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FROM THE HEART - September
2016
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Dear Neighbors,
It is said that art has the power to transform, to illuminate, to educate, to motivate and that a true artist is not one who is inspired, but rather one who
inspires others.
If that is the case, Lincoln Central has artists in abundance. Beyond the theaters,
galleries
, studios,
authors
and
musicians
in our neighborhood, our firefighters & police,
caretakers of our gardens
, our
educators
and our shopkeepers, among many others, bring inspiration to our neighborhood.
Lincoln Central is a beautiful canvas. Your thoughts, words and deeds are painting the world around you. Working together, we can continue to make our neighborhood a masterpiece.
From the heart,
P. S.
Feel free to contact me at any time at
kenneth@chicago.com
or 773.531.5515 i
f you would like to learn more about LCA or have neighborhood concerns.
If you are not already a member of LCA, we hope you will consider
joining
today. We also hope you will join us this Thursday evening at 6:00 PM for
An Evening in the Garden
(see details below).
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YOU ARE INVITED
TO JOIN US
This Thursday Evening, September 15
6:00 PM at
Fire Station Park
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| 2015 Evening in the Garden |
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Join us for a magical evening in LCA's award winning
Fire Station Park
when LCA's 3rd annual
An Evening in the Garden
takes place on Thursday, September 15 scheduled from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. (but, we'll stay as long as your having a good time). The free event will feature hors d'oeuvres, wine, and soft drinks. Best of all, the chance to meet and greet your neighbors.
Special guest the amazing Benjamin Barnes, one
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Benjamin Barnes at 2015's An Evening in the Garden
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of Chicago's premier magicians and co-founder and host of Magic Chicago, will be back by popular demand following his performance at the event last year.
Come and learn about the gardens, take home some herbs for cooking, talk with friends and neighbors, and enjoy the peaceful setting.
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Saturday, October 29, 2016
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Monday, September 12th
43rd Ward Townhome & Condo Summit
If your home is part a homeowner's or condominium association, you should attend this meeting tonight from 5:30 to 8:30 PM at Second Church of Christ Scientist, 2700 N. Pine Grove. Experts will help you navigate new laws and issues such as; Airbnb/Short Term Rentals, new recycling rules for multi-unit buildings, supporting seniors and common association problems. Drinks and refreshments will be served. Register here.
Thursday, September 22
Lincoln Park Uncorked: Lincoln Ave. Wine Stroll
Thursday, September 28th
LCA Monthly Board Meeting
Board meetings are held the fourth Thursday of each month at
6:30 PM in the back room of the
Marquee Lounge (Halsted & Armitage). Board meetings are open to the public.
Tuesday, October 12th
LCA Monthly Board Meeting
Zoning Committee meetings are held the second Tuesday of each month at
6:15 PM in the back room of the Marquee Lounge (Halsted & Armitage). Zoning Committee meetings are open to the public.
Thursday, October 27th
LCA Monthly Board Meeting
Board meetings are held the fourth Thursday of each month at
6:30 PM in the back room of the Marquee Lounge (Halsted & Armitage). Board meetings are open to the public.
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A GARDEN WITH HEART
By Sally Drucker, LCA Parks Chair
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Peppers on the vine |
On a hot Sunday
morning in August three volunteers gathered at Fire Station Park to do our regular maintenance. What a surprise we had in store as we began to clear weeds from the vegetable patches! We came across a beautiful musk melon, beans still producing enough for a family of four, tomatoes ripening on the vines, sweet banana peppers coming to maturity and eight eggplants! The zucchini is coming along and we hope to see many in the coming month.
It
is such a joy to see the hard work these
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Tomatoes ripening on the vine
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volunteers put in result in produce all can enjoy! The community aspect of this garden is such a pleasure when we see neighbors coming to pick herbs, a few vegetables and just sitting in the quiet of the garden. We hope many are experiencing the beauty of this special place and, if you are harvesting, please be patient and wait for vegetables to mature! Someone picked the melon the next day and it was not ripe! Sure hope they don't have indigestion!
The perennial beds are in full summer bloom and we are seeing monarch and yellow swallowtail butterflies flitting amongst the plants. They have a natural habitat on several of our
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Eggplant ready for harvest
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plants and we are providing them a place to reproduce. Come sit and see what you find!
The garden is yours and we always welcome help and ideas. Just
email us.
