Chicago Sun-Times: All posts by Austin Hojdar2022-12-02T11:00:00-06:00https://chicago.suntimes.com/authors/austin-hojdar/rss2022-12-02T11:00:00-06:002022-11-30T16:32:24-06:00Chicago murals: ‘Twilight Zone,’ COVID pandemic inspired Kaitlyn Beiriger’s South Loop mural at Columbia College
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<img class="Image" alt="Artist Kaitlyn Beiriger’s 2021 mural “Time Piece” at 1014 S. Michigan Ave." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/d4726aa/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x3367+0+316/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FdqanQNeLGhqxdNfW2sza3tLC9B4%3D%2F0x0%3A6000x4000%2F6000x4000%2Ffilters%3Afocal%283000x2000%3A3001x2001%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24234903%2FIMG_0553.JPG 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/084cfb7/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x3367+0+316/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FdqanQNeLGhqxdNfW2sza3tLC9B4%3D%2F0x0%3A6000x4000%2F6000x4000%2Ffilters%3Afocal%283000x2000%3A3001x2001%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24234903%2FIMG_0553.JPG 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Artist Kaitlyn Beiriger’s 2021 mural “Time Piece” at 1014 S. Michigan Ave.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Austin Hojdar / Sun-Times</p></div></div>
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<div class="LargeTextEnhancement">In a 1961 episode of “The Twilight Zone,” a hobo, circus clown, ballet dancer, bagpiper and Army major find themselves trapped in a cylindrical room with no memory of who they are apart from their outfits and zero concept of time.</div><p></p><p>“We’re nameless things with no memory,” the ballet dancer says. “No knowledge of what went before, no understanding of what is now, no knowledge of what will be.”</p><p>Amid the coronavirus pandemic, watching reruns of the classic sci-fi TV series was a way for artist Kaitlyn Beiriger to pass time. She says this episode particularly resonated with her amid the COVID-19 shutdowns because of “how time can feel like it’s dragging on forever or moving too fast.”</p><p>It inspired her first mural, titled “Time Piece,” which she painted in August 2021 on a Columbia College Chicago building at 1014 S. Michigan Ave. in the South Loop. It influenced the black-and-white palette she used and the mural’s themes of “life and death and the crazy concepts that are time and space.</p><p>“I don’t want the meaning to just be there and easily digestible,” says Beiriger, 25. “I want people to just sit and think about: Why does this mean something?”</p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center>
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<img class="Image" alt="Artist Kaitlyn Beiriger." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/9995c27/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1707x958+0+800/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2Fmp0asUUFG7AXRRqRcpMXwmwHC5A%3D%2F0x0%3A1707x2557%2F1707x2557%2Ffilters%3Afocal%28854x1279%3A855x1280%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24234920%2Fkaitlyn.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/ac47061/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1707x958+0+800/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2Fmp0asUUFG7AXRRqRcpMXwmwHC5A%3D%2F0x0%3A1707x2557%2F1707x2557%2Ffilters%3Afocal%28854x1279%3A855x1280%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24234920%2Fkaitlyn.jpg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Artist Kaitlyn Beiriger.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Jesse Pace</p></div></div>
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</div><p>She says the impact of the pandemic also influenced the work.</p><p>“Time is all around us, and it’s something I don’t understand, and it’s all happening at once, and it happened already, and it’s going to happen,” she says.</p><p>The mural features an image of a clock seemingly unraveling, with Roman numerals flying above and below.</p><p>There’s also a checkerboard pattern that Beiriger says was inspired by another quarantine pastime of hers — chess.</p><p>“I honestly loved how slow time felt,” she says. “There were so many new interests I really had the time to explore.”</p><p>There’s also an image of a hand holding onto a staircase.</p><p>“I think everyone has a stairway into their mind, and everyone has something to offer that can make this world a better place,” Beiriger says. “Something that we can all connect with.”</p><p>She says she wants people to be able to think “existential thoughts” when looking at her work.</p><p>“We all occupy a vessel that is a collection of matter and atoms,” she says. “We have a light that is within us and who knows where that comes from. Who knows where it goes.”</p><p>The central image features a girl “holding on for dear life” as she’s gripping the edge of the mural.</p><p>For Meg Duguid, executive director of the Department of Exhibitions, Performance and Student Spaces at Columbia College Chicago, the girl reminds her of “Alice jumping through the looking glass.”</p><p>“There’s a lot to it that plays with pop cultural tropes while maintaining her own style,” Duguid says of Beiriger’s artwork, done on a Columbia building at 1014 S. Michigan Ave.</p><p>Beiriger graduated from Columbia in December 2020 with an illustration degree and took a five-week mural course there with instructor and fellow muralist Cheri Charlton.</p><p>Duguid says the “black and white really stands out” on the street, which was Beiriger’s intention.</p><p>“I just love the contrast, especially for an outside location, because there’s color surrounding us at all times,” Beiriger says. “It’s nice to have some stark white and black contrast that just seems very striking.”</p><p>Besides a chalk piece she made for a pizzeria in 2019, this is still Beiriger’s only mural. While making it, she says she “felt like a kid at a playground, scribbling with my crayons.”</p><p>“I painted for like nine hours a day for about a week,” she says. “I think I put in like 50 hours, and it was the time of my life. I loved every second of it.”</p><p>Over the past year, she’s been focusing on a tattoo apprenticeship where “an experienced tattooer takes you under their wing” to learn the craft.</p><p>“I really like tattooing as a way to connect on an individual level, and I think of mural painting as a way to connect on a community level,” Beiriger says.</p><p>Just like tattoos capture a moment in time in someone’s life, Beiriger says she wants people to take a second to “be still and sit” when looking at her mural.</p><p>“Things that take more time to think about, that’s where the meaning is,” she says. “That’s what makes life rich.”</p><div class="RichTextSidebarModule Enhancement" data-module data-align-center><a class="AnchorLink" id="module-f40000" name="module-f40000"></a>
<div class="RichTextSidebarModule-title">Murals</div>
<div class="RichTextModule-items RichTextBody"><h3>Chicago’s murals & mosaics</h3><br>Part of a <a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/murals-mosaics" target="_blank" >series</a> on public art. More murals added every week.<br></div>
</div><p></p><h5>Click on the map below for a selection of Chicago-area murals</h5><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center><div class="Enhancement-item">
