In the eyes of some, “west Pilsen” is defined less by what it is than by what it isn’t–east Pilsen, the increasingly gentrified area around Halsted and 18th Street that’s home to many galleries and artists’ studios.
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This year, a group of westerners struck back. The last weekend in October big black banners with painted white numbers hung outside houses, studios, and a few cafes announcing work on view by around 30 artists as part of the first Pilsen Open Studios. Participants ranged from established artists like Duarte, who’s exhibited internationally and was offering paintings priced in the thousands, to younger newcomers like brothers Juan and Ricardo Compean, who exhibited industrial streetscapes in the living room of an apartment on Cermak.
It was a group effort. Led by Duarte and his wife, Linda Lutton, the artists started holding meetings about the event last spring. They pitched in for posters, designed the map, got local businesses to sponsor a trolley for the tour. Many spent the weekend before the open house in Duarte’s studio painting the banners.
Most artists reported just a handful of purchases. But that, they say, wasn’t the point.
