Art

On January 21^st from 12 pm to 6 pm the 4^th Annual Winter Block Party for Chicago’s Hip-Hop Arts is going down for FREE at the Metro! Thousands of people attended WBEZ 91.5’s Off Air Events Series last year and 2012 will be no different. This free party will feature graffiti galleries, breakdancing performances, a film screening of “The People Speak”, and the best music by some of Chicago’s BEST DJ’s. The list of fun & free things to do goes on and on but what caught my eye was the Emcee Olympics hosted by Urban Music & Hip-Hop Barbershop!!

The Gift Theatre Company, one of the smallest equity troupe’s in the Chicago, is celebrating their anniversary of ten successful years and are inviting all to experience it with them. The theatre’s newest performance, appropriately titled “Ten” is a quick sampler of short ten minute plays written by, ten playwright phenoms, David Rabe, Eric Bogosian, JT Rogers, Craig Wright, Caitlin Montayne Parrish, Andrew Hinderaker, William Nedved, Jenny Connell, & Maggie Andersen.

The Art Museums planned multi-million dollar purchase of a fine Leonardo Da Vinci classic has come to a bloody halt. The museum curator has just been murdered, and it’s up to you and your team of investigators to discover who done it! All you have to do is crack the code left in the curator’s appointment calendar to discover what drove his murderer to commit such a dastardly crime. Shocking secrets will be revealed as you and your mystery team discover clues that uncover the murderer and his motives.

Join the fashion elite at the Chicago History Museum from now to mid-April and check out Chicago native Charles James Genius Deconstructed exhibit! Imagine yourself in these vintage gowns and take notice to the fine architecture and craftsmanship brought to you by Charles James.Born in 1906 James has astounded the fashion world by creating incredibly crafty and perfectly detailed garments. A young James taught himself everything he knows about creating garments, from fitting hats to glamorous gowns. With extreme ingenuity and the eye for fashion, James opened his first hat shop in Chicago at the age of 19. His garments are often adorned with ribbed corsets and fancy collars, and more often than not cascade down and outward. James has always had high profile celebrities like Coco Chanel pining after his creations. Marisa Tomei recently rocked out in a vintage gothic Charles James piece earlier this year at the Oscars, and Angelina Jolie wore an elegant gray tight fitted James dress in the Tourist shortly after.

On December 4, 1956, the world brought together four legends – Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins & Johnny Lee Lewis - in a small storefront studio called Sun Records in Memphis. For this one night, the quartet reminisced and recorded an impromptu music session with the one who discovered them all, Sam Philips – the “Father of Rock-n-Roll” and owner of Sun Records.

It's absolutely no secret that I adore all things Irish (have you seen me on the streets between March 16th-18th, I'm a blissful mess) and all things Christmas (I may or may not tear up at the sight of a lit Christmas tree). So when I stumbled upon Irish Christmas in America, I had to take some deep breaths, remind myself I'm not 8 years old anymore and dove right into finding out more about this fantastic fusion!

Watch out, IMAX. Chicago’s winter skyline is about to become a giant movie screen. On Friday, December 9, The Art Institute of Chicago, supported by the Graham Foundation for Advance Studies in the Fine Arts, will beam Andy Warhol’s celebrated conceptual film “Empire” onto the top 12 stories of the Aon Center to mark the opening of the museum’s new photography exhibition, Light Years: Conceptual Art and the Photograph 1964-1977.

As one of the headlining shows during Fashion Focus Chicago, Conscious Living TV presents Vert Couture. This runway show is ready to wow the crowd and make fashionistas fall in love with the fashions of 2012. This Thursday, October 20th, prepare to get your green on with this 3rd annual event. Vert Couture is unlike any other fashion show out there- it focuses on Chicago’s sustainable fair trade fashion movement and the runway takes place on one of the largest green roofs in the Unites States! It was created by Michael and Bianca Alexander, founders of Conscious Planet Media, an Emmy award-winning green television, video and film productions company. Billy is on the host committee and thrilled to be a part of this earth-friendly evening of fashion.

Do you run this city? As in, do you spend countless miles on the lakefront path, either training for the marathon or running to work? Do you spend hours on the basketball court, practicing your skills? Each person plays an integral role in this city and Niketown wants to honor these individuals that #ownchicago.

Back in 1986, a high school wise guy came to Chicago and stirred things up a bit. People danced in the streets and Wrigley Field was taken over by three juvenile delinquents - all for a day off. Now, 25 years later, the legend of Ferris Bueller lives on.