Adelita, pata de perro recap

"My eyes were dazzled!"
--from the guestbook

Saturday, we go outselves to Tianguis bright and early to get the art up for the opening that evening. We tackled renegade frames, sequence garlands and added some decorative finishing touches to a statue of the virgin Mary that is part of the exhibit.


In the evening we were joined by friends and family to partake in a celebration of Jenny Priego's first public exhibit of her art work. There was her friend Grant, playing guitar, fresh flowers from Natalie, wine and cheese from mom, and most importantly lots of laughs by everyone.

It was such a great way to kick-off the holiday season. Jenny's photographs will be up through December. Swing by to check them out and share your thoughts in the guestbook.

Pregonando: Voicing Community

This event opens TODAY. Its spearheaded by Giselle Mercier. Giselle will be the featured artist at Tianguis as part of the Pilsen Open Studios art walk later this month (details for that coming soon). I have also been asked to participate on the October 25th panel. Details below.



Pregonando*: Voicing Community
A multi-disciplinary exhibit highlighting the collective efforts of partnership building. From transnational to cross-city collaborations, the work of the cultural worker or community artist depends on the cultivation of reciprocal relationships amongst partners.

Join the Cuentos Fdtn., for a month of family workshops, film screenings and panel discussions that will transport us to the exemplary community-based work done in Chicago, Panama and Mexico.

Sat. October 4, 2008, 6:30 p.m.
Opening reception,

Sat. October 4 @ 7:30 p.m. & Sun. October 5 @ 4 p.m.
"Outside the Indigenous Lens" - Video Presentation by Chiapas Media Project/ Promedios,

Sat., October 11, 2008
Intergenerational Workshop - music and adornment

Saturday October 25, 2008
Closing & panel discussion and party with Nuestro Tambo

Participating artists and groups: Giselle Mercier*, Beth Massura,Tara Malik, Angel Nava, Lindsey Potter, Ashley Walls, Jesus Macarena-Avila, Gabi Nelson and Chiapas Media Project/Promedios. With performances by Ruben Gerena and Nuestro Tambo.

Held at Cuentos Foundation, 6321 N. Clark.




















*In Spanish, the verb "pregonar" means to praise publicly and the person charged with this is the town crier or the "pregonero". The "pregon" or announcement is always urgent in nature and is loaded with collective community knowledge that is gained through daily experiences. This socially relevant proverb exalts "doing the right thing" or working ethically as we face day to day challenges.

8.23.08: Defenders of Earth

I'll be learning about energy healing on Saturday afternoon, but after we close shop on Saturday I will be heading to the Defenders of Earth Art show and Benefit.

We thought we should let all Montrochika fans know that Naomi Martinez--creator of all things Monstrochika and whose items can sometimes be found at Tianguis--has been working hard on this fundraiser for Connections for Abused women and their children. Naomi says, "Join us for an evening of good beats and urban art by various female artists coming together for a serious cause." Its a good opportunity to see what Naomi has been working on and check out the arts and crafts of some artist friends. Details below.

My neighbor's freedom project

"Degrees of Freedom is a term used in statistics to describe how far a number is from the average; to describe how weird or how abnormal its placement is. There is freedom in not being afraid to be different. There is freedom in creativity. There is freedom in a life that does not fit inside of a box that goes beyond borders." --Angel Nava, The Degrees of Freedom Project

I'll be checking out the final exhibition for the Degrees of Freedom project this Saturday, August 9th. My wonderful neighbor Angel Nava has been sharing tid-bits about her work with me whenever she stops in to get an ice tea or say hello. And its all so intriguing to me, she's even brought her mom into town to help her build life-like cardboard appliances and other neat sculptures for the 700 square foot community maze that is part of this project.

What I appreciate most about Angel's art is its beauty and oozing optimism (have you seen the "when life gives you lemons make lemonade" piece that is currently residing in the back wall of our store?*), but my favorite part about Angle's art is the LARGE scale with which she does most pieces.

I'll be quick to close shop tomorrow afternoon because I'll be making my way down to the Degrees of Freedom project to catch it in its final hour.

THE DEGREES OF FREEDOM PROJECT final exhibition
Saturday, August 9, 2008 from NOON-6P.M.
The People's Music School Street Festival
931 W. Eastwood Ave.
Free family event.

More info: www.degreesoffreedomproject.com

*pictures coming soon.

A Journey in Nichos

This past July 17th, Esmeralda Baltazar's farewell show, Paloma Libre in the Windy City, opened at Tianguis. This art show marks the end of Esmeralda's journey through Chicago and each nicho is representative of key moments of her life here. We were honored to have the opportunity to display Esmeralda's nichos which feature her trademark use of Homies.

You can learn more about Esmeralda and the show in this article that appeared in Extra News.

The show will run through August 17th. For the store schedule, check our website.

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"As a passionate collector of homies and a Chicana homie I have placed them in a position of artist, activist and/or educator, in order to remember my experience of leaving my own barrio. This series commemorates the learning opportunities and experiences the city of Chicago has offered me as a Chicana."
-Esmeralda Baltazar


Esmeralda Baltazar moved to Chicago from San Antonio Texas to study at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago where she received a Bachelors in Fine Arts with a concentration in Art Education. Chicago has been her home for the past seven years and is the place where she has been able to establish her identity as an artist, educator and activist. She is the co-founder of the community-based organization, the Crib Collective, located in North Lawndale and Little Village that develops young people as leaders in their community. After six years of developing a youth leadership organization she is leaving Chicago for graduate studies at New York University to continue and further develop her work in Chicago.

December's Dynamic Duo: Ultima & Krista

Bookclub now reading:
Bless Me Ultima


Art Feature:
Lucky Sevens, Art by Krista Franklin

Opens Friday, Dec. 7th @ 7 p.m.

Details: www.tianguis.biz

Gallery: Antonio Pazaran

We got new art up on our walls. Its the work of Antonio Pazaran and it all happened quite spontaneously which means it will only be here for a very short time. A couple of my favorite pieces are the calla lilly (below), part of the flores urbanas trio and the self-portrait (above).* If you're in the neighborhood make sure to swing by to check it out soon, Pilsen Open Studios is fast approaching and our walls will once again be transformed.

*Select original pieces for sale. Prints for sale on all pieces.