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https://chicago.suntimes.com/murals-mosaics/2022/12/2/23472864/chicago-murals-kaitlyn-beiriger-twilight-zone-south-loop-columbia-collegeAustin Hojdar2022-11-18T11:00:00-06:002022-11-18T12:24:26-06:00Chicago murals: Fleeing Hurricane Ida in New Orleans, Langston Allston came to Chicago, created this mural
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<img class="Image" alt="Langston Allston painted this mural in September 2021 at 20 S. Campbell Ave." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/f35868e/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3024x1697+0+1109/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FbQpHgiaZ2n6zuMClncKLNiidX_o%3D%2F0x0%3A3024x4032%2F3024x4032%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281430x1958%3A1431x1959%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24188277%2Fallstonmural.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/1ff5f60/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3024x1697+0+1109/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FbQpHgiaZ2n6zuMClncKLNiidX_o%3D%2F0x0%3A3024x4032%2F3024x4032%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281430x1958%3A1431x1959%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24188277%2Fallstonmural.jpg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Langston Allston painted this mural in September 2021 at 20 S. Campbell Ave.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Provided</p></div></div>
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<div class="LargeTextEnhancement">Now living in New Orleans, artist Langston Allston evacuated to Chicago ahead of Hurricane Ida last year, staying with friends.</div><p></p><p>It was an “emotionally intense time for me,” Allston says. One way he coped was to paint a mural that he completed on the Near West Side about a month after the storm ravaged Louisiana.</p><p>Spanning two exterior walls of a Salvation Army building at 20 S. Campbell Ave., it features a scene of “people united together” in a “family-embrace type scenario,” says Allston, 31.</p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center>
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<img class="Image" alt="Artist Langston Allston." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/c4accc7/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2048x1149+0+108/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FMaC_UC3Vk9hkHS5j3kiBnKwpzeQ%3D%2F0x0%3A2048x1366%2F2048x1366%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281024x683%3A1025x684%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24188290%2Flangstonallston.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/faec460/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2048x1149+0+108/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FMaC_UC3Vk9hkHS5j3kiBnKwpzeQ%3D%2F0x0%3A2048x1366%2F2048x1366%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281024x683%3A1025x684%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24188290%2Flangstonallston.jpg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Artist Langston Allston.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Provided</p></div></div>
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</div><p>It also shows a woman handing someone a blanket in an “act of charity,” reflecting the Salvation Army’s mission, says Allston, who painted the faces and hands in bold reds and blues against backgrounds heavy on orange and yellow.</p><p>“Using bold colors makes it nicer for me to look at,” he says.</p><p>He says his inspiration was the generosity and charity that came after Hurricane Ida destroyed homes, knocked out power and forced many from their neighborhoods.</p><p>“I tried to paint a little bit of apprehension in the faces of people receiving the charity,” he says, “because I think that goes hand in hand with organizations passing out charity.”</p><p>Allston was hired to do the mural thanks to a friend and fellow muralist known as Penny Pinch, who knew the Salvation Army was looking for an artist whose vision “would vibe well with that space and that congregation and that community.”</p><p>Allston grew up in Champaign and, thanks to his father, was into comic books and “all types of literature.”</p><p>“I was exposed to that type of expression really thoroughly as a kid,” he says. “It introduced me to being able to tell a story and have people listen and, like, make it beautiful.”</p><p>He did his first mural in 2014. After creating one in New Orleans in 2015, he decided to stay on there but says he is “still really strongly anchored to Chicago.”</p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center>
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<img class="Image" alt="Langston Allston painted this mural in 2020 on a Peoria Street underpass between 16th Street and 16th Place. It’s about “hope and togetherness and compassion,” he says." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/233f8f2/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2021x1134+169+0/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FrmUwJ6IvHg2XdCl7NNHnuhFiiAQ%3D%2F0x0%3A2358x1134%2F2358x1134%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281179x567%3A1180x568%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24199372%2FScreen_Shot_2022_11_15_at_12.57.21_PM.png 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/430eef6/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2021x1134+169+0/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FrmUwJ6IvHg2XdCl7NNHnuhFiiAQ%3D%2F0x0%3A2358x1134%2F2358x1134%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281179x567%3A1180x568%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24199372%2FScreen_Shot_2022_11_15_at_12.57.21_PM.png 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Langston Allston painted this mural in 2020 on a Peoria Street underpass between 16th Street and 16th Place. It’s about “hope and togetherness and compassion,” he says.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Robert Herguth / Sun-Times</p></div></div>
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</div><p>When he started making murals, Allston says he would go into each one with a “specific propaganda intent,” like dealing with police violence.</p><p>But he says: “I got depressed by the process of that all. It’s exhausting to make work that’s intentionally propaganda, I think.”</p><p>Now, he says he tries to focus on “telling personal stories.”</p><p>Allston says he wants his art to offer something for “any viewer, especially viewers of color and especially Black viewers.</p><p>“I wanted to make beautiful Black art that wasn’t trauma-centered that could tell stories that were maybe traumatic or intense but in a way that was elegant.”</p><div class="RichTextSidebarModule Enhancement" data-module data-align-center><a class="AnchorLink" id="module-190001" name="module-190001"></a>
<div class="RichTextSidebarModule-title">Murals</div>
<div class="RichTextModule-items RichTextBody"><h3>Chicago’s murals & mosaics</h3><br>Part of a <a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/murals-mosaics" target="_blank" >series</a> on public art. More murals added every week.<br></div>
</div><p></p><h5>Click on the map below for a selection of Chicago-area murals</h5><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center><div class="Enhancement-item">
