Visual art can make viewers stop in their tracks. Maybe it's the masterful technique, or the images are really intriguing, or it sends a message that can't be ignored.

Oak Park Conservatory staff and the Park District of Oak Park had two reasons to celebrate on Saturday, June 22.

The Garden Club of Oak Park and River Forest and the Friends of the Oak Park Conservatory (FOPCON) will be holding their 26th Annual Garden Walk on Sunday, June 23 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. 

The 45th season of Oak Park Festival Theatre opened this week with a stunning production of the beautiful, many-layered modern play, Elizabeth Rex, a witty and poignant two-act work by Canadian playwright Timothy Findley. 

After years of anticipation, One Lake Brewing, opened on June 4 and has successfully navigated its first dozen days in business.

It's no secret that Val's halla Records, 239 Harrison St. in the Arts District, has been struggling.

The Chicago area is rich with quality theater offerings, and right now you don't have to look too hard to find a show with someone connected to Oak Park. 

In some ways, Beth Franken's story of her home at 1111 Hayes Ave. is a typical Oak Park story.

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Waiyaki  Abdallah

Jacob Preston Adams

Jared Bernard Addo

I received my first writing credit in Oak Park in 1993, in my family's home on Iowa Street, where I wrote and published my own newspaper, called The Big Stuff.