Tristan and Angel knew how they wanted to live! From the time they met they planned on purchasing an inner city property, close to downtown and all it contains, then changing it to fit their vision of how and what life should be.

They accomplished this goal in 1958 when they purchased a double lot at 2022 north Cleveland where they built an oasis of brilliance and creativity in the middle of what could then be accurately described as an urban ghetto. (Which fact, they and a few other courageous urban pioneers blithely ignored), Music, art, intellectual pursuits, eclectic and not so eclectic parties, and so on where the order of the day. They largely accomplished what they set out to do and had an enormous amount of fun in the process.

They designed the property to enable their desired lifestyle, which among other pillars, was founded on the belief that work and play should go together as much as possible. Tristan especially wanted to be able to do both as near to simultaneously as as he could manage -- he succeeded.

He built much of the accouterments by hand including an 8' x 1' custom speaker system with baffling he designed. This system was on par with state-of-the art systems of the day. It essentially turned the entire yard into a speaker. If one stood directly in front of the property the music was easy to hear. Walk a few feet in either direction and it disappeared -- it was a somewhat magical effect. His office was his art studio located in the rear building on the first floor. When the remodeling was completed they proceeded to work, create, play and party; all of which they did with abandon.

Lots of people came to 2022 N. Cleveland. Almost all were notable, some were also well known. Some visited only once like Studs Terkel, and some many times: A partial list is as follows: Many local Jazz musicians plus: Lil Harden, Tony Bennett, Jerry Lewis, Orson Welles, Frazier Thomas, Jack Brickhouse, Lloyd Pettit, Rachel Stevenson, Charlie Weber, Eddie Balchowsky (The notorious "Mayor" of Clark Street), Warren "Baby" Dodds, Aaron Siskind, Hugo Weber, Russ Wood, and various local TV and Radio actors like Duncan Renaldo as well as many artists and scholars such as Briggs Dyer, Eve Garrison and Dr. John J. Becker. Intermixed with this group were neighborhood people, artists, art and acting students. Plus, in the daytime, there were usually quite a few kids who were friends of the Meinecke's young sons. All were welcome within the parameters established by Tris and Angel.

Somehow they made it all work. Tristan had a way of letting people know what the boundaries and expectations were and Angel, well as CV Eidson opined after archiving her personal papers: "Angel could accomplish more with a flick of the wrist and a raised eyebrow than most could with an armed squadron". To be sure, there were Meinecke's infamous rages where he would basically throw out whoever happened to be attending, (Eddie Balchowsky would often just walk around the block and come back in as if nothing had happened) and then, his subsequent period of "hibernation", but there was always another party. These were heady times and the oasis on Cleveland was where a certain group of extraordinary people would congregate because there was almost always something extraordinary happening.

Below: Tristan in the attic room in Ann Arbor. The Meinecke brothers, Phil and Tris, shared this large attic room in the family house. Note the drum kit and saxophone, record collection, and various works of art placed throughout the room. It is from this attic room that the Meinecke brothers, Tristan and Philip, would head to the big city of Chicago to play music with the best, raise a ruckus and in general grab life by the tail.

It wasn't long before they met the women they would marry shown in the picture below.

During this period the brothers had several different addresses in Chicago. Angel
was living downtown so she could easily get to her shows. When Tristan
and Angel married they moved into a rental apartment on Demming Ct.

The apartment on Demming Ct. where the newly wedded Tristan and Angel lived before moving to 3025 N. Greenview in 1953.

Angel in the tiny back yard wading pool on Greenview 1955 -- throughout her life, wherever she was there were flowers -- lots of flowers.

Dr. John J. Becker, (center) noted composer and part of the "American Five" with whom Meinecke studied composition, and closest to the camera, Tristan Meinecke, circa 1952, at the Demming Ct. apartment. All were celebrating their birthdays simultaneously. The art in the picture was created by Meinecke -- he was also writing short stories, classical music, creating art, and working dressing windows for Sax Fifth Avenue, a top of the line clothier of the day.

Tris and Angel's first home, 3025 N. Greenview in 1953. During this period, Meinecke was selling several pieces per month -- some to private individuals and some to or through galleries and agents. This went on for several years until he became obsessed with Architecture, though even then Meinecke kept painting -- just not as much.

Contrast Meinecke's studio on Greenview with the distinctive 50's minimalism of the house.

Their decor on Greenview -- a study in 50's minimalism.
They moved from the above property in 1958.

2022 N. Cleveland, 1958, shortly after purchase by Tristan and Angel. They had just built the concrete block wall but had not yet added the jail gate. Angel is standing in front of the building. One can see the building permit in the first-floor middle window.

Here you can see the round windows and the rear coach-house porch. TM enclosed the porch when he remodeled the coach-house. First, he built the wall, then he remodeled the coach-house which is where he and his family lived. Then he built the yard (kids area, adult area, and common spaces) and his studio.

A few years later they purchased the adjoining double lot to the North. In the winter time, Angel would call the fire department who would come with multiple trucks from different stations because they wanted to meet her. While she "chatted them up" Tristan would direct a few to flood the northern yard so he and his sons could skate and play Hockey.

This went on for several years -- surprisingly without complaints or problems from Chicago's building department -- though they may have "paid the fine" to the inspector. In those days, this was a common practice.