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https://chicago.suntimes.com/murals-mosaics/2022/11/18/23453488/chicago-murals-langston-allston-salvation-army-new-orleans-hurricane-idaAustin Hojdar2022-11-11T11:00:00-06:002022-11-11T11:47:04-06:00Chicago murals: In Pilsen, Sergio Maciel mural uses break dancing, masks to celebrate diversity
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<img class="Image" alt="Sergio Maciel’s “Ice Cream Break” mural at 2100 W. Cermak Rd. in Pilsen, which he painted in August." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/f267369/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3621x2032+177+0/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FD1pVsNnX0D9kSCs8JUr13HHvauM%3D%2F0x0%3A4032x2032%2F4032x2032%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281987x1121%3A1988x1122%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24174839%2FIce_Cream_Break.jpeg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/06dba84/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3621x2032+177+0/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FD1pVsNnX0D9kSCs8JUr13HHvauM%3D%2F0x0%3A4032x2032%2F4032x2032%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281987x1121%3A1988x1122%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24174839%2FIce_Cream_Break.jpeg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Sergio Maciel’s “Ice Cream Break” mural at 2100 W. Cermak Rd. in Pilsen, which he painted in August.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Provided</p></div></div>
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<div class="LargeTextEnhancement">“A beautiful painting is nice to look at,” Chicago artist Sergio Maciel says.</div><p></p><p>“But I don’t just want to create a beautiful painting,” says Maciel, who completed his latest mural, titled “Ice Cream Break,” in August at 2100 W. Cermak Rd. in Pilsen. “I want to create something with a message that is impactful and can start a conversation.”</p><p>Maciel, 40, was born and raised on the Northwest Side and, after leaving to get an arts degree, moved back in 2018 and eventually met Sam Kirk, the creative director for the agency Provoke Culture. Maciel worked with Provoke Culture on the four Chicago murals he’s done.</p><p>Kirk says she tries to help artists with “how to tell the story and what to include” but leaves it to them to come up with the design to “showcase their style.”</p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center>
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<img class="Image" alt="Artist Sergio Maciel." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/9537926/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x3367+0+316/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FHM1tmpwgvMpMv1jJuxccoUicN4A%3D%2F0x0%3A6000x4000%2F6000x4000%2Ffilters%3Afocal%283000x2000%3A3001x2001%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24148044%2Fsergiomaciel.JPG 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/84574a0/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x3367+0+316/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FHM1tmpwgvMpMv1jJuxccoUicN4A%3D%2F0x0%3A6000x4000%2F6000x4000%2Ffilters%3Afocal%283000x2000%3A3001x2001%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24148044%2Fsergiomaciel.JPG 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Artist Sergio Maciel.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Provided</p></div></div>
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</div><p>Maciel says growing up in Chicago sparked his interest in looking at the “differences between people and the commonalities between one another.”</p><p>The title of his latest work, “Ice Cream Break,” plays on hip hop dance and an actual pause for a frozen treat.</p><p>Maciel painted it for the nonprofit Luv City, which offers digital media and film production programs and mentorship for at-risk youth, according to Dre Rodriguez, its founder and executive director.</p><p>Maciel says he asked kids there: “What is it that influences you? What is it that represents your neighborhood?”</p><p>From that, he landed on using masks to convey Pilsen’s diversity.</p><p>“It’s a really strong way of celebrating culture,” says Kirk, who also is a board member of Luv City.</p><p>One kid in the mural wears an African Goli mask, another a Puerto Rican <i>vejigante</i> mask, both used for celebrations.</p><p>To represent “elders of the culture,” Maciel included a man wearing an Aztec warrior mask. </p><p>And there’s also a boy in a “more modern” Mexican <i>luchador</i> mask.</p><p>“It was a reflection of the people involved with the project and of the neighborhood,” Rodriguez says.</p><p>Flanking either side are giant <i>paletas</i>, Mexican frozen treats.</p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center>
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<img class="Image" alt="Sergio Maciel’s “Manuel Perez Jr.” mural in Little Village, done in November 2021." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/ae2fc71/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4032x2263+0+381/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FFF_2fO3sfqh4esJUOn9Hc2aJVr8%3D%2F0x0%3A4032x3024%2F4032x3024%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282016x1512%3A2017x1513%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24148049%2FManuel_Perez_Jr.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/e01de80/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4032x2263+0+381/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FFF_2fO3sfqh4esJUOn9Hc2aJVr8%3D%2F0x0%3A4032x3024%2F4032x3024%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282016x1512%3A2017x1513%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24148049%2FManuel_Perez_Jr.jpg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Sergio Maciel’s “Manuel Perez Jr.” mural in Little Village, done in November 2021.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Provided</p></div></div>
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</div><p>Last November, Maciel was chosen by the Foundation of Little Village to paint a mural of Manuel Perez Jr. — an Army paratrooper during World War II who lived near and worked in Little Village — for the plaza bearing his name at 4345 W. 26th St. </p><p>The mural features the sun from the flag of the Philippines — where Perez was killed in action in 1945. He was posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor, which can be seen in the mural.</p><p>In the background, there’s what Maciel describes as “a chunk of Aztec calendar representing his Mexican culture and the culture that resides in the rest of the neighborhood.”</p><p>Kirk says details like these help the mural “share history beyond just a portrait.”</p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center>
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<img class="Image" alt="Sergio Maciel’s “Knowledge” mural at 161 W. Ninth St., done in June." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/930ba82/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4032x2263+0+381/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FqGBIDEXNooFIQrPbNaXOlz943Ew%3D%2F0x0%3A4032x3024%2F4032x3024%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282016x1512%3A2017x1513%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24148053%2FBISC.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/41146c6/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4032x2263+0+381/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FqGBIDEXNooFIQrPbNaXOlz943Ew%3D%2F0x0%3A4032x3024%2F4032x3024%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282016x1512%3A2017x1513%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24148053%2FBISC.jpg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Sergio Maciel’s “Knowledge” mural at 161 W. Ninth St., done in June.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Provided</p></div></div>
