Art

Public comment invited when Joliet Arts Commission looks at six finalists for City Square sculpture on Wednesday.

An open house will be from 6-8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 4, at The Next Picture Show, Dixon.

Artwork created by children staying at Tornillo, a temporary immigrant detention center in Texas, will be on display in Crystal Lake this weekend.

Alongside the 15th annual Jalopy Fest, Kendall County will feature the Widows Harvest music festival; a unique fundraiser open to women; and other activities.

Local artist Kevin Traynor has created a full-room chalk mural in the Founders Gallery at the Gaylord Building to commemorate the city's first "Fire Fest" marking the anniversary of the Great Fire of 1895.

Artwork at Cornerstone Services art show in Joliet was created by people with disabilities.

Annual event has long, colorful history.

The popular, grassroots event will be staged on both pedestrian-friendly Water Street Mall and Downer Place between Stolp Avenue and Water Street.

StrawFest took place Saturday, Aug. 24, 2024, on the Mt. Morris College Campus in the village's downtown area. It was the second-to-last day of the ninth annual U.S. National Straw Sculpting Competition, hosted by Encore! Mt. Morris.

The Glen Ellyn Art Festival was held Aug 24-25, 2024 at Lake Ellyn.

StrawFest took place Saturday, Aug. 24, 2024, on the Mt. Morris College Campus in the Mt. Morris downtown area

Rock Falls Tourism put on display nine new sculptures Saturday, Aug. 24, 2024, at RB&W Park. The day also included artists, music and food at the riverside park.

Illinois State Police special agent trained at the FBI Academy for a year and then worked in forensics for five years before retiring

Bethe Hughes used her artistic skills to help solve crimes and on Saturday, Aug. 17, 2024, she shared those skills, mixed with some of her own memories, during a forensic art presentation at the Coliseum Museum of Art, Antiques and Americana. Hughes, a Dixon resident, was a special agent with the Illinois State Police for 20 years and worked five years as a forensic artist. She said memories from victims or witnesses are essential in creating an accurate drawing of the perpetrator that police investigators can then use to solve a crime.

Blue Moon Gallery is pleased to present a new art exhibition, “The Spirit of Nature,” featuring three award-winning northern Illinois artists who use nature as their muse.

An opening reception from 5 to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept.10 at the center, will feature art, microtalks by artists and refreshments. The public is invited. Admission and parking are free.

Morris held the 2024 Liberty Arts Festival on Saturday

New additions to the Illinois State Museum’s art collection are on display at its Lockport Gallery through Oct. 12.

Ninth Annual US National Straw Sculpting Competition opened Aug. 9

Woodstock Willie announced a contest for art to be featured in next year's Groundhog Day festivities.

Polo officials gathered with representatives of the William & Beverly Burkardt Family Foundation at two city parks Monday afternoon to hold dedications for some new additions.

The city of Polo held two dedications Monday, July 29, 2024. The first was for a new concession stand and storage shed in Millard Deuth Westside Park. The second was for a recently completed mural at Louise A. Quick Park.

After moving to Minnesota two years ago, founding artist Bob Nonnemacher returns to Grayslake’s Blue Moon Gallery with a new collection of acrylic paintings in geometric abstraction.

Starting Monday, Joliet residents can go to the city website to view design ideas for a sculpture and vote for their favorite. Voting will end on Aug. 9.

More than 120 artists in a variety of mediums are participating in the show.

Plein Air-St. Charles, Art of the Dessert and the Art Heist Mystery event will round out the 2024 season for the St. Charles Arts Council.

Lockport’s Comicopolis continues to attract thousands of people to the city. The event is similar to San Diego Comic-Con and allows visitors to dress as their favorite characters and meet artists.

Kane County has a variety of family-friendly events to do before school begins, such as painting at Color Me Mine, visiting Primrose Farm and more.

A Frida Destination event will unfold from 5 to 9 p.m. Friday, July 19 at Altiro Latin Fusion, 308 Anderson Blvd., Geneva.

The Fields on Caton Farm, Inc., 1850 Caton Farm Road, Crest Hill, will host Art in the Garden on Sunday.

Sterling's first ever Chalk the Walk was a rousing success, seeing 142 kids sign up to put their artistic expression on the sidewalks of the Grandon Civic Center on Saturday, July 13, 2024.

For the last 40 years Michael Litewski has been making art and sharing how he witnesses and reacts to the world through his visual expression.

Here's what the Kishwaukee Valley Art League has got going on in July:

A Naperville woman won the Quilters Dozen 2024 PrairieFest Quilt Raffle.

On June 27, a public presentation was held to celebrate two outdoor public art projects initiated by the Oswego Cultural Arts Commission.

Deadline for entries is July 19.

Laura Racich has been painting her entire life. Now her works showcasing iconic Joliet landmarks are on display in one of the city's newest restaurants.

Dixon artist Nora Reuter is working to transform downtown bike posts into superheroes.

Woodstock’s proposed Artspace project is on hold delayed while officials figure out how and if they can fund it.

Blue Moon Gallery is kicking off the summer season with an Opening Reception for emerging featured artist Kay Smith of Waukegan, pop-up embroidery artist Laura O’Connor of Grayslake, the gallery’s five 2024 Collective Artists, and a continuation of “Local Papers."

The Kane County Fair will have music, rides, food, games and more for attendees to enjoy with friends and family.

The 2,000 square foot mural in downtown Yorkville is visible to those traveling south on Bridge Street (Route 47) as soon as they cross the Fox River.

Kane County Specialty Courts held an inspiring art show to encourage mental health and substance abuse recovery.

Local artists can pick up their blank banners and bags of paint from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Thursday in the St. Charles municipal building parking lot. Artists should look for the white car with flowers on it. Banners can also be purchased on the arts council website.

Former Joliet resident Steve Kost of Palos Park, a member of The Art Movement in Joliet and the Romeoville Art Society, created 36-inch long, 65-pound cicada from scrap metal that he entered into the sculpture category at ScrapFest in Lansing, Michigan.

The City of Joliet is launching the Joliet Summer Challenge, a virtual passport program designed to encourage residents and visitors to explore local attractions and events.

Fourteen locations in Elgin, Batavia, Aurora, Geneva and St. Charles will feature a variety of art and artists.

The Lakeside Pavilion Free Outdoor Concert Summer Series will return to McAninch Arts Center on the campus of College of DuPage from July 12-Aug. 9.

McHenry County College's student art exhibit is in its final days.

McHenry County businesses and artists are making cicada-themed treats and art.