ARTS WEEKEND CAPS OFF SUMMER

Downtown La Grange will be transformed into a virtual palette of colors and exhibits this weekend, with three arts-related events being held Saturday, Sept. 12 to culminate with a public art display auction -- all held during the 11th annual weekend-long West End Arts Festival.
The roots of the weekend extravaganza were borne out of an idea first presented by local photographer and graphic designer Andrea Barnish, when as a volunteer with the now-defunct Main Street La Grange she conceived the concept of a yearly art event on the oft-forgotten West End business district.

The two-day juried festival (set for Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 12 and 13), held in the shadow of the historic Stone Avenue train station along Burlington Avenue between Brainard and Spring avenues, attracts artists and visitors from all over the country and a few years back was rated among the Top 200 best art festivals by the magazine of the festival circuit, Sunshine Artists.

"It's a community event and it's meant to be for families," said Barnish, who took up picture-taking while a gifted student at Lyons Township High School in La Grange and continued her arts studies at Illinois State University where she earned a bachelor's degree in fine art. "It's for people interested in art and people who are not into it but want to be, and every year we stress quality over quantity."

The first day of the arts/music/food event (held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday) features an evening easel auction of wooden artwork from The BIG Picture, a summerlong downtown art exhibit which featured 45 outdoor easels sponsored by local businesses and created by local artists. The "Art Under the Stars" auction, which benefits Pets & Pals Charities and the La Grange Area Historical Society, is an actual live auction in which people can purchase the art easels for their homes, offices, schools and yards.

The auction, cosponsored by the La Grange Business Association and the Village of La Grange, features masterpieces by such luminaries as Wyeth, Rockwell, Picasso and Van Gogh and Dali, but with a La Grange twist.

The auction will take place from 5 to 8 p.m. Saturday in the park along the north side of Burlington Avenue adjacent to the Stone Avenue station of the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad.

The easels will be displayed in a fashion inspired by The Gates, a 7,503-panel public art exhibit by artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude that hung in New York City's Central Park in February 2005.

The Dali easel, for example, is a takeoff of the famous work "The Persistence of Memory," but rather than clocks melting down a tableau, it's pizzas. The popular twist has been standing outside Aurelio's Pizza n Calendar Court since May. A 12-by-12 local parody of Saul Steinberg's New Yorker cover is expected to fetch the most.

However, that's not all.

Events leading up to the Saturday night auction, according to the LGBA's Heather Cavanaugh, include a High School Film Festival featuring student-produced short films, animation and videos on the big screen at La Grange Theater from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Masterpieces by Glass Painting Contest for the younger set in store windows throughout central and west downtown from 10 a.m,. and Architectural/Historical Trolley Tours beginning and ending at the West End from noon to 4 p.m.

The signature event of the weekend, the West End Art Festival, was around long before any of this year's accessory events. The weekend brings out thousands of visitors every year, in part because of its location and accessibility. And artists, Barnish said, agree it's a nice little show.

"The West End is a beautiful area with an historic train station," said Barnish, who receives assistance in the jury process from Erin Melloy of Naperville-based EM Events. "What a great area to host an art event."

The more than 100 artists who competed for a chance to be in this year's festival, including one winner from California, are rated by a panel of art professionals. Their submittals must include up to five slides of their current work. Anyone who participates must be present and all work must be handmade by the artist.

Artists are judged on their body of work and cash prizes include $500 for Best of Show, $300 for first place, $200 for second place and $100 for third place. The awards are presented at the start of the evening auction.

Barnish, who occasionally gets the opportunity to display her own work, which is a little different than your average picture.

"I do photo emulsion transfer," she said, adding her finished product looks a lot like antique postcards. "It's sort of ethereal."

Barnish started the event in the mid-90s with 20 artists and a popcorn machine and this year boasts three times that -- more than 60 selected artists of all walks -- entertainment by three different acts and pizza and beverages served up by Aurelio's.

Although sponsorship is down with the bad economy, the fine art of choosing what shows in which to show and compete is also tough. But this fest sells well and has reasonable fees, artists say. This year's sponsors are the Chicago Tribune, which came out with a special section this week, Melissa Budak of Smothers Realty, Ryan Williamson of Horizon Wealth Management, Caribou Coffee and Trader Joe's.

Acoustic guitarist Clarence Goodman of La Grange will play throughout the day Saturday, and on Sunday, folk artists Birdy of La Grange Park and the Pic 'n Bubs of Chicago, featuring guitar and violin, will tag-team all day.

"Everyone tries to have a balanced show," she added. "Not too much of one thing."

While the festival is going on, the rest of downtown will be abuzz with activity.

At the La Grange Theater, students from LT in La Grange and Nazareth in La Grange Park will be showcasing their dramatic and comedic shorts on film, as well as stop-motion and computer-generated animation and music videos and competing for a $100 grand prize to also be given out at the auction.

Numerous local businesses will host Indian Guide tribes, Boy and Girl scout troops, church youth groups and families all teaming up to create their vision of La Grange on 4-by-4 displays in store windows. Those, too, will be judged and prizes will be awarded.