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</div><p>In June, Maciel completed a mural for the British International School of Chicago at 161 W. Ninth St. It includes three birds perched on the “tree of knowledge,” a pigeon to represent the city, a cardinal as Illinois’ state bird and another bird, a Puerto Rican tody, to represent the artist’s background. Maciel has Mexican and Puerto Rican heritage.</p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center>
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<img class="Image" alt="Sergio Maciel’s Brighton Park mural, done in August 2021." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/3d9aed9/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4032x2263+0+381/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FTGSVXKud8PYH9psqzHJ_b26OhhU%3D%2F0x0%3A4032x3024%2F4032x3024%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282016x1512%3A2017x1513%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24174840%2FBrighton_Park_copy.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/27618f5/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4032x2263+0+381/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FTGSVXKud8PYH9psqzHJ_b26OhhU%3D%2F0x0%3A4032x3024%2F4032x3024%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282016x1512%3A2017x1513%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24174840%2FBrighton_Park_copy.jpg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Sergio Maciel’s Brighton Park mural, done in August 2021.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Provided</p></div></div>
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</div><p>In August 2021, Maciel painted a mural near 47th Street and Archer Avenue in Brighton Park to “emphasize a rebuilding.” It shows a man and a boy working to build the neighborhood, the boy using toy blocks. The artist says it shows “the older teaching the young how to build and maintain” a community.</p><p>Maciel says that, in all of his work, he aims to include something that’s a part of himself.</p><p>“It’s probably one of the bigger things — representing my voice — because that’s the only thing I have control of,” he says. “It’s just trying to translate that in a way that’s understandable for the masses and in a way that’s beautiful for people to see.”</p><div class="RichTextSidebarModule Enhancement" data-module data-align-center><a class="AnchorLink" id="module-a30000" name="module-a30000"></a>
<div class="RichTextSidebarModule-title">Murals</div>
<div class="RichTextModule-items RichTextBody"><h3>Chicago’s murals & mosaics</h3><br>Part of a <a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/murals-mosaics" target="_blank" >series</a> on public art. More murals added every week.<br></div>
</div><p></p><h5>Click on the map below for a selection of Chicago-area murals</h5><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center><div class="Enhancement-item">
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https://chicago.suntimes.com/murals-mosaics/2022/11/11/23428019/chicago-murals-sergio-maciel-cultural-masks-diversity-pilsenAustin Hojdar2022-11-04T11:00:00-05:002022-11-04T11:06:26-05:00Chicago murals: Kate Lewis’ Riverwalk mural ‘The Radiance of Being’ drew inspiration from classic Chicago Art Deco architecture
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<img class="Image" alt="“The Radiance of Being,” a 180-foot-long mural artist Kate Lewis painted in 2020 along the Chicago River downtown." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/86d059d/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5615x3151+0+567/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FFmhCB_grdnJ6CWTgxcetDFeE_9w%3D%2F0x0%3A5615x3718%2F5615x3718%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282896x2462%3A2897x2463%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24158283%2FBoat_Tour_Photo.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/636958e/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5615x3151+0+567/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FFmhCB_grdnJ6CWTgxcetDFeE_9w%3D%2F0x0%3A5615x3718%2F5615x3718%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282896x2462%3A2897x2463%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24158283%2FBoat_Tour_Photo.jpg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>“The Radiance of Being,” a 180-foot-long mural artist Kate Lewis painted in 2020 along the Chicago River downtown.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Austin Hojdar/Sun-Times</p></div></div>
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<div class="LargeTextEnhancement">Doing research for a mural she was planning to paint celebrating iconic Chicago buildings, Kate Lewis went on a series of architectural tours.</div><p></p><p>Now, the mural she created on the Riverwalk between Wabash and Michigan avenues is itself the subject of attention from tour groups.</p><p>She called it “The Radiance of Being” and drew inspiration from, and included references to, more than a dozen historic structures with Art Deco elements — including The Rookery, the Merchandise Mart, the Palmer House, the Palmolive Building and the Chicago Motor Club building.</p><p>Completed in 2020, the mural spans 180 feet and is accented by shimmering gold paint that reflects off the water.</p><p>“I wanted to maintain that Art Deco feeling of it and kind of pay homage to these architects from the 1920s,” Lewis says of a sleek architectural style that emerged a century ago.</p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center>
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<img class="Image" alt="Artist Kate Lewis." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/ca3b5c7/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2500x1403+0+929/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FGHImXZ-UBxhKobomaCOXjoelsBU%3D%2F0x0%3A2500x3262%2F2500x3262%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281250x1631%3A1251x1632%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24158279%2Fkatecleveland.jpeg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/8c3573d/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2500x1403+0+929/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FGHImXZ-UBxhKobomaCOXjoelsBU%3D%2F0x0%3A2500x3262%2F2500x3262%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281250x1631%3A1251x1632%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24158279%2Fkatecleveland.jpeg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Artist Kate Lewis.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Provided</p></div></div>
