Artists beautify vacant storefronts in Roscoe Village to highlight Women's History Month
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Head over to Roscoe Village right now, and you'll find a celebration of art and women. Unique art installations can be found along Belmont Avenue between Western and Ravenswood; all to bring some color and life to vacant store fronts.
The Storefront Art Activation Project was done by the Lakeview Roscoe Village Chamber of Commerce, with the help of a $2 million grant from the city.
Each piece is by a woman artist.
"We wanted to take this opportunity to really highlight local female artists, and also kind of highlight some of our vacancies in the neighborhood," said Nicole McLellan, community development director for the Lakeview Roscoe Village Chamber of Commerce. "We also really knew that the project duration would be a few months, beginning in November all the way through April. We knew this was going to be a really great opportunity to highlight Women's History Month during March, and also specifically International Women's Day on March 8. With that in mind, we did focus on working with female artists, and we did also take this opportunity to highlight and really create a focal around a lot of our women-owned businesses in Roscoe Village. There are over 35 women-owned businesses in Roscoe Village, and we're very lucky to have so many strong women with businesses in our neighborhoods."
Artist Heather Gentile Collins said she was excited when she learned about the project.
"The window activation project is a great idea to just activate all the storefronts. We have a few empty storefronts, and the artwork just completely beautifies the neighborhood," she said. "I was so excited to hear about it, and excited to see my other fellow artists artwork too."
You can find the art installations in the Roscoe Village neighborhood from now through mid-April.