public, but end up passing on most of them.

“But this one we thought was really cool,” she said. “So we went big with three displays.”

Umbrella Sky Elmhurst is organized by both the Elmhurst City Centre organization and the Elmhurst Public Arts Commission.

Sopko said Elmhurst was the sixth U.S. city to host the installation.

“It’s so Instagrammable that our social media person has just been working nonstop,” she said.

This year, displays have returned to the same locations where they were during the two previous summers. But they have fresh colors.

Schiller Court, at York and Schiller Streets just south of the York Theatre, will be home to the 300 umbrellas in shades of pink, green and silver through the Rock the Block Party in September.

“Dots Invasion,” a vivid set of colorful metallic dots that spin around each other in the wind, is on display at the North York Stage at 254 N. York St.

The “Color Rain” display, a vibrant collection of iridescent ribbons, can be found at 110 S. Cottage Hill Ave., near Elmhurst’s Art Museum, public library and Wilder Park.

Sponsored by Community Bank of Elmhurst, Lakeside Bank, and Elmhurst Bank, the three displays will be up through mid-September.