“As we continue building a more inclusive permanent collection, DPAM is proud to announce that we added LatinX American artist Caroline Kent‘s work, ‘The Myth of Shadows’ (2019) to our growing collection!” the museum posts, with picture, on Instagram. Kent is an alum of Newcity’s Art 50 and Breakout Artists lists.
DESIGN
Thompson Center Nominated For National Register Of Historic Places
“A state advisory council Friday voted to nominate the James R. Thompson Center for the National Register of Historic Places, over the objections of two state agencies that argued the Helmut Jahn-designed state office building is not worthy of the designation,” reports Ryan Ori at the Trib. “The 10-2 vote by the Illinois Historic Sites Advisory Council comes as Gov. J.B. Pritzker moves to sell the glassy structure in the Loop... But the State Historic Preservation Office, which argued against the nomination, could ignore the advisory council’s recommendation and block it from proceeding to the federal agency.”
“Kudos to the passionate preservationists who have pushed the National Register nomination of the Jahn-designed Thompson Center this far,” tweets Blair Kamin while linking the Trib piece. “They’re on the side of the angels—and on the right side of history.”
The Name’s Official: Jean Baptiste Point DuSable Lake Shore Drive
The City Council has passed an ordinance renaming Lake Shore Drive, reports WMAQ-TV. “Ald. David Moore was one of the leading advocates for the move to rename the roadway in honor of Jean Baptiste Point DuSable… ‘None of us would be here, including Lake Shore Drive, if this city wasn’t founded by Jean Baptiste Point DuSable,’ he said… Ald. Brian Hopkins was part of a contingent that opposes the change, and says he’s heard that many residents support his stance. ‘It was about the desire to protect the tradition, the legacy, the attractiveness of the name. It’s a beautiful name for a beautiful road.'”
Chicago Park District Launches Summer Series of Fairy Houses
“A charming window into the magic of nature opens through a series of enchanting Fairy Houses at Chicago Park District Natural Areas, joining naturally enchanting wildlife, prairies and wetlands at select areas throughout the city,” the CPD announces of the program running through September 15. “These mystical wooden structures, created by partners from local communities, will charm adventurous visitors. The Chicago Park District, in partnership with The Nature Conservancy of Illinois, is showcasing the Fairy Houses this summer to celebrate the twentieth anniversary of CPD Natural Areas and the establishment of the Community Stewardship Program. CPD invited twenty volunteer partners to each create Fairy Houses that will be installed at twenty Natural Areas. Each whimsical Fairy House dazzles with creativity, combining natural items such as branches, plants, feathers, rocks and more with unique special touches. Chicagoans and visitors are encouraged to get outside this summer to visit all twenty Fairy Houses to explore and engage with nature in the city and enjoy the many benefits it provides.”
Chicago Church Built By Mexican Immigrants Closes This Week
Seventy-six-year-old “La Capilla” in Chicago’s Back of the Yards closes July 1, reports Mike Amezcua at the Sun-Times. “It is perhaps the only church in Chicago built by Mexican immigrants… La Capilla (‘The Chapel’) — as parishioners still call the Back of the Yards church in reference to its original name, Our Lady of Guadalupe Chapel — was founded and built by the community from the ground up… Cardinal Blase Cupich and his Renew My Church Commission have decided to close the church, ending a story that is well worth remembering. Chicagoans might be surprised to know that the church literally was built by hand by Mexican immigrants, mostly packinghouse workers. It allowed them to worship as loyal Catholics, but also to defeat racism, nativism and economic discrimination.”
Morton Salt Music Venue Developer Touts Growth For Goose Island
“If you ask developer Zack Cupkovic about Goose Island, he’ll tell you it’s been overlooked for too long,” reports Hannah Alani at Block Club Chicago. “’Goose Island is the ugly, red-headed stepchild of Chicago. Nobody gets off at Division,’ said Cupkovic, who oversees investments and special projects for developer R2. ‘It never gets the attention it deserves.’ But things are changing. ‘We’re finally getting some love,’ he said. One of the Chicago-based firm’s highest-profile projects is turning the old Morton Salt factory into a concert venue along with Blue Star Properties, the development arm of 16 on Center. The group owns Empty Bottle, Thalia Hall, Beauty Bar and other Chicago venues.”
DINING & DRINKING
Aldermen Make It So: Package Liquor Sales Banned After Midnight
Chicago aldermen on Friday approved Mayor Lightfoot’s ban on alcohol sales at packaged-good stores after midnight. The ban went into effect immediately.
