West Chicago Art Banner Exhibit
The City of West Chicago hosts an annual art banner exhibit for regional and national artists to submit new artwork that embraces a different unique theme for each year. The Exhibit is organized by the City's Cultural Arts Commission.
After submissions are received, they are judged with a select number being chosen to be entered in the WeGo Art Banner Exhibit.
The selected artworks are then reproduced on large-scale streetlight pole banners that are then put on display throughout the City's downtown.
Throughout the exhibit, the public is invited to participate in voting for their favorite artwork. The artwork with the most votes, is recognized as the "People's Choice Award" winner for that year's exhibit.
2025 Art Banner Exhibit
2025 Summer Art Banner Exhibit Details
Exhibit Theme
The 2025 theme for artwork is: Sustenance/Sustento.
Exhibit Juror
Artwork was juried by local artist David Linneweh, who has embraced West Chicago’s blend of suburban and rural charm since moving to the city in 2021. Linneweh, a painter with a BFA from Illinois State University and an MFA from Southern Illinois University, has exhibited widely and taught college-level art since 2009. He also founded Studio Break—a home-based alternative gallery and podcast platform that highlights the stories of local and national artists.
Exhibit Location
The Summer Art Banner Exhibit is featured in the downtown area from Main Street to Washington Street. The Exhibit map is located below.
2025 People's Choice Award
Members of the public are invited to nominate their favorite artwork for the People's Choice Award at this year’s exhibit. To submit a nomination, please provide your email address and the number associated with the artwork you wish to nominate.
Please note: Only one submission is allowed per email address and/or IP address.
To view this year’s exhibit entries, click the button below.
People's Choice Award Nomination
2026 Art Banner Exhibit
2026 Exhibit Details
Exhibit Theme
The 2026 theme for artwork is: Red, White, Blue/Rojo, Blanco, Azul
Exhibit Jurors
The juror of the 2026 Art Banner Exhibit has not been announced.
Submission Deadline
All artwork submissions were due by February 2026. (A final date for submission has yet to be determined.)
Submission Guidelines
The following guidelines are provided for submitting original artwork for the West Chicago Art Banner Exhibit.
- Artwork must be high enough resolution, which is a minimum of 2160 x 3024 pixels at 72 DPI.
- Photographed artwork should use appropriate lighting. Dark photos may hurt chances of being selected for the exhibit.
- All artwork should be submitted vertically, not horizontally. The banners are displayed vertically and are sized at 36"x72".
- AI-generated artwork is not accepted. If a submission is determined to be AI-generated, it will be disregarded.
2026 Exhibit Art Submission
The portal for submissions for the 2026 Art Banner Exhibit will be open soon.
Artists are welcome to submit up to three (3) artworks for consideration for the 2025 Art Banner Exhibit using the form below. If submitting more than one item, a separate submission must be made for each artwork.
If you have any questions about artwork submissions, please contact the City's Marketing and Communications Division at communications@westchicago.org.
contact us
Got a question? Please contact the City's Marketing and Communications Division at communications@westchicago.org or (630) 293-2200.
The City's Annual Art Banner Exhibit is a WeGo Community Art Experience project organized by the City of West Chicago's Cultural Arts Commission.
The WeGo Annual Art Banner Exhibit is an official community event of the City of West Chicago.