West Burton Place Historic District, Chicago

Developed in the late 19th century but renovated into an artists' colony in the 1920s and 1930s, the West Burton Place includes an eclectic and interconnected set of twelve main houses and five carriage houses. It's as if you had turned a corner and stepped into a slightly weirder world.

On the block's southeastern side, the neighborhood's Victorian mansions are largely overtaken by an eruption of Art Deco and Art Moderne-style architectural fantasy, with the stark white Theophil Studios sporting large circular windows. The real highlight, however, is the sprawling Carl Street Studios, loosely modeled on the Montmarte studios in Paris by one of the most versatile Art Deco artists/craftsmen, Edgar Miller. Behind its quirky brick wall is a maze of tile-studded sidewalks, carved wooden doors and staircases, narrow passages, stained glass windows, and a pair of courtyard gardens with koi ponds!