Oak Park Art League Hits the Books

Art informed by literature takes center stage at the ’s new exhibit, “In Reference.”

The exhibit opens Friday evening with a reception from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Oak Park Art League’s historic E. E. Roberts-designed coach house at 720 Chicago Ave., and runs through April 1.

“It’s a literary-based show, including anything to do with books or authors,” said Ken Reif, interim board chair. His portrait of Mark Twain will be one of the more than 30 art works on display.

“The idea was hatched from people talking about what inspires them,” said David Stoklosa, chair of the exhibit committee.

At the opening reception, there will be food, wine, and music by Jimbo Delta (with Jim Parks on guitar and vocals, and Reif on bass). The Cloud Room, a well-stocked art studio for children, will be open for families to create their own art.

In the upstairs studio, Marlene Scott and Mark Moroney will demonstrate bookbinding. Both artists hold MFA degrees in book and paper arts from Columbia College.

“Bookbinding can be restoring and conserving existing books. It also includes using books to create art, by transforming an existing book into something new or creating unusual books from scratch,” said Scott.

All forms of bookbinding will be on display. Scott plans to demonstrate how to make a star book, which looks like a rectangle when flat, but opens into a circular piece with points, like a star.

Art League artist member Ted Strandt contributed a marble sculpture, “The Stone Carver’s Poem and Bust,” to the exhibit.

“My wife’s family has a talent show at Christmas. I’m not a song and dance man, so one year I wrote a poem and presented it. I carved the marble bust to back up my words,” said Strandt, whose day job is carving tombstones.

His poem is framed and on display with the bust.

Artist Greg Johannes, a commercial illustrator whose “serious” work includes portraits and caricatures, has two watercolors in the show.

“Frank Lloyd Wright Oak Park 1935” places a 40-year-old Wright outside of his Oak Park .

“There are thousands of books about [Wright] but I felt I’d better put in a real writer to make the piece more palatable, so I’m also doing ‘Hemingway Oak Park 1959’,” said Johannes.

The watercolor imagines a pensive Ernest Hemingway sitting on an Adirondack chair in front of his Oak Park Avenue birthplace home. Johannes used himself as his model.

“Recovered” art books will be on sale opening night.

“We have some great art books with funky, worn covers that were donated to our library. Our artists refinished the covers with paint and collage,” said Executive Director Faith Humphrey-Hill.

Any books that don’t sell will be available at

Stoklosa encourages the public to stop in Friday for the free reception.

“We have a great space for art and music,” said Stoklosa. “It makes for a nice environment to talk, get to know people and enjoy the art.”