Los Comales Founder Camerino Gonzalez Was 82
Camerino Gonzalez, founder of Los Comales restaurant, has died, reports Negocios Now. “Camerino was a living example of the entrepreneurial heart of La Villita and Los Comales was an emblem in his community. He opened the first restaurant in 1973 on 26th Street in Little Village. Poles and Mexicans filled the neighborhood, and he quickly touched the palate of his customers with the flavors and style of tacos from the Distrito Federal in Mexico, from which he emigrated at a very early age.” Nearly fifty years later, Los Comales is a seventeen-location chain in Chicago, the suburbs and Milwaukee. “Camerino was a very humble and hard-working man who was admired and respected by many. He paved the way for many restaurants in Little Village and always led with gratitude.”
Chalet Takes Louie Yu
Executive chef Louie Yu, formerly of Sunda, brings his experience to the forthcoming ski resort-inspired concept, Chalet, at 228 West Chicago in River North, previously occupied by Farmhouse. Chef Louie’s menu will have “a Rocky Mountain feel—elevated, tavern-style comfort food with an emphasis on high-quality ingredients.” “The après-ski experience is all about comfort, warmth, conversation and delicious food and libations.” Chef Louie says in a release. “My goal is to create a meal that makes your soul melt and fills you with warm satisfaction. I want my guests to experience happiness and celebration in Chalet’s menu.”
LIT
Tribune Books, Film And Television Editor Jennifer Day Takes Buyout
Tribune books, film and television editor Jennifer Day [Newcity Lit 50] joins the Alden Global Capital buyouts. “A gifted writer in her own right, Day was the founding editor of Printers Row, the paper’s late, great standalone books section. She moved on to editing books, film and TV, all with a sharp eye and a graceful touch,” tweeted the Chicago Tribune Guild.
A Hello From The New Owner of City Lit Books
LoganSquarist checks in with Stephanie Kitchen, new owner of City Lit. “Before I got my library degree, I worked in bookstores through college, and I worked as a book buyer,” Kitchen tells Carrie McGath. “I always had this dream of having my own shop, and before the pandemic hit, I was trying to make strides to have my own place… I want a place for the community to come together again… and people are out more.”
IU Bloomington Rededicates Lilly Library
Indiana University’s Lilly Library, home to significant rare-book collections and literary artifacts, reopens in August after a full-scale renovation to redesign the iconic facility’s interior to meet the needs of modern scholars. Indiana University President Michael A. McRobbie rededicated the internationally renowned library to service in the university’s third century, noting its role as a center for scholarship long responsible for enhancing the reputation of IU. The renovation was made possible by grants from Lilly Endowment Inc.
MEDIA
Washington Post On Trib Buyout For Mary Schmich
At the Washington Post, Paul Farhi talks to former Tribune columnist Mary Schmich about the end of an era: “In twenty-nine years as a columnist for the Chicago Tribune, Mary Schmich was often adored and occasionally reviled by readers, as are all good newspaper columnists. She wrote thousands of columns that poked, prodded and — she hopes — soothed some heartache in her adopted metropolis. Mostly, she says, she tried to provide ‘the connective tissue’ that seems to be fraying in civic life. ‘The classic metro column helps people understand the place they live, including the places they wouldn’t ordinarily go.'”
Kass Watch Takes One Last Kick
John Kass acolytes did not care for John Greenfield’s missive at the Reader on Kass’ departure from the Tribune, which highlighted an unfulfilled promise: to file a column on his beliefs about alleged irregularities in the 2020 election, or, as Kass tweeted, “Clearly Twitter is not the forum to discuss the ‘legitimacy’ or ‘illegitimacy’ of the 2016 or 2020 elections and questions about both. Tribalism makes rational debate impossible. Many on both sides want to twist my words. So I deleted a tweet. But I will write a column about it.” (No such column appeared before his departure.) The Alden Global Capital buyout precipitated Kass’ departure, but Greenfield allows himself a political gloat: “Perhaps the best thing about Kass leaving the Tribune is that Chicago currently has no conservative newspaper columnist. That will help shift our city’s political conversation to the left. That is, closer to what’s considered mainstream in just about any other wealthy nation.”
Insider Staff Email Calls Last Week’s Hate-Read Midwest Slideshow A Success
‘According to this email to staff at Insider, the Midwest slideshow was one of the site’s top stories,” tweets Daily Beast media reporter Max Tani. “People got their dunks in, Insider got traffic. A classic digital media story where everyone wins!” “Write to specific audiences,” the memo took as a lesson. “Sometimes called affinity groups.” For future dispatches? “Think about a time when you were tipsy or a little stoned… and you were struck by the moon or the stars. You see the moon and the stars every day! But in that moment, you’re able to realize how far away they are from us, and all that this distance means…. Readers and viewers love it.”
