Unlike most, Dieter Roelstraete, new Manilow senior curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art, is drawn to Chicago’s traditional winter climate. “It’s the kind that forces people inside. Chicagoans spend a lot of time with books. As someone trained in philosophy, Chicago is an interesting place because of that,” says Roelstraete while sitting under a photo of Martin Heidegger at the Cafe Descartes downtown. Roelstraete, who began his career as a writer, is also drawn to Chicago’s strong educational infrastructure and the dialogue around art. And of course there’s Chicago’s blue-collar history. “New York is like Disneyland and LA is a freak show. Chicago is more like how an American city should be.”