January 21, 2026 40th Anniversary By: Jay Harding Open space. Alone through the years, only spelling tests to avoid. My words like dodge balls, the response like rubber bands. Oh, don’t say it again, please— “Sit still!” I want to run on the African plainsas fast as a cheetah, leaping, chasing others. My vision compels me to
december 16, 2025 Walls That Speak — Chicagoland’s Social Justice Art Scene By: Paulina Moran Elizabeth Catlett “Sharecropper” 1946 From Lake County to The Loop, we are witnessing art act as a language for the stories we struggle to speak. Across 40 miles of shoreline, artists are weaving together pieces of our collective history and
december 8, 2025 Beyond Boundaries: The Art of Becoming for Cosmo Dalton and Azul Alberto Nogueron By: Paulina Moran & Ellen Williams In Smash the Cis-tem, the current exhibition at the Adler Arts Center, two artists anchor a powerful dialogue on identity and becoming. Sculptor Cosmo Dalton and painter/light artist Azul Nogueron Alberto work in
october 28, 2025 Why We Need “Smash the Cis-tem” By: Ellen Williams, Program Director and Curator of the Exhibition I grew up here in Libertyville. I knew the town, the people, the rhythm of this place. I also knew, even when I couldn’t name it, that something about me didn’t quite fit. For most of
September 25, 2025 Songs, Stories, and Survival: In Conversation with Jade Maze By: Paulina Moran When I think about my colleague and dear friend, Jade Maze, I think first of her voice. Not only the voice that fills a room when she sings, but the one that lingers long after the music ends—the voice of
september 11, 2025 The Light That Remains: Jean-Michel Frank at the Adler Center By: Ellen Williams Every day, students carrying instruments, teachers balancing armfuls of supplies, and visitors stepping into this historic house walk beneath a chandelier and pass bathroom sconces without a second thought. They cast their light quietly, illuminating hallways and rooms where
August 27, 2025 A House Alive with Legacy: Tracing the echoes of David, Katherine, and Frances Adler By: Ellen Williams Each time I unlock the doors to the Adler Arts Center, I’m reminded that this is no ordinary workplace. For nearly 160 years, this house has carried within its walls a remarkable series of transformations.
August 20, 2025 Rooted in Story: How Three Women are Cultivating Community at the Adler Arts Center By: Paulina Moran At the Adler Arts Center, creativity hums through every corner in ways that reach far beyond paintbrushes and piano keys. On any given day, the historic home of architect David Adler is alive with music,
August 13, 2025 Clay, Community, and Creativity: Roberta Ulrich de Oliveira’s Artistic Journey By: Paulina Moran Clay is just the beginning for Roberta Ulrich de Oliveira, a fearless artist who pushes the boundaries of her craft by blending ceramics with wood and metal in unexpected, striking ways. Her artistic path has been anything but linear,
August 1, 2025 Where Art Takes Root: Stories from the Festival of the Arts By: Paulina Moran The very first Festival of the Arts was held in 1981 on the front lawn of the historic David Adler Estate. It was a celebration born from revival. Just months prior, the same artists and volunteers who had