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Conrad Moulton at work
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Josh Moulton's father Conrad was born and raised in Detroit. Conrad's father was an accountant, who wanted his son to follow in his footsteps. But Conrad had artistic ability and won a competition is high school that gave him a full scholarship to Parson's School of Design in New York City.
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1960's Van Huesen ad
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S
o talented was Conrad Moulton that he got his degree early--completing the four-year program in just two years-- and taught at Parson's. Then came World War II. Conrad moved back to Detroit and worked for General Motors drafting cars and illustrating ads. He also did blueprints of B52 bombers.
After the war, he went back to New York City
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Webster's New World Dictionary illustrations |
where he
was a well-known and celebrated freelance illustrator for nearly four decades during the print advertising boom. He was a member
of the
Society of Illustrators
and his work was
published in books, magazines, newspapers and even Webster's New World Dictionary.
Later in his career, he worked as a portrait artist and painter.
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| 1958 ad for Prince Matchabelli |
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In Josh Moulton's gallery are two aquariums, a 360-gallon saltwater tank and a 90-gallon freshwater tank,"a tribute to my father, who always had aquariums at home. It's a kind of remembrance of Dad, who always loved them."
"My father and his work were, and always will be, an inspiration to me. He has taught me everything I know about produci
ng art work."
See more of Conrad Moulton's classic illustrations.
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| The Amazing Benjamin Barnes |
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Don't miss next's month's issue of
From the Heart, when we take you behind the magic to learn more about LCA friend and prominent Chicago magician, Benjamin Barnes.
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You could become a part of a Josh Moulton painting.
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"The Match" |
Seriously. Because if you happen to be around when he's looking for a subject to paint, you might get in his sightline. And from there, into the painting.
Also popular among Moulton's c
lients are architectural subjects in
Chicago
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| Lake Street Bridge |
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such as a Lake Street bridge over the
river (at left);
a Chicago riverbank; the Armitage el stop. Or, if you prefer, Italy, San Francisco, Detroit, Manhattan, or Nantucket.
All are a part of Moulton's vision of life, and it began when he was a child of 4 sitting at his small easel while his artist father worked at a larger one. His father, Conrad Moulton, was born in Detroit, the son of an accountant who wanted his son to follow in his footsteps. But the elder Moulton had artistic ability (
see sidebar) and chose to follow that path. He taught Josh the fundamentals--composition, perspective, color schemes and subject choices--at a very young age.
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Josh as a budding artist at age 4.
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And Josh made choices that were different from others. For college, he was guaranteed a seat at the School of the Chicago Art Institute, but decided on Lake Forest College "so I didn't have to act or dress a certain way. I never agreed with that." Instead he earned a liberal arts degree with a major in Studio Art and a minor in History spending his junior year in London and Florence.
"I was the only person in my class who could render things realistically both
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Through the trees of Burling Street in Autumn.
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drawing and painting. And right then, I knew I wanted to do it for life. I knew I couldn't make a living at illustration as my Dad had done. He made money as a freelancer for newspapers or advertising agencies. Instead, I needed time to build a large portfolio and sell my original paintings."
(
Read more
.)
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IMPORTANT NOTE
I
f you are reading this newsletter in Gmail, Yahoo mail and certain other
email programs, the right hand side of the newsletter will be cut off before it concludes. If that happens, go to the very bottom of the ema
il and on left hand side and
you will see a message that says "[Message clipped]
View entire message
"
Simply clink that link and you will be able to read the entire newsletter or simply click here.
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A RESTING HEART
Twice every summer I go off grid, to our lake house in
Quebec, an area
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Lake Pythonga
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without Internet, television, cell service. My husband, a Cubs fan, listens to games via satellite radio and if I were inclined, I'd tune in to news. But I don't, because in our lives of 24/7 connectivity, ducking out for a few weeks is a welcome respite. For weeks at a time I'm not checking email or texts, answering or returning phone calls, there's no daily newspapers to read. That's a vacation.
What does it take to get away from here, to there? Planning, execution, communication.
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| Anne off the grid! |
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To free myself from work and life (I'm a
journalist and
LCA board member) I must alert my editors, and ensure that any article I've written but that has not yet been published has been edited, that there are no outstanding questions. For LCA, where I chair the zoning & planning committee, I must find a committee member to run our monthly meeting, take notes, and report to both the
LCA board and
Alderman Smith
's or
Alderman Hopkin's office. (Thank you, Bob Segal and Deirdre Graziano.) Then there's the usual get-out-of-town chores: hire the dog walker to water the gardens (yup), hold U.S. mail, cancel newspaper delivery, alert neighbors and friends to my extended absence.