Chicago Tribune Guild Salutes Twenty-Six Members Who Took Alden Global Capital Buyout; Feder Tallies Forty Staff Exits
Chris Jones On Broadway For First Post-Lockdown Full-Capacity Performance: Bru-u-u-u-ce!
Chris Jones attended the reopening performance of “Springsteen on Broadway”: “In language that’s unexpectedly exquisite, stitching together some of his greatest songs, Springsteen manages to stand outside of himself, pondering what he and his work actually means and how it dovetails with the lives of his audiences… Springsteen has a rich vein of humility and his show, above all, conveys the truth that we do actually learn more about life as we age. The problem is that we then can easily be overwhelmed by the piling up of loss and grief as people die.”
Ringling Bros. Pioneer Alice Clark Brown Was 68
“A poem about an adventurous sailor helped inspire Alice Clark Brown to see the world, though not from ‘the rolling deck’ described by writer Langston Hughes. She saw it from the rolling back of an elephant. She was one of the first Black women to work as a showgirl, dancer and aerial acrobat with Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus… She was a 19-year-old Andy Frain ‘usherette’ at the old International Amphitheatre when the circus came to town. Growing up, she wasn’t athletic and was scared to even ride a Ferris wheel. She once told the Chicago Daily News, ‘I was the worst student in my gym class.'” More in Maureen O’Donnell’s obituary at the Sun-Times.
Victory Gardens Announces New Playwrights Ensemble Members
Victory Gardens Theater, under the leadership of artistic director Ken-Matt Martin and acting managing director Roxanna Conner, welcomes Marisa Carr, Keelay Gipson, Isaac Gómez and Stacey Rose as the new members of the Victory Gardens Playwrights Ensemble. The Ensemble will be members for a three-year term, through 2024. “I’m excited to share my vision for the future of this program,” Martin says in a statement. “By bringing playwrights into artistic and board of directors meetings, as well as involving them in programming the Ignition Festival of New Plays, we are deepening the impact and broadening the opportunities for these playwrights, while still supporting the development of their artistic practice by presenting new work. I look forward to working with all of them, and seeing the impact of their insight and artistry on Victory Gardens and the American Theatre over their tenure.” Biographies and more details here.
PrideArts Season Will Explore “The Search for Identity Among Queer Communities”
PrideArts’ first season under newly appointed artistic director Jay Españo will bear the theme “The Search for Identity Among Queer Communities,” exploring ways in which queer people define themselves, through the work of writers hailing from England, Australia and the United States. All performances will be held in the Broadway of the Pride Arts Center on North Broadway. Details here.
Den Theatre Reopens In Fall
Wicker Park’s multi-theater venue The Den Theatre returns to live performances this fall. The line-up includes stand-up comedians Erik Griffin (October 8 – 9) and Maria Bamford (October 14 – 17), along with comedian Jacqueline Novak’s off-Broadway hit “Get On Your Knees,” performed on The Heath Mainstage. Additional booking will include companies new to The Den and 2021-22 seasons from The Den’s four resident companies – Broken Nose Theatre, First Floor Theater, Haven and The New Coordinates (formerly The New Colony). Bar and food service will also resume. Tickets for all performances go on sale, online only, on Friday, July 9.
ARTS & CULTURE
Shedd Solicits Name For Giant Pacific Octopus
The newest resident in the Shedd Aquarium Oceans exhibit, a giant Pacific octopus, the largest species of them all, needs a name, and visitors, for one week only, can cast a vote after visiting the “Octopus: Blue Planet II 4D Experience®.” Voting will take place from Monday, June 28 to Sunday, July 4. Visitors can see “Octopus: Blue Planet II 4D Experience®” by purchasing an add-on to their ticket at a $4.95 upgrade per guest($2.95 for members).
Adler Planetarium Won’t Fully Reopen Until 2022; There’s Not Enough Staff
“Employees let go earlier in the pandemic have not been rehired” at the Adler Planetarium, reports WGN-TV. “Opening the museum at full capacity now would further strain our limited resources and reduced staff,” a letter posted on their website reads. “We have developed a timeline that will allow us to fully reopen from a position of strength.” Adds WGN, “Upgrades and renovations include a new telescope installed a month before the closure that has not officially opened to the public.”
Today In The Culture, June 16, 2023: No Wherewithall | Whither Thompson Center Art? | RIP Blackie Onassis Get daily culture news sent to your inbox every weekday morning. Subscribe to Newcity Today here. ART MCA Increasing Admission "A suggested-admission increase for the Museum of Contemporary Art was approved Wednesday by the Chicago Park District. The price change takes effect this month," reports the Sun-Times. "For Chicago residents, student and senior tickets will increase from $8 to $10, and…