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</div><p>“Architecture was so much more beautiful in my mind when people were paying more attention to the nuances of it,” says Lewis, 34. “To the motifs and the decorative adornments.”</p><p>One part of the mural shows white-robed musicians playing a flute and harp — inspired by sculpted images on the front of the old Chicago Federation of Musicians Building, 175 W. Washington St., built in 1933 and later expanded.</p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center>
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<img class="Image" alt="Part of Kate Lewis’ 2020 Riverwalk mural. The musicians were inspired by sculpted images on the front of the 89-year-old Chicago Federation of Musicians Building, 175 W. Washington St." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/fd19536/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5760x3233+0+304/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FvWvtFPCweQo21SdM2WT2bbmFMYg%3D%2F0x0%3A5760x3840%2F5760x3840%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282880x1920%3A2881x1921%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24158280%2F209A9310_copy.JPG 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/48c95aa/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5760x3233+0+304/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FvWvtFPCweQo21SdM2WT2bbmFMYg%3D%2F0x0%3A5760x3840%2F5760x3840%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282880x1920%3A2881x1921%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24158280%2F209A9310_copy.JPG 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Part of Kate Lewis’ 2020 Riverwalk mural. The musicians were inspired by sculpted images on the front of the 89-year-old Chicago Federation of Musicians Building, 175 W. Washington St.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Austin Hojdar / Sun-Times</p></div></div>
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</div><p>Lewis says she tried to shape the musicians “in a way that made it seem like they were playing to each other.”</p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center>
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<img class="Image" alt="The Chicago Federation of Musicians Building, shown in an undated photo before another floor was built on the structure at 175 W. Washington St. Above the second-floor windows are sculpted images that inspired part of Kate Lewis’ Riverwalk mural." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/833d7af/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2368x1329+0+836/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FM0eFZupsj871SDdupztdA6Jz6tg%3D%2F0x0%3A2368x3000%2F2368x3000%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281184x1500%3A1185x1501%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24160411%2Fimg0213A.4088.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/6d3305a/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2368x1329+0+836/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FM0eFZupsj871SDdupztdA6Jz6tg%3D%2F0x0%3A2368x3000%2F2368x3000%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281184x1500%3A1185x1501%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24160411%2Fimg0213A.4088.jpg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>The Chicago Federation of Musicians Building, shown in an undated photo before another floor was built on the structure at 175 W. Washington St. Above the second-floor windows are sculpted images that inspired part of Kate Lewis’ Riverwalk mural.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Sun-Times file</p></div></div>
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</div><p>Another part of the mural includes images of hawk-like birds — inspired by etchings on bronze elevator doors at The Rookery, 209 S. LaSalle St.</p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center>
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<img class="Image" alt="Birds in Kate Lewis’ mural along the Riverwalk, which were inspired by etchings on the brass elevators at The Rookery, 209 S. LaSalle St." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/a4ab855/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5760x3233+0+304/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FLxqCOc5x_IvVLVr6KZjvtKWNP9U%3D%2F0x0%3A5760x3840%2F5760x3840%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282880x1920%3A2881x1921%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24158281%2F209A9315_copy.JPG 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/5f5cd87/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5760x3233+0+304/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FLxqCOc5x_IvVLVr6KZjvtKWNP9U%3D%2F0x0%3A5760x3840%2F5760x3840%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282880x1920%3A2881x1921%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24158281%2F209A9315_copy.JPG 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>The birds in Kate Lewis’ mural along the Riverwalk were inspired by etchings on the brass elevators at The Rookery, 209 S. LaSalle St.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Austin Hojdar / Sun-Times</p></div></div>
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</div><p>The building was designed by famed Chicago architects Daniel Burnham and John Wellborn Root and opened in 1888. Architect William Drummond added Art Deco touches to the interior in 1931 with the intricate designs on the elevators, among other changes.</p><p>The mural also features a fountain and birds, including a crane, that Lewis says were inspired by the ornamentation on the 94-year-old Chicago Motor Club building, 68 E. Wacker Pl.</p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center>
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<img class="Image" alt="This crane and fountain in Kate Lewis’ mural were inspired by the ornamentation at the Chicago Motor Club building, 68 E. Wacker Pl." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/66e1402/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1042x585+0+333/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FugY9NeNlv-r4Rdyjud1gpPqOXQw%3D%2F0x0%3A1042x1250%2F1042x1250%2Ffilters%3Afocal%28521x625%3A522x626%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24161067%2FScreen_Shot_2022_11_01_at_7.28.13_PM.png 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/0c1a70c/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1042x585+0+333/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FugY9NeNlv-r4Rdyjud1gpPqOXQw%3D%2F0x0%3A1042x1250%2F1042x1250%2Ffilters%3Afocal%28521x625%3A522x626%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24161067%2FScreen_Shot_2022_11_01_at_7.28.13_PM.png 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>This crane and fountain in Kate Lewis’ mural were inspired by the ornamentation at the Chicago Motor Club building, 68 E. Wacker Pl.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Austin Hojdar / Sun-Times</p></div></div>
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<img class="Image" alt="The image of a fountain at the Chicago Motor Club building, 68 E. Wacker Pl." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/cee7f77/2147483647/strip/true/crop/514x288+0+199/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FS-s-6cA2lRaMNLPo5patcDn8xR0%3D%2F0x0%3A514x686%2F514x686%2Ffilters%3Afocal%28257x343%3A258x344%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24161034%2FScreen_Shot_2022_11_01_at_7.04.35_PM.png 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/481d704/2147483647/strip/true/crop/514x288+0+199/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FS-s-6cA2lRaMNLPo5patcDn8xR0%3D%2F0x0%3A514x686%2F514x686%2Ffilters%3Afocal%28257x343%3A258x344%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24161034%2FScreen_Shot_2022_11_01_at_7.04.35_PM.png 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>The image of a fountain at the Chicago Motor Club building, 68 E. Wacker Pl.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>City of Chicago</p></div></div>
