Fine Artists

A little more than two years ago, the curtain lifted on the Chicago Symphony Orchestra-led Citizen Musician initiative, and CSO Association President Deborah Rutter told an overflow crowd at the Chicago Cultural Center: “All of you are citizen...

Two Asian restaurants with impressive credentials opened exactly one day apart: Embeya, a West Loop Vietnamese restaurant made its debut Sept. 11; and Jellyfish, a Gold Coast pan-Asian opened on the 12th. They're ideal for their neighborhoods; Embeya...

The Maitland Art Center has so much going on, I could easily fill my column with all the happenings at that historic institution. Here's a shorter version: The center is bringing back its artist-in-residency program started by founder Andre Smith in...

Let's raise a glass to Bob Koester, the single-minded Chicagoan who this weekend celebrates a remarkable anniversary: 60 years of producing jazz and blues recordings. Koester's Delmark Records may not be the biggest indie in the country – or...

Although the 250th anniversary of Ludwig van Beethoven's birth won't arrive until 2020, George Lepauw isn't about to wait eight years to celebrate the German composer's titanic musical achievement, or the profound influence his music has exerted on the...

Ludwig van Beethoven was forever pushing boundaries, and the annual Chicago festival that bears the composer's name continues to do the same, even more so than in the past. “Beethoven Festival: LOVE 2013,” as the third edition is titled,...

For ages, mankind has been fascinated by rivers, not simply as natural resources and avenues of commercial conveyance, but also as symbols, metaphors and ideas. Countless artists, composers, writers and thinkers have pondered the significance of these...

I've been going to the monthly First Fridays at FAVO since its inception in 2011, and it has now grown to 19 once-upon-a-time-motel rooms full of artists. The quality of work has increased, too, with some professional artists in the lineup now. This month...

I love going to art shows and coming home with a new piece of art. The only thing better would be picking out a piece of art that was free. That's what will happen for one lucky person during the monthly art stroll in downtown Sanford on Friday, 6-9 p.m....

From Spain, here's a miracle of fairy tale repurposing: a version of the Brothers Grimm's "Snow White," set in Spanish bullfighting country in the late 1920s. Writer-director Pablo Berger's "Blancanieves" goes all the way with its concept, and then...

Chicago's Museum of Contemporary Art has announced its 2012-13 season of live performances. The typically expansive, eclectic and inter-disciplinary season includes the following events: - "Imperial Science: Una Opera Muerta" An operatic collaboration...

Lille Carre is 29, petite, moon-faced and unassuming. She curls forward as she speaks. On a quiet morning in her Noble Square apartment, she speaks softly and gives off an air of frailty. It's not hard to picture her stepping out of one of her own...