West End Art Festival Celebrates 20 Years

An annual art party turns 20 and celebrates on the West End of La Grange, September 18-20, with a display of fine artists from throughout the Midwest plus demonstrations by local culinary and performing artists, hands-on art activities and a live art auction.

Presented by the La Grange Business Association in cooperation with the Village of La Grange, the 2015 West End Art Festival showcases the work of dozens of jury-selected artists. Artwork will be available for purchase in a variety of mediums including painting, acrylics, oils, sculpture, woodwork, jewelry, photography, watercolor and mixed media.

A performance art tent will showcase the talents of local musicians, dance troupes and singers throughout the weekend. On tap Friday is the Reunion Jazz Orchestra from 6:30-9:30PM; Saturday is Tank & the Beez from 12PM - 2PM and Jim Green from 2PM - 5PM; Sunday is McNulty Irish Dance from 1PM - 2PM and TrioLife from 2PM - 4PM among others.

Local chefs and food artisans will conduct live cooking demonstrations with sampling from the Baird & Warner Art of Food tent. Scheduled to appear on Saturday are wine expert John Hutzler from Vino e Birra; chef/owner Terry Rempert from La Buona Vita; pastry chef/owner Nicole Betourney from Isn’t That Sweet Dessert Boutique; chef Todd Feitl from Prasino; chef/owner Jason Korinek from Mattone‘s Restaurant;and on Sunday chef Jonathon Court from Davanti Enoteca and chef/owner Vikram Singh from Kama Bistro.

Bottle and Bottega will host a variety of interactive art activities for all ages. Visitors are encouraged to help paint a community mural, a free walk-up event. Instructors will also be on-site for open painting with a variety of canvas sizes for a nominal fee.

Outstanding work from talented art students at Lyons Township High School will also be on display.

The festival includes a live art auction on Saturday with dozens of whimsical Little Free Libraries and giant book covers which have been displayed in front of local businesses as part of a summer art exhibit called “Adventures in La Grange.” Proceeds from the auction will benefit local charities, including Pet & Pals.

Wine, beer, beer tastings and food from local restaurants will be available for purchase throughout the weekend.

Events on Friday, billed as “A Night of Art & Jazz,” feature a preview of selected artists and live jazz from 6:30-9:30PM. On Saturday, artists will exhibit from 10AM – 5PM; patrons are invited to enjoy live music and browsing of the auction items from 5 – 6:00PM; the live auction follows at 6:00PM. On Sunday, the festival hours are 10AM – 4PM.

The West End Art Festival is made possible with the financial support from a wide variety of local business sponsors including Baird & Warner, FNBC Bank & Trust, and Renewal by Andersen.

The festival is held in front of the historic Stone Avenue Station along Burlington Avenue near Brainard Avenue in La Grange. Festival updates can be found at www.lgba.com.