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</div><p>The mural was commissioned by the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events.</p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center>
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<img class="Image" alt="In “The Radiance of Being,” Kate Lewis included Chicago buildings that helped inspire the work." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/60c2389/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2400x1347+0+128/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2F0m07rR5Y116UxjLPCkOj0ZiJmRE%3D%2F0x0%3A2400x1602%2F2400x1602%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281200x801%3A1201x802%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24161124%2F2020_07_20_023_The_Radiance_of_Being_Riverwalk_Mural_PP31429__1_.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/78fb29d/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2400x1347+0+128/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2F0m07rR5Y116UxjLPCkOj0ZiJmRE%3D%2F0x0%3A2400x1602%2F2400x1602%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281200x801%3A1201x802%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24161124%2F2020_07_20_023_The_Radiance_of_Being_Riverwalk_Mural_PP31429__1_.jpg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>In “The Radiance of Being,” Kate Lewis included Chicago buildings that helped inspire the work.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Provided</p></div></div>
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</div><p>Lewis was born in Florida and grew up there. She says she gravitates “toward these sun-stained color palettes because of what I’m used to in Florida. It feels comfortable and warm to me to have these pastel palettes.”</p><p>Lewis says a friend suggested titling the mural “The Radiance of Being,” which she says “felt like a perfect representation of how I felt when looking at it.”</p><p>After living in Logan Square for seven years, Lewis says she wants to be closer to her family and is moving back to Florida. But she won’t forget Chicago.</p><p>“To be able to be a part of such a large project in the city that developed me, I can’t even articulate how incredible that feels,” she says. “It’s a real life fulfillment.”</p><div class="RichTextSidebarModule Enhancement" data-module data-align-center><a class="AnchorLink" id="module-5b0000" name="module-5b0000"></a>
<div class="RichTextSidebarModule-title">Murals</div>
<div class="RichTextModule-items RichTextBody"><h3>Chicago’s murals & mosaics</h3><br>Part of a <a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/murals-mosaics" target="_blank" >series</a> on public art. More murals added every week.<br></div>
</div><p></p><h5>Click on the map below for a selection of Chicago-area murals</h5><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center><div class="Enhancement-item">
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<iframe src="https://flo.uri.sh/visualisation/629878/embed" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" height="575" width="700" style="width:100%;" title="Interactive or visual content"></iframe>
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</div></div><p></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/murals-mosaics/2022/11/4/23415996/chicago-murals-kate-lewis-riverwalk-art-deco-chicago-architectureAustin Hojdar2022-10-21T10:45:00-05:002022-10-19T12:29:33-05:00Chicago murals: Laura Catherwood’s ‘Birdfrog’ mural in Wicker Park marries nature with whimsy
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<img class="Image" alt="Laura Catherwood painted this mural, titled “Birdfrog,” in September 2021 at 1704 N. Damen Ave. in Wicker Park." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/830ae71/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1786x1002+0+395/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FC3VGH6G3CSjkEgvevMEPTWF9iaU%3D%2F0x0%3A1786x1786%2F1786x1786%2Ffilters%3Afocal%28880x896%3A881x897%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24097216%2FBirdfrog_mural.jpeg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/d5569b5/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1786x1002+0+395/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FC3VGH6G3CSjkEgvevMEPTWF9iaU%3D%2F0x0%3A1786x1786%2F1786x1786%2Ffilters%3Afocal%28880x896%3A881x897%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24097216%2FBirdfrog_mural.jpeg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Laura Catherwood painted this mural, titled “Birdfrog,” in September 2021 at 1704 N. Damen Ave. in Wicker Park.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Provided</p></div></div>
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<div class="LargeTextEnhancement">Laura Catherwood has great childhood memories of watching those little sugar maple helicopters twirl down to the ground.</div><p></p><p>Catherwood, 32, grew up in Crystal Lake. And she sees nature as her “comfort place.” So, for a mural she did at 1704 N. Damen Ave. in Wicker Park, she imagined one of them shuttling a half-bird, half-frog creature down from the sky.</p><p>“Growing up in the Midwest, I have all those really magical memories from childhood of seeing them all fluttering down,” Catherwood says of the seeds everyone around Chicago knows as helicopters.</p><p>She painted the mural — named, of course, “Birdfrog” — over three days in September 2021.</p><p>She says she wanted to evoke a “peaceful feeling of going with the flow and enjoying the ride. You’re just looking at this odd creature, and you’re not sure where she came from, where she’s going, but it just seems OK.”</p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center>
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<img class="Image" alt="Laura Catherwood with a mural she painted in 2020 at 2732 W. Cermak Rd." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/19300da/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3024x1697+0+663/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FpAaTcOc6FkXN2I7XCeO9Y111-HY%3D%2F0x0%3A3024x3024%2F3024x3024%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281512x1512%3A1513x1513%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24097288%2FCatherwood_Laura_with_past_mural.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/46cb83a/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3024x1697+0+663/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FpAaTcOc6FkXN2I7XCeO9Y111-HY%3D%2F0x0%3A3024x3024%2F3024x3024%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281512x1512%3A1513x1513%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24097288%2FCatherwood_Laura_with_past_mural.jpg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Laura Catherwood with a mural she painted in 2020 at 2732 W. Cermak Rd.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Provided</p></div></div>
