For one Saturday, Beverly became a canvas.
More than 150 artists brought paintings, photography, sculpture, handmade creations, live music and performances to businesses, studios and community spaces throughout Beverly and Morgan Park during the 13th annual Beverly Art Walk.
From galleries and businesses to home studios, schools and community spaces, artists showcased the depth of creative talent throughout the neighborhood during the free, family-friendly event.
Organized by the Beverly Area Arts Alliance, the Art Walk featured artists at 43 venues throughout the neighborhood, giving visitors an opportunity to experience artwork in familiar places while discovering the many creative voices in the community.
“I feel like the Beverly Art Walk encapsulates a lot of the cool stuff we do in the community throughout the year,” said Sal Campbell, co-founder of the Beverly Area Arts Alliance. “This gives people the chance to see art from local artists in places they’re used to visiting every day.”
Campbell co-founded the alliance with Monica Wilczak. Through her involvement with the local arts community, Campbell said art has had a significant impact on her own life.
“Art has transformed my life,” Campbell said. “I have met so many interesting and creative people.”
That creative energy could be found throughout the neighborhood, where more than 150 artists turned Beverly into a living canvas. Visitors moved from one location to another, encountering different styles and mediums along the way.
Several artists opened their studios and homes to the public for the first time, including large-scale portrait artist John Bakker, ceramic sculptor and painter Francelia Herron Cotton, multimedia abstract artist Phil Cotton and handmade organic apparel designer Indre Vepstas.
Many studio artists also invited fellow artists into their spaces.
At artist Ashley January’s Studio Space, visitors viewed new paintings from her “Environments of a Heavy Joy” series and watched a live dance performance, “Healing Landscape,” featuring Nia Towe and Brandon Avery.
Roots and Rays, a community arts and healing space, presented “A Soft Place to Land,” an exhibition featuring fiber and multimedia artists including Kelly McKaig and Robin Power. The exhibition was curated by artist and art therapist Annie Novotny.
Other artists showcasing their work included multidisciplinary artist Sandra Leonard, ceramic artist and educator Dan McCabe, painter Susannah Papish and Clifton Henri, a photographer, poet and gallerist with Flypaper Chicago.
Western Avenue and surrounding neighborhood streets also became part of the Art Walk, with businesses and community spaces filled with artwork, music and creative activities.
At the Vanderpoel Museum at Ridge Park Field House, Chicago collage artists Paloma Trecka, Nellie Seigel and Lisa Barcy presented “Incantations,” an exhibition exploring devotion, memory and humor.
The Beverly Arts Center featured several exhibitions, adding to the variety of artwork visitors could experience during the Art Walk.
Students, faculty and staff from Saint Xavier University displayed their work in “Equalateral,” an exhibition built around the concept of squares.
While the works shared the square shape, the artwork itself varied widely. The exhibit included collaborative paintings, photography, individual self-portraits and other works.
Alejandra Rodriguez, of Chicago and an administrative assistant in the Saint Xavier University Art Department, had her painting “Just Us Two” on display.
“It started out with a painting of two birds and I kept adding to it. I’m really happy with the way it turned out,” Rodriguez said.
The piece is a montage of abstract shapes and colors, incorporating blacks, blues and pinks.
Many of the collaborative paintings were created during interactive paint jam sessions on the Saint Xavier University campus, where students worked together to create the pieces.
“The Beverly Art Walk is often the first opportunity for our students to interact with a live audience,” said Nathan Peck, chair of the Saint Xavier University Art Department.
Also on display at the Beverly Arts Center was “Peculiar Wilderness: A Chicago Alphabet,” featuring words by Keith Lewis and art by Dmitry Samarov. The exhibit presented original paintings and text from the upcoming release by Broken Nose Books.
The Beverly Arts Center’s Simmerling Gallery also featured “Holding Space: Grounded,” from Kimberly Leja Atwood, showcasing the work of 26 artists and focusing on self-care.
The Uprising Handmade Market featured artwork and handmade goods for sale, while The Annex, a historic garage converted into five light-filled studio spaces, provided another location for artists to showcase their work.
Families gathered at the Family Fun Park at Sutherland School for the school’s annual I Madonnari street art festival. The area also featured art activities using materials from the Creative Chicago Reuse Exchange, a DJ and line dancing.
At Running Excels, visitors could take part in “Terrible Portraits,” where customers had intentionally crude portraits created for $5.
The Garage Gallery behind Nicky’s of Beverly continued its tradition of showcasing unconventional and eclectic artwork in a variety of mediums and styles.
After the Art Walk ended, the celebration continued at Nicky’s near 105th Street and Western Avenue. Mucca Pazza, a 30-member Chicago band known for combining marching band traditions with street theater and rock, headlined the after-party. Reilly Downes & The Acid Cowboys also performed.
For one Saturday, art was everywhere in Beverly. It hung on walls, filled storefronts, spilled into studios and took shape in the hands of students, longtime artists and people simply looking to create something of their own.
That may be what made the Art Walk stand out. Beverly did not need to become an art community for the day. The artists were already here. The Art Walk simply opened the doors and gave the neighborhood a chance to see them.
