Do not insult the fifty or so works hanging on the walls at the 4th floor exhibit hall of the Cultural Center by calling them "movie posters." These vivid oils, painted on the back of opened up and stretched-out flour sacks, hand-painted rather than mass-produced and thus free from the crippling dilution of corporate marketing and the homogenized pseudo-perfection of the photoshop era, do more than advertise a product. With images so urgent that they seem to vibrate on the wall, these pieces demand your attention and threaten not to give it back. more ›

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Here are some things going around town to make you consider giving the weather a big ol' raspberry. more ›

Some events in the next seven days to consider saving your freshly shoveled parking space with a few chairs. more ›

This was a good year to be a large cultural institution. If cuts in state arts funding and unstable financial markets made a dent in Chicago’s largest museums, they sure weren’t letting on. The Art Institute remained one of the city’s prime attractions, attracting hordes of frugal visitors on free Thursday nights to piece together Richard Misrach’s disorienting beach photography and William Pope.L’s naïvely charming travelogue, or to enjoy Jeff Wall’s mind-bending photography — his mid-career retrospective was the year’s most breathtaking exhibit. more ›

Yesterday we learned that almost all of us have toxic chemicals hanging out in our bodies, and artists and musicians are no exception to the rule. Visual artists are often exposed to harmful chemicals on a long-term basis. Musicians risk hearing loss and/or vocal chord strain after a long career playing in loud clubs. And both groups risk repetitive motion disorders such as carpal tunnel. The upcoming Musicians at Work forum at the Cultural Center... more ›

We've heard a lot more lately about the importance of hand washing, but we apparently still don’t rank when it comes to overall healthiness. Public-health groups placed Illinois at a mediocre 27th when compared with the rest of the nation. Factors detrimental to our health include binge drinking, violent crime and preventable hospitalizations, which makes us want to drink ourselves into a stupor and talk our friends into starting a fight club. Positive aspects were... more ›

We hope some of you got a chance to go to something at the Chicago Book Festival last week, but if not, here’s your chance. Our take on the second week: Jeffrey Toobin, CNN’s senior legal analyst, discusses and signs his newest book The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court, and maybe adds a few pointers for broke Chicagoists. Monday, Oct. 8, 6 p.m., Harold Washington Library, 400 S. State St., Cindy... more ›

Looking forward The Chicago Chamber Musicians are giving it away today and all first Mondays through August 2008 at the Chicago Cultural Center, a series of monthly free concerts kicking off with Eric Ewazen's Trio in E-Flat and Alexander Arutunian's Trumpet Concerto in A-Flat Major. Caro d’Offay Gallery invites contributions from aspiring and established sculptors for Colorist Chess, an interactive exhibition linking imaginative writing and creative imagery. Artists — established, aspiring, and otherwise — are... more ›

New York Times reporter Monica Davey took an "unscientific survey" of people at the Cultural Center yesterday, asking them questions from the new citizenship test. People didn't do too well. We decided to do our own "unscientific survey" of Chicagoist staffers and friends, and ... wow. Somewhere, our history teachers are in a corner gently weeping. Highlights of our wrongness: 42. Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the states. What is one power of... more ›

Although we're not usually huge supporters of ye olde credit card companies, American Express is doing well by us in its effort to help restore historical sites in a partnership with the National Trust for Historic Preservation. From 2006 to 2011, the Partners in Preservation program will be dishing out $5 million dollars to specially selected historical sites across the country. This year, preservation efforts are focused on Chicago and four surrounding counties, where 25... more ›

Might as well start this week's installment off by pointing out that Taste of Greece is happening this weekend in Greektown. Half of us (the paternal half) is excited about this. The festival runs from noon until 11 p.m. tomorrow and Sunday. If you are heading to Greektown this weekend, consider attending Alexa Ganakos' Greektown in All Its Glory lecture at the Chicago History Museum before going, sponsored by the Culinary Historians of Chicago.... more ›

We took a break from our Dungeons and Dragons to check out the competitive gaming taking place at the Chicago Cultural Center this weekend, which played host to the 2007 U.S. Open. We’re not talking about tennis here. We’re talking about the Rubik’s Cube Championship, where the winner of the 3x3x3 Speed Solve gets an all-expense-paid trip to the 2007 World Rubik’s Cube Championship in Budapest. The competition was was sanctioned by the World Cube... more ›

Did everyone have a great time at our birthday party last night? It sure is great to be three! There are a lot of great shows going on sale this weekend. We decided to focus on shows that are happening in venues one might not normally associate with music. more ›

Yes, that’s Mayor Daley in this blurry photo. Some microphone guy from WGN bumped into us as we were trying to snap a photograph. The Mayor was speaking in circles before the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community at the annual reception he hosts for said community at the Chicago Cultural Center. It’s official now, through a proclamation signed by the Mayor himself, June is now Pride Month. Proclamations are sort of trendy nowadays, with... more ›

