A Casual Museum Engagement Shoot Ahead of a City Hall Elopement
An exchange semester for Miriam at the School of the Art Institute in Chicago proved to be a fateful decision. Originally from Switzerland, Miriam was meant to spend just one semester in the Windy City before she met James, a fellow art student. The two quickly bonded over shared projects and late-night work sessions before having lunch together daily, a friendship that their other classmates noted. “Everybody always assumed we were together, but we were just friends for almost the entire semester. Only 3 weeks before I had to leave, did we realize we liked each other more than friends do,” Miriam says.
Since their relationship was built first through friendship, the couple says that made for a solid foundation where they could really get to know one another while still valuing their individual independence. In the past few years alone, Miriam and James have found more common ground in their love of food, both trying new restaurants and creating their own special dishes. Miriam says of their relationship, “We have a good amount of interest that we share but also think it's important to let each other do our own thing… We also get pretty silly with each other and I hope that never goes away.”
While they both wrapped up their time in college, with Miriam back in Switzerland and James still in Chicago, the two made a long-distance relationship work over the course of a few years. They’d spend weeks or months together during school breaks, but when each goodbye became harder, the two knew they wanted to find a way to be in the same city. That was when the topic of marriage first came up.
On a visit to Chicago, where one of Miriam’s friends was tying the knot, she and James took a walk around Millennium Park. Miriam says, “He kept delaying getting coffee (a first!), so I knew he had something on his mind. We sat down, and he just kind of directed the conversation [to marriage].” Though a “big sweeping proposal” wasn’t something either had really wanted, the discussion over coffee led to talks of a life together in the same country.
Miriam took time to answer once she was back home to be sure she felt the same. A week after that cup of coffee, she texted him, but with the 7-hour time difference, he woke up to the news of her saying yes.
As for their engagement rings, both picked out styles for themselves to cement their status. “I chose a knot design because I'm not really one for gemstones, and he chose a Roman signet design. We both agreed we didn't want to spend much on the engagement rings and would rather spend more on the wedding bands down the line,” Miriam says of their new jewelry.
These rings, custom-made in white gold, were inspired by Roman wedding bands with an angular design, open at the top and widening. Down the line, the engaged couple may consider a second band with stones as an anniversary gift, they say.
James, now a gallery designer at the Art Institute of Chicago, was able to secure a spot after-hours for their engagement photo shoot. Having the place to themselves proved to be special, as they celebrated their love and enjoyed classic artwork without the crowds. The two described it as a “truly unforgettable experience,” exploring the museum and its notable pieces.
James and Miriam married in a town hall ceremony before the pandemic, with a later celebration down the line. Planned in under six months, their favorite part of the day was picking the caterer, according to the couple. Despite the stress of planning and their time constraints, they say, “[It] still turned out amazing and was just how we wanted it to be!”
Like the Seurat painting they posed by during their engagement shoot, many small pieces came together for this multi-national couple to create their work of art: a beautiful love story.