Music from Bob Dylan, Al Green and David Bowie played in the softly lit room, and an enormous “W” covered the rear wall on the stage. In front of it, a single chair was draped with a Cubs jersey. On the chair sat a single candle.
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Photos that captured flickers of an expressive character ablaze with personality with arms flailed, mouth open, toe tipping, body shaking, mid-embrace, and full color. They paid tribute to Eric Brightfield, an Oak Park resident who died on Nov. 10 at age 56. All who walked into FitzGerald’s on Nov. 16 knew they were enveloped in the presence of someone who loved music, was an avid Cubs fan and was extraordinary.
“Lightning and thunder and fire and sunshine,” Neighbor Steven Parker said as he described Brightfield, Parker’s neighbor of 27 years. “Eric was an experience.”
Reaching capacity at one point, FitzGerald’s accumulated about 500 professionals, artists, friends and family for a celebration of life of Brightfield. He passed away suddenly during the evening of Nov. 10, along the Riverwalk while working out downtown on Wacker Drive. Family members say that the cause of death might have been a heart attack, but that has not been confirmed yet.
He was the owner of ImageFiction, described on its website as “a next-generation real estate marketing firm providing photorealistic renderings of creative development concepts.” The website described it as “a dedicated group of architects, designers, and digital artists that infuse every project with strategy, design and technology.”
Parker was host of the annual “Ghosts of Rock Stars Past,” an imagination-stretching annual Halloween party founded and executed by Brightfield every year for the past 13 years. The most recent years were held at FitzGerald’s in Berwyn
Dawn Brightfield, Eric Brightfield’s wife of 27 years, called FitzGerald’s, “his happy place.”
“This whole service was kind of just a hybrid of what we’ve been doing already, and it just made sense as the way to honor Eric. Because he’s just so non-conventional, it’s just the way that I think he would have wanted it,” she said.
Evan Brightfield, one of Eric Brightfield’s sons, said the Chicago River area was a place his father enjoyed.
“We kind of found peace that he had a seemingly painless, fast, death around a place that he loved,” Evan Brightfield said. “He wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. It was just too soon.”
Nevertheless, his legend lives on.
“He was the most unique man I’ve ever met,” said Nancy Sabatini, a friend of the Brightfields. “He was so creative. … He was on another plane, from other people.”
“Eric as a father provided a great foundation for his boys, Evan and Luke, to succeed, because that’s what great fathers do,” said Patrick Lamb, a friend. “They’re great kids.”
He also created “Brightfield Bleachers,” located just outside of FitzGerald’s.
“Like, left field, right field … Brightfield,” Dawn Brightfield said. She said Eric Brightfield added ivy, additions and details to the bleachers to resemble Wrigley Field, for die-hard fans like him who watched the Cubs as they won their first World Series championship in 108 years at FitzGerald’s.
“I’m so glad he got to see them win,” Evan Brightfield said, “He was like a little kid. I’ve never seen him happier in my life.”
Dawn, Evan and Luke Brightfield gave a statement to for all who didn’t know Eric Brightfield: “Eric was a true creative, bound by no limits in his work or in life. He taught me not to fear what anyone thinks and to live life to the fullest at every waking moment. In his field, he was considered a pioneer as a digital architectural illustrator. What we’ll miss most is his passion for life, music, sports, people, and ‘the good time.’ As the self-proclaimed 50-year-old teenager, he touched the hearts of anyone who met him.”
Taryn Galbreath is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.