Thank you for another great year at the Milwaukee Avenue Arts Festival!

Mayor Emanuel enjoys music at the fest
with Cara Dehnert Huffman
photo © Madison Moss

Well, we have had about a week to decompress from the Milwaukee Avenue Arts Festival and yet we are still glowing from the wonderful time that we shared with so many people from around the city in our great Logan Square Neighborhood. We want to thank each and every one of you who came out to the festival last weekend and supported over 250 artists, over 40 bands, and numerous local vendors and eateries. It was truly spectacular to see such a large crowd for the whole weekend and even our new Mayor, Rahm Emanuel came out for a visit! Mayor Emanuel was also impressed with the caliber of music, art and food at the festival and may have even had a taco or two from Wagyu Wagon! It is great to have support from our new mayor as our neighborhood is quickly becoming one the most diverse areas in Chicago for arts and culture. And I Am Logan Square's executive director, Cara Dehnert Huffman said that the festival was truly "the best so far and we hope to continue growing and responding the neighborhood's suggestions for next year's fest".

The fest attracted a lot of attention from the press, too! Time Out Chicago gave us a great write-up, and posted several great photos from the fest. And Chicago Magazine enjoyed an evening out at the fest, heard some tunes from The Eternals and headed to Cole's for a drink. Check out their photos here!

JC Brooks & the Uptown Sound, photo © Brooke Herbert

So, the music was definitely a hit, from JC Brooks & the Uptown Sound headlining on Friday to a huge crowd dancing to Papo Santiago, Beaba Do Samba and The Hood Internet at Sunday's closing. Cole's stage was also home to some incredible musicians throughout the weekend--folks hopped on the trolley or strolled down to hear acts such as Rabble Rabble and The Eternals.

Papo Santiago, photo © Brooke Herbert

As far as other highlights--the galleries lining Milwaukee were packed with a huge variety of art, from installations for Satellite to the stellar Polish artist exhibit, Unzipped II, there was something for everyone. A special thanks to our art committee headed by Anysquared projects for the vast amount of pop-up galleries and exhibitions throughout the festival! Did you get a chance to see each gallery?? If not, don't fret because our incredible team of photography volunteers photographed each and every exhibit, band and performance! And the performances were spectacular--many of which were held at the newly opened Logan Square Arts Center.

And speaking of volunteers, we cannot begin to thank each of the over 50 volunteers who contributed their time and talents to helping put on the festival. We are awed by the motivation and community spirit displayed by our wonderful volunteers!

So overall, we are very pleased and overwhelmed with the support and success of the 2011 Milwaukee Avenue Arts Festival. The talent in this city and neighborhood impresses us more each day and without the support of you, the fest wouldn't be possible! And remember to keep up to date with the arts in Logan Square by checking out our website's event calendar.

For more photos from the 2011 Milwaukee Avenue Arts Festival, check out MAAF's facebook page.