EVENTS
WEST RIDGE ART EXHIBIT
12/2/2023
West Ridge Artist Denise Grossman will have an exhibit at the Urban Morning Cozy Cafe, 7113 N Western for the month of December. Join us for the opening on Saturday, December 2nd from 5-7PM. See a few samples of Denise's work below. We hope to see you there.
SHAMIANA ON DEVON
11/4/2023
Senes from Saturday November 4th as we continue building Shamiana - a place to grow, a space to gather.
As we gather together in this moment, within the complex tapestry of the Devon neighborhood, we do so in the spirit of creating meaningful connections and solidarities that may grow through our shared reflections, stories, and music. We will share from last summer’s harvest, and we invite you in return to share your voices, music and ideas with us.
We will use the street itself as our gathering space, our ‘petals’ as places to sit and converse. Shamiana will continue to be built in the coming months with more programming taking place in 2024.
PHOTOGRAPHIC EXHIBIT OF THE JEWISH COMMUNITY
9/21/2022
There will be a photographic retrospective of the Jewish community in West Rogers Park at the Northtown Library. Registration required for the opening reception on October 23rd.
SHORT FILM FESTIVAL
8/29/2022
On Friday, September 2nd at 8PM there will be a Short Film Festival at Ropa Cabana, 1230 W Greenleaf on the beach. Bring a chair and enjoy some upscale hot dogs. West Ridge producer Mirko Popadic will be showing two films: Coming Home and A Musical Tribute to the Eight Hour Day.
MIME ARTISTS AT INDIAN BOUNDARY
7/15/2022
Join us at Indian Boundary Park Saturday July 16 from 3-4PM for a performance by Mime artists T. Daniel and Laurie Willets. They will be previewing their 2022-23 season. Both are longtime residents of the West Ridge community.
SUMMER ART EXHIBIT
6/20/2022
Stop by Asian Human Services Summer Art Exhibit on Wednesday, June 22 and support community artists.
PREMIER OF FILM BY WEST RIDGE PRODUCER
4/25/2022
On Sunday, May 15th the West Ridge Artists is hosting the premier of Mirko Popadic's film Staying Afloat: Swimming in the Time of Covid at Chicago Filmmakers, 1326 W Hollywood from 2-5. There will be music provided by folk artist Leah Shoshanah, food and several films. Mirko Popadic is Producer and Director; Aldas Gubaras, Co-Producer with music performed by David Hoppe, Danny Hoppe and Leah Shoshanah.
MANDALA ARTS CALL FOR ARTISTS
2/22/2022
Mandala Arts is holding an Arts Festival June 16-26 in West Ridge. They are seeking artists, particularly people who live in West Ridge. This is an opportunity to exhibit your work and share your culture.
NEIGHBORHOOD TOUR
10/11/2021
Join neighborhood resident and architect Odile Compagnon for a neighborhood tour on this coming Saturday, October 16 at 9:30am
DEVON HAPPENINGS
9/13/2021
Click on the link below to find out about events on Saturday, September 4 and Saturday, September 18.
This coming Saturday, August 28th there will be Games and Chai at Talman and Devon - 4-6PM
THE COVID MONOLOGUES
9/12/2021
The COVID Monologues is a new video from Silk Road Rising Theatre that showcases stories from Chicago’s West Ridge neighborhood and beyond. West Ridge experienced one of the city’s highest rates of COVID-19 transmission early on in the pandemic. This collection of monologues brings to light the untold stories of the pandemic and offers an opportunity to reflect upon the harm caused by the epidemics of COVID-19, systemic racism, and structural inequality.
Register for September 18th 2pm screening here: https://web.ovationtix.com/trs/pe/10801803
Register for September 20th screening here: https://web.ovationtix.com/trs/pe/10801804
After these two screenings of this new video on September 18 & 20 Silk Road Rising will make it available on YouTube for everyone to watch at any time. Please submit your name and email below and they will send you an email once the video is made public.
If you have any questions, please reach out to Associate Producer, Corey Pond, at corey@silkroadrising.org or 312-857-1234 x205.
FANTASY ART OF KAT HARDY
7/2021
New on the West Ridge Artists YouTube channel is a video by Kat Hardy describing her Fantasy Art. If you haven’t yet, be sure to check out the West Ridge Artists YouTube channel and click on the playlist for more videos.
COVID CREATIONS EXHIBIT
11/2020
THE COVID CREATIONS EXHIBIT is now available. What have some of your neighbors been creating during this pandemic? Take a look at the COVID Creations Exhibit under Events to view art and listen to music created by West Ridge residents.
FANNIE LOU HAMMER
10/17/2020
On October 7, 2020, The Goodman Theatre staged a newly produced play entitled Fannie Lou Hammer, Speak On It. The play written, by Cheryl L. West, was performed publicly for free in our Indian Boundary Park. This play, in collaboration with the Chicago Park District and Goodman Theatre. was part of a three-week citywide performance in city parks and community centers. West Ridge Artists helped promote the event on via their website, newsletter and social media. The play highlights the struggle of Fannie Lou Hammer, a 1960s civil rights activist, fighting for free and unimpeded elections in the South. While the play was shortened to 50 minutes, actor E. Faye Butler (as Fannie) impressed all with her singing and acting. She belted out songs that enaged the audience and drew them in to her world of struggle and discrimination. Despite being imprisoned and beaten, Fannie Lou Hammer kept on organizing. The audience left with the clear message - VOTE to honor all those who fought for that right.
