City of West Chicago, Illinois

Where History and Progress Meet

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West Chicago Cultural Arts Commission
 Inspired by the Natural Environment

The opening of a citywide public art project that celebrated the monarch butterfly took flight in the spring of 2019, which was designated asThe Year of the Butterfly.  Its chosen title, The Butterfly Effect, is a reference to chaos theory and the phenomenon which occurs when a minute localized change in a complex system has large effects elsewhere. The concept holds a special significance for the Cultural Arts Commission, which sees a strong symbolic connection between monarch migration and the migration of diverse immigrant populations that traveled to West Chicago, adding beauty, value and history to the community.  Through a collaborative effort between the West Chicago Cultural Arts Commission, the West Chicago Garden Club, People Made Visible and the West Chicago America in Bloom Committee, 36 artfully designed wooden butterflies were installed in public gardens throughout the City, with an additional seven at the Kruse House Gardens. The butterflies, approximately three-feet high by four-feet wide, were designed by local artists and members of the Garden Club. An interactive map was also designed for use in locating each installation, making it easy for residents and visitors to spend a delightful afternoon visiting each site from May through the month of September 2019.  Its success prompted another art installation in 2021 by the Garden Club, Bees Take Flight at the Kruse House Gardens. 

Butterfly Collage

Artist Juan Chawuk's Mural an Homage to the Monarch

The Monarch butterfly's wondrous migration and subsequent transforamtion has become something of a metaphor for the diverse community of West Chicago itself. Internationally known Mayan artist Juan Chawuk, from Chiapas, Mexico, was commissioned to create a mural which memorialized this connection in his unique figurative style.

Learn more about the West Chicago Cultural Arts Commission
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West Chicago, IL 60185

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