A: A free movie every week. To us summer is about more than music festivals, street fairs and outdoor dining. It's also about enjoying wonderful cinema, either indoors in a wonderfully air-conditioned theater, or outside on a big freakin' lawn. And we'll be getting plenty of chances for both over the next several months thanks to Cinema/Chicago and the Chicago Outdoor Film Festival. Better known as the organization behind the annual Chicago International Film Festival,... more ›

If you are horrible kids like we are, you won't be able to make it home this weekend to see mum. There will be plenty to do this weekend to keep your mind off of it though. Besides, it's always great to take advantage of the great Mother's Day brunch specials around town. The Pony's will be playing at Looptopia around 8:45 p.m. Looptopia, Chicago's "white-night" like celebration will run from 5 p.m. - 5... more ›

Well, we've been hearing about Looptopia for awhile. A big overnight festival held in the Loop, blah blah. We didn't think too much about it. We pretty much dismiss the Loop after 5 p.m. and give it up for lost on the weekends. Looptopia is obviously working hard to change all that. It's going on this Friday through early Saturday morning and since we're going to be down there, we decided to check out the... more ›

We usually hate to just throw up a bunch of stuff in list form, but we’ve gotten wind of so many cool things that we just had to share 'em all. The kicker? They’re all free. No matter what your taste in celluloid or pixel, you’re bound to find something here to whet your whistle: Chicago indie flick The Minx is having a free screening on Saturday at Schubas, 3159 N. Southport Ave. Director Michael... more ›

The best excuse to see TV stars sans makeup, The Tenth Annual Chicago Improv Festival continues through Sunday at The Athenaeum, Park West, and sites all over the north side. (Yes, south siders, they do hate you, get over it…) Chicagoist attended the opening show Monday night at the Cultural Center, featuring the only three performers dedicated (or crazy) enough to perform at all 10 festivals: Joe Bill, Susan Messing, and Mark Sutton. They brought... more ›

At least since Warhol began displaying boxes of soup cans and Brillo pads in gallery settings, the concept of the “found” object as art has been a primary component of our culture. In other words, there’s a very good reason why “America’s Funniest Home Videos” has been on the air since 1989 (hint: it’s not Bob Saget). We’ve become a voyeuristic culture, with an appetite for spying-as-entertainment as an antidote to the increasingly formulamatic output... more ›

The International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP) is holding its annual Cookbook Expo this weekend in Chicago. And, for the first time, they're opening it up to the public. This is your chance to hobnob with some of your favorite cookbook authors and chefs, who will be on hand to sell and sign their latest books. The event runs from 5-6 p.m. tomorrow at the Hilton Chicago. Even though it's free, reservations are required; e-mail... more ›

This week's theme: soul food, y'all. We ate enough of it last week to pine for the days of Ms. Biscuit on South Chicago Avenue (located next door to Mr. Biscuit's Hand Car Wash and Auto Detail). Here we go. City Mouse: Chef Gilbert Langlois (Rushmore, SushiSamba Rio) describes his new North Center-based concept Chalkboard as "new American cuisine," drawing inspiration from French country, classic Southern, and the less spicy elements of Creole for his... more ›

Chicago sure seems conducive to fostering public relationships between critically abrasive duos. We produced one of the most famous teams in movie criticism with Siskel and Ebert, and who can ever forget the headline-shattering team of Marin and Mancow? We think it’s time to add DeRogatis and Kot to that list as well. Greg Kot and Jim DeRogatis head up Sound Opinions, what they claim to be the world’s only rock 'n' roll talk show.... more ›

The Chicago Cultural Center is one of those magnificent hives of activity that's so accessible that it's far too easy to take for granted. It's right there on Michigan Avenue, and impossible not to see; yet we often just rush right past it without giving it a thought. Well, we want to change that, especially after seeing the breathtaking Tiffany dome recently. Tonight at 7 p.m. the Cultural Center hosts an event sponsored by... more ›

When artists trade Chicago’s energy for a few weeks of peace and quiet in nature, are their careers better off? Or are residencies just cleverly disguised vacations? Not surprisingly, the panel of six artists and administrators representing four institutions at last week’s “Residencies and Other R&R” panel at the Chicago Cultural Center believe they’re serious stuff. Each panelist appreciated the type of focus that comes when you’re not distracted by cell phones, the dishes languishing... more ›

On Monday, we ventured out to the Chicago Cultural Center after work to check out the Moroccan souk as part of the city’s Sister Cities program. While the souk was a little underwhelming, we were suprised to find a breathtaking Healy and Millet Renaissance-style stained glass dome in the G.A.R. Rotunda. A security guard told us about another room in the building, where we found the largest Tiffany dome in the world, resplendent in... more ›

The Ohm Curator Series presented by the Chicago Cultural Center, a department of the City of Chicago, features DJ's, videos, and live painting. On Tuesday, December 5, at 7:00 p.m. the series will bring you video artists and performers reinventing the Classical Sonata. The performers for the event include Laura Emelianoff, J.C. Loewe, Gregg Medley, Margaret Noble, Edyta Stepien, Jeffrey Weeter, and Video Janitor. We are pretty pumped about Gregg Medley presenting an electroacoustic performance... more ›