Community Calendar

An encore of Bernadette Curl-Woodruff's solo collection of photographic art will be shown at the DeKalb Area Women's Center from August 1 to August 31, 2025.

We invite you to join us for a RECEPTION celebrating her work on Friday, August 22nd from 6pm to 8:30pm. Hors d'oeuvres and beverages will be served. Live music TBD.

The show is titled STRANGE LOOKING CREATURE and is a life-sized photographic exploration of how she sees/is seen in this world. Using hybrid analog/digital techniques and equipment, her work is also informed and augmented by her previous professional experiences as a metal and wood worker.

If you cannot join us at the reception, we hope you will be able to stop by the center sometime during the 1 month run.

Dr Andy Dvorak - retired political science professor - will present a program "Civics 101 - an overview of Constitutional principles.
Aug 26 at 6:30 - 7:30 with time for Q & A.
Open to the public.

Glü
Book & Lyrics by Jake Lockwood
Music & Lyrics by Alexander Sage Oyen
Orchestrated by JT Kaufman
Directed by Tommy Ranieri

GLÜ is an uplifting musical that proves the perfect bond isn’t always easy to find, but surrounding yourself with good people can certainly hold you up when life pulls you down.
Written by the dynamic team of Jake Lockwood and Alexander Sage Oyen, orchestrated by JT Kaufman, and with stage direction by Tommy Ranieri, this new musical premieres at Timber Lake Playhouse in August.

Tickets:
Prices range from $30 - $40.
Ticketing Site: https://ci.ovationtix.com/36917/production/1226455
Tickets can be also purchased by calling into the Box Office at 815-244-2035.

Dates:
Friday, August 22nd - 7:30 PM
Saturday, August 23rd - 2:00 PM
Saturday, August 23rd - 7:30 PM
Sunday, August 24th - 2:00 PM
Tuesday, August 26th - 2:00 PM
Wednesday, August 27th - 2:00 PM
Wednesday, August 27th - 7:30 PM
Thursday, August 28th - 2:00 PM
Friday, August 29th - 7:30 PM
Saturday, August 30th - 2:00 PM
Saturday, August 30th - 7:30 PM
Sunday, August 31st - 2:00 PM

Jazz enthusiasts and music lovers alike are invited to enjoy an evening of captivating melodies and rhythms as Jazz in Progress presents its annual free summer "Swingin' the Bandshell" concert. The concert will take place at the Dee Palmer Band Shell in Hopkins Park, located at 1403 Sycamore Road, DeKalb, Illinois, at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 26.

This 18-piece community jazz band, which has been making music together in the area for over 12 years, promises a diverse program featuring classic jazz standards, beloved swing-era tunes and vibrant funk selections from the 1960s and '70s. The concert will also highlight the exceptional talents of several vocal and instrumental soloists from within the ensemble's ranks.

Jazz in Progress is more than just a musical group; it is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Jazz in Progress was formed for musical, charitable and educational purposes to support its mission to advance the appreciation, performance and history of jazz music and its related genres. The band channels funds raised back into local community music programs. Beneficiaries include several area school districts such as DeKalb, Sycamore, Genoa-Kingston, Hinckley-Big Rock, Indian Creek, Sandwich, Somonauk, Earlville, Leland and St. Mary-DeKalb. The DeKalb County Community Foundation also receives support from Jazz in Progress.

This free concert offers a wonderful opportunity for families and individuals to experience the rich and engaging world of jazz music in a beautiful outdoor setting.

For information on Jazz in Progress, interested individuals are encouraged to call 815-751-0006. Connect with Jazz in Progress on Facebook.

An encore of Bernadette Curl-Woodruff's solo collection of photographic art will be shown at the DeKalb Area Women's Center from August 1 to August 31, 2025.

We invite you to join us for a RECEPTION celebrating her work on Friday, August 22nd from 6pm to 8:30pm. Hors d'oeuvres and beverages will be served. Live music TBD.

The show is titled STRANGE LOOKING CREATURE and is a life-sized photographic exploration of how she sees/is seen in this world. Using hybrid analog/digital techniques and equipment, her work is also informed and augmented by her previous professional experiences as a metal and wood worker.

