Allrise Gallery, Around the Coyote Gallery, Caro d'Offay Gallery, David Leonardis Gallery Wicker Park, Gosia Koscielak Studio & Gallery and Johnsonese Gallery

Extended Gallery hours, special receptions and performances

Chicago, IL - The newly formed Wicker Park Bucktown Gallery Association is holding a Second Saturday Gallery Walk on February 11, 2007 from 6-10pm at multiple venues throughout Wicker Park and Bucktown. The WPBGA is an organization of galleries in the Wicker Park and Bucktown neighborhood (roughly defined with the southern border at Division, the northern border at Fullerton, the western border at Western, and the eastern border at the Chicago River). Membership is by invitation, and is limited to: curated spaces that exhibit multiple artists throughout the year; galleries that do not charge their artists a fee to exhibit; galleries that operate within the contemporary art dialogue; galleries that operate within the ethical and professional practice guidelines developed by the Wicker Park Bucktown Gallery Association.

The WPBGA works to promote Wicker Park and Bucktown as a visual arts destination for collectors and art world professionals, while actively working to attract new galleries to the neighborhood. WPBGA promotes the artists and programs of its members through advertising, public programs, and collaborative events.

1542 N. Milwaukee Ave.
Little Myth Universe
extended hours February 10 from 6-10pm
allrisegallery.com, 773.292.9255

Little Myth Universe searches the development of personal mythologies and the construction of insular universes. Co-organized by Phoebe Fisher and Jared Sheldon, the exhibition features nine artists who explore the dynamics of intimacies both shared and private.

Duncan R. Anderson creates drawings and sculptural tableaux that approach often disturbingly personal subjects with deftly placed sincerity and humor. The work of Brooklyn based artist Matt Cassity concentrates on what seems to matter to him most; having fun and making money. Phoebe Fisher is an artist and illustrator from Chicago. Her work deals with te secret, psychic, and often sexually charged life of imaginary girl-women.

1935 ½ W. North Ave.
Winter Arts Festival Curator's Choice Exhibition
extended gallery hours February 10 from 6-10pm
aroundthecoyote.org, 773.342.6777

The 2007 Winter Arts Festival in Wicker Park promises to be our best ever! We are especially excited for this year's Curator's Choice Exhibition, a show that highlights this year's "best of the fest". Curated by Matthew Teti (Teti Gallery and NOVA Gallery) and Jessica Cochran (NOVA Gallery and The School of the Art Institute) this exhibition represents the point of view of two up and coming Chicago curators, both who are dedicated to the quality and visibility of emerging art in Chicago. They selected artists from hundreds of festival applicants, settling on an exhibition both conceptually and visually exemplifies the best work in the festival-work that truly represents some of the best emerging artists in Chicago.

Selected Curator's Choice Artists: Maura Ahern, Sam Balfour, Liza Berkoff, Helga Dangel, Laura Davis, Michael Franzese, Philip Hartigan, Scott Johnson, Kristen Kaniewski, Alysia Kaplan, Michael Radziewicz, Lisa Solberg, Jessica Vaughn, Matthew Winters, and Amy Zavaleta.

Visual Art Venues:
Flatiron Arts Building, 1579 N. Milwaukee Ave. (over 60 artists)
Preferred Lofts, 1552-54 N. Milwaukee Ave. (over 100 artists)
Hours February 9 from 6pm-10pm, February 10 from 11am-10pm, February 11 from 11am-6pm
aroundthecoyote.org, 773.342.6777

Around the Coyote has condensed our visual art exhibitions for the 2007 Winter Arts Festival into two main venues: with approximately 100 artists showing at the Preferred Lofts Building (1552 N. Milwaukee Ave) and approximately 60 artists showing at the Flatiron Arts Building (1579 N. Milwaukee Avenue). The festival's curatorial staff has chosen an amazing group of emerging visual artists working in painting, sculpture, installation, photography, and new media. In addition, we have chosen over 40 scholarship visual artists-these artists, many of whom are students or recent graduates, were selected for the strength of their work. This new scholarship program is a true reflection of our ongoing commitment to emerging artists.

