Back on the Block: L1 Grand Opening & Arts + Public Life 10th Anniversary

319 East Garfield Boulevard,Chicago IL 60637

09 October, 2021

Description

Celebrate the Grand Opening of the L1 Creative Business Accelerator Retail Store and Arts + Public Life’s 10 Year Anniversary Join Arts + Public Life (APL) for ‘Back on the Block’ to celebrate the grand opening of the newest addition to the Arts Block—the L1 Creative Business Accelerator Retail Store, and APL’s 10th Anniversary. This community celebration and APL open house will formally welcome the L1 Fellows and the community to a newly renovated retail home on the South Side, furnished with custom-made millwork by Norman Teague Design Studio and featuring a wide range of products from their respective brands: Hemp Heals Body Shop, ReformedSchool, Solo Noir for Men and Zen Soul Apothecary. Enjoy an afternoon of family-friendly entertainment including live performances by Bomba con Buya and poet Tara Betts, DJ Slomo from Future Rootz, free swag, and small bites provided by Justice of the Pies.  Back on the Block guests will also have the opportunity to view the 2021 APL/CSRPC Artist-in-Residence Exhibition New Witnesses at the Arts Incubator Gallery, the Depth of Field: 65 Years of the Washington Park Camera Club photography exhibition at the Arts Incubator 2nd Floor Flex Space, and a South Side Home Movie Project film screening at the Green Line Performing Arts Center. __________ COVID safety event info: This convening is open to all invitees regardless of vaccination status and, because of ongoing health risks to the unvaccinated, those who are unvaccinated are expected to adopt the risk mitigation measures advised by public health officials (masking and social distancing, etc.). Public convening may not be safe for all and carries a risk for contracting COVID-19, particularly for those unvaccinated. Participants will not know the vaccination status of others and should follow appropriate risk mitigation measures. Participants may contact event organizers to request accommodation of risk mitigation measures. __________ The L1 Retail Store, situated under the Chicago Transit Authority’s Green Line elevated tracks inside of the historic first “L” station built in 1892, offers 700 square feet of shared brick and mortar retail space. The inaugural cohort of L1 Fellows are the first tenants and participants in APL’s creative business accelerator (CBA) program that launched in 2020 in partnership with The Silver Room Foundation’s urban planning and social impact arm, Proximity. Learn more at shopL1.org. Arts + Public Life (APL), an initiative of UChicago Arts, is a dynamic hub of exploration, expression, and exchange that centers people of color and fosters neighborhood vibrancy through the arts on the South Side of Chicago. As a neighborhood platform for arts and culture in Washington Park, APL provides residencies for Black and Brown artists and creative entrepreneurs, arts education for youth, and artist-led programming and exhibitions. The L1 commerce focused addition to the Arts Block builds on APL’s commitment to creative entrepreneurship and is an extension of the arts and culture redevelopment efforts of UChicago Arts. L1 is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, Bank of America, and a generous gift from Raymond J. Iwanowski (Booth ‘97). Additional L1 curricular support and services are provided through a collaboration with UChicago’s Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship. Arts + Public Life (APL), an initiative of UChicago Arts, is a dynamic hub of exploration, expression, and exchange that centers people of color and fosters neighborhood vibrancy through the arts on the South Side of Chicago. As a neighborhood platform for arts and culture in Washington Park, APL provides residencies for Black and Brown artists and creative entrepreneurs, arts education for youth, and artist-led programming and exhibitions.