Chicago Loop: Gallery 37 Center for the Arts

Gallery 37 Center for the Arts

It provides a venue for youth, families and adults to participate in several innovative arts programs, including After School Matters and the Chicago Public Schools’ Advanced Arts Education Program.

Gallery 37 was created by former Commissioner of The Department of Cultural Affairs Lois Weisberg, and former Chicago First Lady Maggie Daley. It was founded in 1991 to revive Block 37 in the heart of Chicago’s Loop.

It provides on-the-job training facility to young people between the ages of 14 to 21 living within the city limits. These students, called “apprentice artists”, earn minimum wage while working part-time with professional “lead artists” in the creation and sale of art. The programs include Culinary Arts, Dance, Literary Arts, Opera Workshop & Theater, and Visual & Media Arts. Seventy-five percent of youth participants are from economically disadvantaged families.

Gallery 37 Center for the Arts

Gallery 37 is currently run by After School Matters, a not-for-profit organization that partners with the City of Chicago, the Chicago Public Schools, the Chicago Park District, the Chicago Public Library, the Chicago Department of Family and Support Services, the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs, and Community-Based Organizations to expand out-of-school opportunities for Chicago teens.

Gallery 37 has three site-specific public artworks:
Times’ Branch – by Christopher Furman
Starring: Labor Storefront Theater Marquee – by Jeffrey Goldstein
Moderato Cantabile – Phil Schuster and Mirte.

However, this post highlights the mosaic at the entrance, foyer and staircase of Gallery 37.