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Dinner at the lake |
To get to our summer place, I fly to Toronto, then take a connecting flight to
Ottawa. (Yes, I could fly direct from Chicago, but Porter Airlines is the least horrible of the carriers, so I put up with changing planes.) I've already turned off my cell phone for air travel, and when I arrive in Ottawa and meet my husband, who spends all summer off grid, I don't turn it back on: I'm confident there's no one back in Chicago needing or wanting a question answered or a vote of support. (
Read more.)
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COMMUNITY AFFAIRS CHAIR
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| Betsy Costello helps LCA keep a strong relationship with Fire Station 22. |
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LCA serves our neighborhood in a variety of ways including through committees that support our parks, zoning, events and more.
This month, Betsy Costello steps into the role of Chair of LCA's Communit
y Affairs committee, our primary liaison with the police and fire departments and schools.
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Art in the heart, con't
That time came by painting at night, while working by day at a call center for a mutual funds company. He quit work for a year to paint full-time, during which he met and married his wife, Ariana--a 3rd grade teacher at Lincoln School. But it was back to work as a hedge fund analyst until 2005, when he quit the financial business to paint full time, this time for good. He worked through galleries for a while, taking only a portion of the profits and waiting for sales. In the meantime, he could not participate in art fairs to make money on the side. Commissions helped--paintings of grandchildren, honeymoons, weddings, portraits, homes, city scenes.
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Moulton in his Clark Street Gallery
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So in 2011, he decided to do it all himself. He rented a storefront place on Clark Street, at first on a month-by-month basis to cut the risk of overh
ead. But after two weeks, prints and paintings "were selling like crazy."
"I've been in the space for over five years. I wear all the hats--salesman, marketer, painter, accountant. I paint here, show here, sell here, even make my own prints here."
Moulton says "I have the doors open as often as possible and welcome people who stop in. Weather can be a factor in sales. If it's too hot and humid, people don't come in, and walk-ins are important." "Walk-in's are important," Moulton added, "Even if they aren't looking for anything for themselves, many realize what great gifts paintings make make for friends or associates."
I
deas come from everywhere. He saw the
photograph of Manny's Deli
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Manny's Deli
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in
black-and-white on a friend's Facebook page. "The minute I saw the photograph, I knew the painting (at right) would be a hit," he says. Manny's has a framed print of the painting that hangs on the deli's wall; smaller prints are for sale at the counter.
His paintings often begin with
photos. "I see things in reality, look at them, then take a photo. I see what I want to paint and get inspired by the sights I see." Moulton adds that "I'm drawn to architecture and its interaction with nature--reflections on buildings; the natural grain of wood; the greenery surrounding a subject; the ivy growing on a building; light filtering through rusty bridge supports. It's all natural and it's all inspiring."
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| Lincoln Park Zoo Bridge |
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He describes how nature and architecture connect in his painting of chess players at North Avenue beach. "The monochromatic cement frames the main subjects in the middle. The man's blue clothing leads the eye from pants to shirt to hat--all set up by the green of the trees."
In "The Sunbathers," the ornate at the base of Central Park in New York City is the background for construction workers enjoying lunch, sitting at the bottom of the beautiful sculpture of the fountain. It's a play on the social facets of life."
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Wacker Drive Reflections |
by
Bridgeview Bank, is betting on his marketing talent and quality of work to sell his "unique perspective on everyday life" by broadening the reach of his work and reputation. Earlier this year his gallery was a sponsor of LCA's Spring Zing and Sunday Summer Sipper Events. "Building a relationship with LCA has been an important step in creating greater awareness of my gallery, said Josh. He added, "Even though neither my home or studio is located in Lincoln Central, LCA reached out to get me
more involved."
Like his father before him, Josh is now watching his six-year-old daughter Jackson develop her own artistic ability. He proudly says she drew a bed that took in the perspective of the scene . . . which Dad never taught her.
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Resting Heart, cont'd.