2204 West North Avenue
Solo Exhibitions of Project "Luftwerk" and Chad Attie
extended gallery hours February 10 from 6-10pm
carodoffaygallery.com, 773.235.7400

Artists Chad Attie and Luftwerk (Petra Poul Bachmaier and Sean Gallero) will return to the gallery Saturday night to join guests arriving for the WPBGA art walk from 6-10pm. In the main gallery Project 'Luftwerk', present their most recent installation. Known for their work in Chicago and Germany, 'Luftwerk' continues to transport their viewers into an ethereal atmosphere of both image and sound. For this particular work, Bachmaier and Gallero will be constructing a musical staff with telephone lines in front of a wall of videos. As the images of clouds float across the screens, they cross the visual field of power lines to trigger musical tones.

In the back gallery L.A. based artist Chad Attie showcases his first Chicago exhibit. Attie, who is well known for his textured paintings, which use found materials, will exhibit his recent drawings "Rocket Launcher Girls". Attie's work is inspired from the decrepit landscape of the city he inhabits; in this case the peeling of advertisements that reveal past images long forgotten. Using the backs of a stack of artillery posters, Attie crudely cuts the female form into the paper, the shredded outlines revealing hints of the original poster illustration beneath.

1346 N. Paulina St.
Opening reception February 10 from 6-10 pm
www.DLG-gallery.com, 773.278.3058

David Leonardis Gallery Wicker Park has been a leader in the Wicker Park Bucktown Gallery District for fifteen years and a land mark for Contemporary, POP, Folk Art, and Photography. DLG Wicker Park is proud to present an exciting group show for the WPBGA Second Saturday Gallery Walk.

Including works by: Howard Finster, Miro, Nat Finkelstein, Joe Pellegrini, Rita Akao, Mike Winn, Michel Balasis, Herb Nolan, Marc Hauser, Andy Kane, Bill Eaton and Chris Peldo.

1646 N. Bosworth Ave.
The Free Store
Grand Opening Extravaganza February 10 from 4-10pm
gosiakoscielak.com, 847.858.1540

Free stores have existed in many configurations and places. This particular Free Store is mobile and will take up residence in another Chicagoland space after its residence at Gosia Koscielak. Buy nothing! Bring things, take things. Visitors who don't have items to give are invited to offer free services or other kinds of considerations, like making mixtapes or food to share, giving free haircuts, teaching language lessons, etc. Propose an event, offer ideas.

Categories: Sporting Goods, Information, Clothing (in all sizes), Kids, Office, Tech, Housewares, Media, Art, Costumes, Fancy, Health & Beauty, Games/Fun, Home Improvement, Food, Parts & Pieces, Library, Toys, Accessories, Garden/Yard, Travel

2149 W. Armitage
Art Goes On-In Baghdad
Extended hours February 10 from 6-10pm
johnsonese.com, 773.252.8750

'Art Goes On-In Baghdad' is a group show of contemporary paintings by Iraqi artists who are currently living and working in Baghdad. The works in this show are from a collective of artists in Baghdad who call themselves "The Iraqi Plastic Arts Gallery". The artists vary in approach from figurative, to impressionistic, to pure abstraction. While some of the work deals directly with the war, much of it reflects more broadly on Iraqi culture, history and contemporary life.

Haydn Bush of the Chicago Journal wrote that a look at the paintings in this show "reveals a mixture of vernacular, iconic pieces celebrating Iraqi life…, occasional images of war, and more oblique works that defy categorization." He further described a painting by Mohammed Mssayer as "…far from being a blood-drenched critique of the ongoing sectarian strife in Iraq, the painting, lightened by small splashes of color, stands out most prominently for its timeless desert hues."