Oak Park Art League

ince its founding in 1921, The Oak Park Art League (OPAL) has been an important and vibrant cultural center where the invitation and challenge to use art as a tool for both personal and community reflection and growth is made available to people of all ages. While our membership includes artists and lovers-of-the-arts at all skill levels we remain united in our uncompromising commitment to the spirit of open inquiry and possibility. Membership is encouraged but not required to participate in our educational programing or most of our exhibitions.

As one of the longest, continually-running non-profit arts organizations in Illinois, OPAL’s 1907 carriage house sits as an important landmark in the center of Oak Park’s Historic District near both Frank Lloyd Wright’s studio and Ernest Hemingway’s birth home.

As it did in the early 20th century, the first floor gallery space hosts monthly exhibitions that invite local artists to weigh in on the subjects, both contemporary and timeless, that dominate today’s local, national, and international dialogs. In addition to exhibition receptions, the space allows us to offer art appreciation lectures, professional artist roundtable discussions, and other community events. The gallery is free and open to the public 6 days a week from 1-5pm.

In our second floor classroom everyone is a student whether they are enrolled in one of our traditional painting, sculpture or drawing classes or if they are a participant in one of our master class critiques. Classes are held 7 days a week and we offer live model open sessions three times a week. Over the summer we spread out into the courtyard with the extra demand for our art camps for children and teens.

In addition to on-site cultural programing, satellite exhibitions and our “Art for Social Change” annual initiative allow us to have an even greater community penetration by partnering with area organizations. Currently, we are working with the Oak Park Regional Housing Center for Research and Advocacy in Fair Housing and The Pro Bono Network to put on our May exhibition, “Sanctuary.” OPAL is committed to meaningful community outreach to the population that makes up our greater neighborhood.

When our founder, Charles Krafft started gathering friends to his parlor in 1921, the world was a place of great change and uncertainty. Together they believed in the power of the cultural arts to integrate our timeless human nature into a new and confusing modern world. As the Oak Park Art League approaches its centennial mark, the world around is changing with increasing and sometimes baffling speed. Our mission of cultural reflection and understanding has never been more valid, nor has the pursuit of learning the tools of cultural inquiry been more important and relevant.