Thirty mannequins standing tall are dressed in silk and feathered Hollywood couture. More than 300 objects representing Chicago’s role in design during the Great Depression are displayed in glass cases. And o...

For many, drawing is the most natural artistic endeavor. It requires only a pen and paper, and it’s not hard to find both children and adults doodling wherever they go. However, with the chaos of day-to-day life and school art programs facing budget cuts, it may be easy to forget about drawing. Enter The Big Draw Chicago, a 30-day drawing festival in conjunction with Chicago Artists Month in October.Though this is Chicago’s ...

By Monica ReidaContributing WriterChicago celebrated its 175th birthday March 4 by throwing itself a bash at the Chicago History Museum, 1601 N. Clark St., complete with local luminaries, live music and actors dressed as famous Chicagoans. But in many ways, the month-long pre-party was every bit as engrossing as the main event.In February, the Chicago Office of Tourism and Culture asked 35 Chicagoans to list their five fav...

Embedded in the bar of Harrigan’s, 2816 N. Halsted St., are 4,000 Irish pennies collected as a last memento from before the Euro became universal European currency. The name of the bar references a famous Irish limerick, connecting Chicago’s Irish community back to its roots. The stories told by the tavern’s workers and patrons give a glimpse into little-known history hidden in the center of some of Chicago’s most...