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</div><p>Catherwood moved to Humboldt Park nine years ago and does fine art illustration and works on the side on murals.</p><p>She says “Birdfrog,” painted in greens and blues, was inspired by her “memories of catching frogs in the creek and just how exciting it was and how strange they are.”</p><p>And the bird? That comes from her childhood, too. She remembers painting “little water colors” and giving her dad a picture every year.</p><p>“He loves birds, so I would paint him birds for his birthday,” Catherwood says. “He had basically a timeline of ‘tiny Laura’ to ‘grownup Laura’ getting better at painting side by side.”</p><p>Allan Weinberger, an art manager who has arranged for a number of large-scale murals, chose Catherwood for this one after being asked by a city official to “clean up the front facade” of the currently vacant space.</p><p>Weinberger says he’s been a fan for years and loves her “whimsical” style.</p><p>“She always weaves in some very clever, beautiful storytelling element,” he says.</p><p>Catherwood says she aims to create a “narrative” in the worlds she draws, though not so much actually telling a story as evoking a feeling.</p><p>“It’s sort of trying to diagram how things feel in a way that leaves it vague,” she says. “It’s not saying it exactly the way a storybook does.”</p><p>Given carte blanche with the design, Catherwood turned to a postcard she’d previously created for inspiration.</p><p>“I just really liked the feeling of the image a lot, so I reworked it to be a colorful mural for this job,” she says.</p><p>Before deciding to be an artist, Catherwood studied molecular biology at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, graduating in three years and realizing she “can’t live without” art.</p><p>“When I went to college and had a very intense scientific major, I suddenly didn’t have time to just draw and paint whenever I wanted, and that’s when I realized how important it was to me,” she says.</p><p>She went on to study at an atelier — “a small art conservatory” — to learn “the fundamentals in this very step-by-step, layer-by-layer way of building your understanding and abilities.”</p><p>Despite having “switched trajectories,” Catherwood says she “loved molecular biology because it made a lot of the mysteries of life into these little puzzles.”</p><p>Now, nature — which she describes as “intimate” and “mysterious” — is a key part of her art.</p><p>“I feel like I’m trying to give a close-capture of a moment in the scene of these creatures that I draw,” she says, “a connection with the natural world.”</p><div class="RichTextSidebarModule Enhancement" data-module data-align-center><a class="AnchorLink" id="module-420000" name="module-420000"></a>
<div class="RichTextSidebarModule-title">Murals</div>
<div class="RichTextModule-items RichTextBody"><h3>Chicago’s murals & mosaics</h3><br>Part of a <a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/murals-mosaics" target="_blank" >series</a> on public art. More murals added every week.<br></div>
</div><p></p><h5>Click on the map below for a selection of Chicago-area murals</h5><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center><div class="Enhancement-item">
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https://chicago.suntimes.com/murals-mosaics/2022/10/21/23396843/chicago-murals-wicker-park-laura-catherwood-birdfrogAustin Hojdar2022-10-07T10:45:00-05:002023-01-03T11:47:22-06:00Chicago murals: In Uptown mural, Anthony Lewellen combines a love of nature and ‘concrete and light poles’
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<img class="Image" alt="Anthony Lewellen’s “Resting Waters Rising Light,” completed in October 2020 at 844 W. Montrose Ave. in Uptown." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/d199f85/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4032x2263+0+71/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FklIF8S-KAdgzHtctgH6RIOBPT7g%3D%2F0x0%3A4032x3024%2F4032x3024%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281964x1202%3A1965x1203%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24063962%2FIMG_6073.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/bd0b414/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4032x2263+0+71/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FklIF8S-KAdgzHtctgH6RIOBPT7g%3D%2F0x0%3A4032x3024%2F4032x3024%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281964x1202%3A1965x1203%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24063962%2FIMG_6073.jpg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Anthony Lewellen’s “Resting Waters Rising Light,” completed in October 2020 at 844 W. Montrose Ave. in Uptown.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Provided</p></div></div>
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<div class="LargeTextEnhancement">In Uptown, you can see the sun rise twice — early in the morning over Lake Michigan and any time of day in artist Anthony Lewellen’s “Resting Waters Rising Light” mural at 844 W. Montrose Ave.</div><p></p><p>Besides the rising sun, it shows a stoplight hanging above a cormorant, a water bird that’s common in Illinois.</p><p>“I was kind of referencing what Chicago was like before it became as urban as it is now,” says Lewellen, 50. “I love nature, and I love all the little creatures. But I also really love concrete and light poles.”</p><p>Lewellen, who describes himself as an “urban imagist,” says he has seen a cormorant in a wetland reserve near his home and studio in North Mayfair and was drawn to it “aesthetically.” He says he included the traffic light to create “an overlap between nature and the urban environment. It kind of just ties in these two things that I feel like I’m kind of always wrestling with.”</p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center>
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<img class="Image" alt="Chicago artist Anthony Lewellen." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/b3d03cd/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1920x1078+0+1/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2Femoe5gW2GCGhC2jvFy3xtANXYSA%3D%2F0x0%3A1920x1080%2F1920x1080%2Ffilters%3Afocal%28960x540%3A961x541%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24063969%2FSnapshot_202009269_160900.JPG 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/f433a8c/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1920x1078+0+1/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2Femoe5gW2GCGhC2jvFy3xtANXYSA%3D%2F0x0%3A1920x1080%2F1920x1080%2Ffilters%3Afocal%28960x540%3A961x541%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24063969%2FSnapshot_202009269_160900.JPG 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Chicago artist Anthony Lewellen.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Provided</p></div></div>