From
Ottawa -- do go if you've never been, it's a charming capital, easily walkable, with magnificent state buildings, hotels, the By Marche for farm goods, the
National Gallery of Canada for its outstanding collection -- we drive three to four hours north and west into the
Gatineau, a region known for its mountains, lakes, rivers, swamps, pine and birch forests. We stop to buy booze, snacks, fishing licenses then continue on for the last hour of the drive, on a dirt road best navigated by truck or SUV.
That road takes us into the woods, past wide marshes and rippling rivers. We see deer and pheasant, sometimes a moose or bear or red fox. At last we reach Club Lac Pythonga, where my in-laws have owned a cabin since the
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The Dent/Moore family compound
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early 1960's. More recently, on a separate piece of land, my husband built a
log compound, creating enough living space so that an extended family of 20 can be "in camp" at the same time. The club is open May through October, but prime use for families with school-age children is July and August.
Club Lac Pythonga was founded in the 1890's by urbanites from New York, Philadelphia and Buffalo who wanted a playground to hunt and fish. Most club buildings date to that time; there's several log cabins from that era, too, held by founding families. Members own their cabins (there's about 30) and the land they sit on; property owners must be club members. Guests are sponsored by club members. Among the club's pleasures: once you arrive, you park your vehicle and walk or boat everywhere. With no car traffic, children and dogs run carefree.
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Harry Dent with the catch of the day!
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There we fish, swim (the lake water is smooth and clear, velvety), hike,
canoe, kayak, lounge, read, sunbathe, lunch on the beach. We do not cook:we pay a daily board fee to the Club's manager, who provides breakfast (hot, many choices), supplies for a packed lunch, and 7 p.m. dinner shared by everyone who's "in camp." That can be as few as a handful of people and as many as 110.
And because we're all cut off from our devices, people aren't looking at their phones, they're looking at each other, engaging, telling stories, laughing: all ages, from infants to folks in their 80s. There's a fluidity among the generations; I watch a young man in his early twenties chatting with an elder, then turning to tickle a young cousin.
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Dogs need vacation too!
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After dinner, we sit on screened porches and visit or play board games, and dream up things we can do together: a regatta, a canoe or swim race, a treasure hunt. Outside, we marvel at the star-choked sky, and if we stay up late, we see eerie colorful
Northern Lights.
The whole time I'm "in camp," I savor the quiet. No sirens or horns, no ring tones or pings. For me, that's bliss.
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A long-needed repair
to the back fence in the Fire Station Park, one of LCA's most visible projects, has been completed,
thanks to the 43rd Ward Office of Alderman Michele Smith.
The f
ence's gate, an entry and exit point from the alley, had been pushed out of alignment, making it difficult to open and shut.
The Alderman's Office followed up with the City's Department of Transportation several times to ensure these vital repairs were made.
LCA Parks Chairperson Sally Drucker wrote in an email to Adam Gypalo, Chief of Staff to Alderman Smith, "This is just one example of the great service the Alderman's Office provides its constituents."
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Volunteer Tutors Needed for Writing Center at LPHS
The Colleen Henry Writing Center at
Lincoln Park High School is looking for volunteers to help students improve their academic writing.
Tutoring sessions are
Monday through
Thursday during lunch periods, during ninth period and after school. Tutors sign up for once-a-week, two-hour sessions. Tutors include interested parents, professional writers, former teachers, and those who have used writing in their work.
A training manual and observation sessions are available. As with all other one-to-one volunteers in CPS schools, fingerprinting is required. Please contact Nancy Brandt at
nhbrandt@sbcglobal.net.
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Phase 1 - In progress - Complete in September, 2016
- Building demolition is completed
- Below grade foundation removal has started
- Perimeter scaffolding and wind screen have been removed
- Temporary construction fence and wind screen are in place and will remain for the duration of the project
- Click to see drawing
Phase 2 - In progress - Scheduled to be completed in October, 2016
- Interior strip out demolition is completed
- Structural demolition has started at the South end of phase 2 and will progress working from the South to the North
- The concrete re-processing machine will start being used the week of 9/5
- Click to see drawing
Phase 3 - In progress
- Interior environmental abatement will be completed within the next two weeks
- Interior strip out demolition will start when the environmental abatement is completed
- Structural demolition will start as soon as the interior strip out demolition is completed
- Click to see drawing
Learn more about the re-development of the old CMH property.
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From the Heart is published monthly by Lincoln Central Association. Please email story ideas to c
o-editors,
Kenneth Dotson
and
Kathy Jordan
.
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