Emmy Star Brown painted this mural on the 1860 District side, a progression on the former Purple Hotel at the corner of Touhy and Lincoln Avenues in Lincolnwood.
Geneviève Bookwalter
Drive east on Touhy Avenue, off the Edens Expressway, pass under the pedestrian bridge and a bright, summarized 200-foot-long mural will welcome you to what was once a vacant lot and the former home of Lincolnwood’s famed Purple Hotel.
The mural was done through Emmy Star Brown of Chicago, who said it’s the largest mural she’s painted so far and painted many murals. He finished it in December 2022.
“We wanted to create a bright position for the network that was lighthearted and thoughtful,” Brown says.
Emmy Star Brown paints a mural at the Soho House in the West Loop. This mural is no longer there.
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“I tried to create an inspiring, impactful piece that would serve as a visual landmark, centerpiece, anything that can be seen from the motorcycle trail above, as well as from Touhy passing by,” he says. The mural rises with the pedestrian bridge up. up to 36 feet tall at its highest point.
“It’s a piece that encourages you to pause and take a moment. . . to reflect and connect with a component of your younger self. “
The mural depicts a revival of the land at the northwest corner of Touhy and Lincoln avenues, or an “exorcism,” as Sun-Times reporter David Roeder described it.
When it closed in 2007 and was demolished in 2013, the Purple Hotel had a reputation for being a drug-fueled party venue and is remembered as the position of a crowd response when it arrived at a Hyatt. The desolate assets sat empty, littered in debris, until structure began in the mixed-use assignment known as District 1860 in 2021. Today, apartments are rented out and restaurants are tables to sit at. Once completed, Tucker Development’s 8. 7-acre allocation will include residential units, retail and restaurants. area, as well as an Amazon Fresh flagship store.
Emmy Star Brown paints a mural at the Mariano grocery store in the West Loop.
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The inspiring connection to the inner child is a common theme not only in the Lincolnwood mural, but also in much of Brown’s recent work. This evolved as he taught calligraphy categories in the mid-2010s and learned that he sought to “reclaim his creative, imaginative, playful selves. “This realization also led her to start painting murals.
“What if I had the opportunity to do a large-scale mural with my calligraphic writing style, writing a positive quote?” he wondered. “Something that can motivate someone or replace the course of their day. “
He convinced a gallery in Logan Square to allow him to paint his mural for a month. He painted in white letters on a black wall: “In a world where you can be anything, be kind. “
The mural went viral. Couples would come here to take wedding photos in front of it. The members of the Red Hot Chili Peppers saw him and asked him to paint his second mural for their shows.
Today, Brown said he has painted dozens of works of art, adding about thirteen in Fulton Market alone. His artwork and art can be discovered on the interior and exterior walls of Chicago cafes, restaurants, and retail outlets, as well as in private collections. He painted a mural on the ceiling of a private condominium building and licensed his art to a hotel for key cards and other items. He has partnered with brands such as Field Notes and Yeti, where his designs adorn their e-book covers and mugs. walls.
Early in his career, Brown worked primarily in black and white and painted wrought-glass windows that he discovered in Chicago’s dumpsters. Her career exploded after signing a one-year contract with Sharpie, who aired a documentary-style ad on MTV, featured her on a billboard in Times Square and showed her in ads in primary magazines.
“It’s my life,” he says.
Brown grew up in Glen Ellyn and attended the University of Illinois Institute of the Arts. He now works at the Kimball Arts Center in Logan Square, where he painted a mural on an external wall. He travels all over the world to paint commissioned artwork and recently returned from a painting in the British Virgin Islands. He has another piece of art in progress that he can’t talk about yet.
Looking ahead, Brown says he hopes to strike a balance between the artwork he loves, his authoritative work, and his studio practice. On May 3, an exhibition of his work, entitled “Familiar Form”, opened at the Vertical Gallery of Ukraine. village. The exhibition will be open until May 25.
“It’s a full space all night,” Brown says of the opening. Family members attend, creditors who stay at the gallery, enthusiasts who stay with it on Instagram, and friends from top schools, universities, and more.
For someone who grew up and built his career in and around Chicago, “I feel like all my worlds collide in the same place. “
Emmy Star Brown paints a mural at Threadless in Evanston.
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