If you cannot join us at the reception, we hope you will be able to stop by the center sometime during the 1 month run.

Ellen Mumford, Taft Gallery

As a child I really never had an interest in art. It wasn’t until my junior year in high school that I decided to take an art class due to the fact that I needed an elective course. Here I found my niche and won a summer semester art scholarship at the University of Illinois. During my college years I did not major or minor in art as I would certainly have become a “starving artist." However, I always took an art course.

My career as a civil engineering technician drove me to focus on math causing a conflict that was at odds with my artistic creative processes. So, during those 42 years of highway work I produced very little art, only mainly for my home. While considering future retirement, I decided it was time to “up” my art game. Because I had never considered watercolor, in 2012, on a whim, I enrolled in Graydon Cafarella’s watercolor landscape classes at The Next Picture Show gallery. I LOVED IT! To further my watercolor experience, I also painted with David Becker in Venice, Italy, and then every Thursday (fighting rush hour traffic!) with Dale Popovich of Palette and Chisel Art Academy in Chicago. When possible, I still paint with Dale at Dillman’s Resort in Wisconsin.

My work is eclectic at best but tends toward realism. I am always trying new methods, paints, topics, etc. As a “snowbird” I have recently joined Scott Hiestand’s acrylic wildlife/landscape classes and Gail Bokor’s experimental mixed media/abstract classes. Both are teaching in the Daytona Beach area. My paintings in this gallery exhibit their influence but also Graydon’s and Dale’s.
​
I have won many awards for paintings created in all 3 mediums (most recently at TNPS Best of Show Abstract) but have only exhibited locally. Exhibiting at CMAAA is opening a new area of exposure of my art to the masses. I try not to be too philosophical about my art. I paint what I like and what brings me pleasure – and sometimes a challenge. In the words of Georgia O’Keeffe “I have but one desire as a painter - that is to paint what I see, as I see it, in my own way.”

Greg La Mont, Feature Wall

Greg has been fascinated with art and artwork since he was young, always experimenting with wall art, illustrations, mechanical drawings, and caricatures for the high school yearbook to name a few.

Intrigued by creating in many different genres, he kept building upon his knowledge bank. A self taught artist, he brings an eclectic mix to his body of work.

He enjoys visualizing and creating work in varying mediums, and has been showing locally in the surrounding area for years now.

Paw Prints: Artworks of Animals
August 1 - September 13
Reception: August 8, 6:00pm - 8:00pm

This exhibit focuses on the subject of animals, domesticated or wild: mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, invertebrates, and fish. Artists are free to apply their own interpretation in representing the overall theme, from a small insect to a massive whale, and even fictional, mythological, or imagined creatures.
​
Awards: The exhibit will be judged with awards presented at the reception, August 8, from 6:00 - 8:00pm. Visitors will also be allowed to vote for their favorite art piece with the People’s Choice winner announced at the close of the exhibit.

Our awards judge, Carol Bingham, grew up in a small town in central Illinois where she spent much of her childhood playing near rivers and streams. Early childhood experiences provide the basis of her paintings. Most of her work is in oil, but she has also used watercolor, acrylic inks, graphite, collage, and mixed media.

Carol has accepted numerous awards for her work. She received her BFA Illustration summa cum laude at NIU in DeKalb, IL.

The Next Picture Show community arts center in Dixon brings back its Farms and Barns art exhibition, a celebration of the beautiful surrounding area and all vistas that inspire a love of the open land, including interior, still life and animal depictions, Aug. 13-Sept.13. The gallery is open Wednesday-Saturday 10am-4pm.

The opening reception and artist award ceremony will take place on Aug. 15 from 6:00–8:00 p.m.

It’s summertime, so join John and Laura at the park for our 5th summer of outdoor story times! We will be reading stories, singing songs, and having fun. After the stories, go play on the playground. We encourage you to bring a blanket to make sitting on the grass a little more comfortable.

All of the story times are at Huntley Park at 2nd and Garden Street in DeKalb. Look for us in the southwestern corner.

We will announce on the DeKalb Public Library Facebook page if the program is cancelled due to weather.

For questions or further information, please contact John at johna@dkpl.org or at (815) 756-9568 ext. 3350.