“Not touching but joined in astonishment as two cuts lie parallel in the same flesh,” writes Anne Carson in the 1998 novel, Autobiography of Red. Breathing new life, ripping parts apart—it’s the painful, heart-wrenching reality of being alive, of being absolutely anything at all. This is the work of Finnish artist Kristoffer Ala-Ketola, whose first […]
Tag: Hyde Park
Best mayor impersonation on social media
In the spring of 2020, as memes of Mayor Lori Lightfoot advising ballplayers to ditch basketball courts and stay home amid the coronavirus pandemic made rounds on the Internet, videos of her counterpart “Lory Litefoot” would soon swirl on the interwebs and bring Chicagoans a persona they could actually laugh at without remorse. Portrayed by […]
From the Dan Clowes Collection
If you head down to the basement of Chicago Comics, past the endless rows of back issues and vintage titles waiting to be priced, you’ll find 15 white boxes. They contain a pretty standard collection of 60s and 70s comics—Thor, Conan the Barbarian, X-Men, MAD magazine. But these comics have a special allure. They belonged […]
Reasonable doubt
James Allen is serving three life sentences for murder. No one ever said he killed anyone.
The Hyde Park Jazz Festival takes it to the streets
With short sets from small groups in unexpected spots, the Hyde Park Jazz Festival creates a communal experience that’s pandemic safe.
A challenging and memorable bike ride around Chicago’s exact city limits
Cycling, sightseeing, and snacking from Rogers Park to Edison Park, Mount Greenwood to Hegewisch
Virtue Restaurant’s Erick Williams confronts a dusty dive-bar standby
He finds a classic, simple solution for eggs in a pickle.
Leaked Zoom meeting reveals landlords concerned over staff ‘decimation’ and optics of ‘stepping’ on tenants
As tenant calls for rent freezes grow louder amid the pandemic, Chicago landlords contemplate their options.
Photos: The Hyde Park Jazz Festival
The south side’s own world-class jazz fest played host to dozens of shows and more than a hundred musicians.
Big, unbuilt plans
A civic center in River North, a concrete ribbon that split Hyde Park north from Woodlawn, and a third World’s Fair on the lakefront
Note from an editor
About four years ago, the Gage Gallery at Roosevelt University mounted an exhibition of photographs from the Reader’s black-and-white era, which ended in 2004. The gallery is small, maybe three rooms, and on opening night, it was packed with old Reader people, many of whom had flown back to Chicago from wherever they’d moved to […]
Chicago’s animals gone wild
Fence-hopping sea lions, a chilled-out coyote, and more animal exploits from history
A brief oral history of the Silver Room Block Party
Since moving to Hyde Park, the Silver Room Block Party has blossomed into one of Chicago’s most important cultural institutions.
From the Bubbly Creek festival to sculptures made from straws
A roundup of art events happening this weekend