COVID CREATIONS
9/6/2020
CALLING ALL WEST RIDGE RESIDENTS – SHOW US WHAT YOU’VE CREATED!
BE FEATURED IN THE WRA COVID CREATIONS ONLINE GALLERY!
We’ve all been home alot more than usual - through the lock down, and even now with many places still closed and events moved from in-person to virtual. WRCO wants to showcase what you and/or your children have created during this historic time. We welcome all creations (visual, performing, literary) from West Ridge residents, regardless of your experience or training - from amateurs to professionals to those who are just exploring something new!
Submission is simple - email us one of the following:
• a photo of your visual work (painting, sculpture, drawing, photograph, etc.
• written piece (poem, short story, etc.)
• for music and videos: submit your audio or video file via a file sharing service like Dropbox, Google Drive, Icloud, etc. Do not attach file to your submission. Include the URL link to your file instead.
You can include a short description of your work with your name, or remain anonymous, if preferred. Work will be featured in the Covid Creations Online Gallery on this website and in WRA/WRCO social media posts. Participants are required to sign and submit a permission form which allows us to publicly display your work. Parents and guardians - if you are submitting a piece created by your child, you are required to submit the parental consent form. You retain all rights to your work.
SUBMISSIONS ARE CLOSED
WEST RIDGE ARTISTS VIDEO FUNDRAISER
9/5/2020
West Ridge Artists has launched a Go Fund Me page to raise funds to produce more videos showcasing WRA artists, their creative process and their works. Please consider donating to support local artists in your community.
This project will not only help local artists, it will also promote and highlight West Ridge and all of its offerings!
Please help spread the word through your contacts and social media.
West Ridge Artists Video Project: Go Fund Me
Download and share this PDF
WEST RIDGE STORY FESTIVAL
11/24/2019
OBSTACLE COURSE VIDEO PLAY
10/22/2019
West Ridge Artists and Northtown Library invites you to join Silk Road Rising at the library at 6:30pm on Thursday, November 21 for a screening of Obstacle Course, a new video play written by Jamil Khoury, Founding Artistic Director of Silk Road Rising.
Set in Naperville, Illinois, this 45-minute video play, adapted from Khoury's stage play Mosque Alert, explores reactions to a proposed Islamic community center on the site of a beloved landmark. Allyship, municipal politics, and Islamophobia all intersect in this head-on collision between Not in My Backyard fear mongering, well-intentioned liberalism, and the peaceful practice of faith.
WEST RIDGE ARTIST GROUP SHOW
9/6/2019
As part of Open House Chicago, eight visual artists from West Ridge Artists displayed work October 19th and 20th from 10AM-5PM at Indian Boundary Park Nature Center. Artists included: George Blaha, Laksha Dantran, May Al Jumaily, Ingrid Nevinger, Raymond Noesen, Mirko Popadic, Daniel Staub Weinberg and Roger Stevens. John-Michael Korpal also presented live art as a spirit tree.
THE ART OF VIDEO STORY TELLING
9/15/2019
The Art of Video Storytelling
Videos produced by Mirko Popadic, with Steffani Francis
September 15, 2019
7:30-8:30PM
Temple Mah Tovu
7311 N. Western Avenue, Chicago, IL 60645
"BEYOND THE SURFACE" OPENING EXHIBIT
9/8/2019
Indian Boundary Park Nature Center's brick walls and high vaulted ceilings provided the perfect setting for Raymond Noesen's opening exhibit on September 1st. It's huge glass doors were wide open in celebration of a cool summer evening. Attendees were treated to Noesen's "Beyond the Surface" koi series - a collection of oil and wax pastel paintings on paper - in addition to a generous spread of food and drink. Special thanks to Phil Martini at Indian Boundary Parkfor his assistance with our second event!
Images by Ingrid Nevinger
OPENING EXHIBIT: JOHN-MICHAEL KORPAL
5/7/2019
Images from John-Michael Korpal's opening gala of his Re•sil•ence show at Devon Bank in Chicago's West Ridge neighborhood. Special thanks to Devon Bank (venue/food), cellist Andrea Nott (musical entertainment), West Ridge Artists member volunteers and all who attended the show. We appreciate your support in making our debut event such a success!
Images by Ingrid Nevinger
ARTIST TALK: JOHN-MICHAEL KORPAL
5/7/2019
DATE: May 9, 2019
LOCATION: Northtown Library
TIME: 6:00-7:00PM
Artist John-Michael Korpal presented a lecture about his upcoming show, Re•sil•ience, at the new Northtown branch of the Chicago library. He discussed his inspiration, materials and process, and led attendees in guided visualizations. Learn more about John-Micheal here.
Images by Ingrid Nevinger