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</div><p>Lewellen says that, when the community group Uptown United approached him about doing the mural, the narrow, six-story structure on which he painted it in October 2020 intrigued him. With “roots as a graffiti artist,” he says he’s always looking for a “dope spot” to paint.</p><p>“All the time, I’m driving around the city, and I see walls, and I’m, like, ‘Man, something would look really great right there,’ ” he says.</p><p>Uptown United was looking for a piece to “play up the lakefront theme” and also to promote the nearby Montrose Point Bird Sanctuary, says Justin Weidl, the organization’s neighborhood services director.</p><p>That clicked with the artist.</p><p>“I had a design that I had already been working on that I really loved, and I was, like, ‘You know what, let me see if they like this,’ ” Lewellen says.</p><p>He chose the colors, heavy on greens and golds, to make it feel “relaxing,” like an “oasis.” </p><p>The piece took seven days to complete, which Lewellen says wasn’t easy — in part because he is “scared of heights” and was working more than 50 feet above the ground on a lift that swayed back and forth as the wind blew.</p><p>Also, with the heavy equipment involved to get up there, at times it felt like he was “doing construction.”</p><p>“At some point, the creative part is over with,” he says. “Now, you’re just in production mode, and you’re just trying to execute the plan.”</p><p>But he says it became one of the favorite pieces he’s done.</p><p>“I like to know that I’m having a positive impact on the space and the environment where I create my work,” he says.</p><div class="RichTextSidebarModule Enhancement" data-module data-align-center><a class="AnchorLink" id="module-d50000" name="module-d50000"></a>
<div class="RichTextSidebarModule-title">Murals</div>
<div class="RichTextModule-items RichTextBody"><h3>Chicago’s murals & mosaics</h3><br>Part of a <a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/murals-mosaics" target="_blank" >series</a> on public art. More murals added every week.<br></div>
</div><p></p><h5>Click on the map below for a selection of Chicago-area murals</h5><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center><div class="Enhancement-item">
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<iframe src="https://flo.uri.sh/visualisation/629878/embed" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" height="575" width="700" style="width:100%;" title="Interactive or visual content"></iframe>
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https://chicago.suntimes.com/murals-mosaics/2022/10/7/23378199/chicago-murals-anthony-lewellen-uptown-resting-waters-rising-lightAustin Hojdar2022-09-23T10:50:00-05:002022-09-23T10:53:12-05:00Chicago murals: With hummingbird mural in Lincoln Park, Cheri Lee Charlton aims to draw you in to linger
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<img class="Image" alt="Cheri Lee Carlton’s “Hummingbird Dream” mural, which she painted in July 2021 on a building at 1538 N. Clybourn Ave. in Lincoln Park." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/2953c1d/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3963x2224+0+171/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FT427vzVl3j-ko6r5cZJFn4Da7gE%3D%2F69x462%3A4032x3024%2F3963x2562%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282056x1745%3A2057x1746%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24015253%2FIMG_3102.jpeg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/a854a9f/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3963x2224+0+171/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FT427vzVl3j-ko6r5cZJFn4Da7gE%3D%2F69x462%3A4032x3024%2F3963x2562%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282056x1745%3A2057x1746%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24015253%2FIMG_3102.jpeg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Cheri Lee Carlton’s “Hummingbird Dream” mural, which she painted in July 2021 on a building at 1538 N. Clybourn Ave. in Lincoln Park.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Provided</p></div></div>
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<div class="LargeTextEnhancement">In nature, hummingbirds are almost always in motion — their wings pulsing so fast it’s rare to catch a good glimpse.</div><p></p><p>In Cheri Lee Charlton’s mural in Lincoln Park, though, the speedy, little birds are frozen in time.</p><p>“I looked at capturing the wings in a still way as an opportunity to play with repetition and employ decoration in each feather,” says Charlton, who painted the mural last year on a building at 1538 N. Clybourn Ave. </p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center>
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<img class="Image" alt="Muralist Cheri Lee Charlton." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/70ef5c1/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4032x2263+0+381/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FxETG_1obWQ3V5lfgxKs2_oz0wpA%3D%2F0x0%3A4032x3024%2F4032x3024%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282016x1512%3A2017x1513%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24016419%2FCheri.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/2fc9fc3/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4032x2263+0+381/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FxETG_1obWQ3V5lfgxKs2_oz0wpA%3D%2F0x0%3A4032x3024%2F4032x3024%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282016x1512%3A2017x1513%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F24016419%2FCheri.jpg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Muralist Cheri Lee Charlton.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Provided</p></div></div>
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</div><p>She chose hummingbirds because the mural, which she titled “Hummingbird Dream,” is outside a Mexican restaurant at the NEWCITY shopping center, and the birds are seen as an omen of good fortune in Mexican culture.</p><p>“It was important for me to find cultural influence,” says Charlton, 41, who lives in Uptown.</p><p>She also liked that the hummingbirds could be seen as a “metaphor” for the “success” of the restaurant as it prepared to open.</p><p>The mural features contrasting blues and yellows bursting from the center, with the birds to either side.</p><p>She sees the art as an “immediate explosion of positivity and color and happiness.”</p><p>As with all her murals, the California-born, Ohio-raised artist says she wanted to “reward viewership” for people who stick around to take a closer look.</p><p>“The colors and the large flowers draw people in,” she says. Then, for those who take a longer look, “There’s all these lovely details that make themselves more visible.”</p><p>For the flowers, Charlton, who describes herself as “an illustrator who does murals,” says she was inspired by “traditional needlepoint work” on huipils — Mexican tunics.</p><p>Since the mural was going up outside a Mexican restaurant, she says she based the flowers on Mexican poppies, pink dahlias and roses.</p><div class="RichTextSidebarModule Enhancement" data-module data-align-center><a class="AnchorLink" id="module-780001" name="module-780001"></a>
<div class="RichTextSidebarModule-title">Murals</div>
<div class="RichTextModule-items RichTextBody"><h3>Chicago’s murals & mosaics</h3><br>Part of a <a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/murals-mosaics" target="_blank" >series</a> on public art. More murals added every week.<br></div>
</div><p></p><h5>Click on the map below for a selection of Chicago-area murals</h5><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center><div class="Enhancement-item">
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</div></div><p></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/murals-mosaics/2022/9/23/23348872/chicago-murals-cheri-lee-charlton-lincoln-park-hummingbird-hummingbirdsAustin Hojdar