Artist Statement
Cicada Parade-a is a large-scale collaborative art project organized by The Insect Asylum and Formstone Castle Collective that will be on display in and around Chicago starting in May and running through the end of summer 2024. This project celebrates once-in-221-year re-emergence of Broods XIII and XIX, Illinois’ 17-year and 13-year cicada broods. The periodic cicadas are re-emergeing in the trillions to sing, dance, and mingle. We have hand crafted plaster cicada sculptures for the community to decorate that will be hung all over the state to increase traffic to places of interest inspiring people to explore and connect while searching for the 18 inch cicada sculptures; creating joyful encounters that can spark transformative conversations and promote social change. Each sculpture was hand cast in Avoldale by local artists and decorated by the community. The cicadas will be geo tracked on an integrated map that contains information on each of the incredible artists, their community, and their journey. By learning about our artists we can recognize, represent, and understand how many different communities and cultures make up our diverse and special collective of Cicada Lovers. Proceeds from this project will help TIA raise funds to build a community rooftop garden advancing our mission to support, protect, and grow our community and ecosystem together!
- The Insect Asylum
Project Details
Cicada Parade-a is a collaborative art project celebrating the simultaneous emergence of Illinois 17-year and 13-year cicadas. Organized by The Insect Asylum, the exhibit features hundreds of cicada sculptures beautified by local artists and installed in public spaces. The project also serves as a fundraiser for The Asylum, who are building a rooftop garden and butterfly house above their museum in Avondale. As a part of our commitment to supporting arts and greening initiatives, Ravenswood Community Council sponosred the 2024 Cicada Parade-a, bringing 45 cicada sculptures to Ravenswood!
On Tuesday, August 6th, a small group of local artists, small-business owners, SSA Commissioners, GRCC and RCC Board Members gathered at Ponnopozz to beautify an additional 6 blank cicadas.
They now find themselves as a semi-permanent installation along the Ravenswood Sculpture Garden, as long as the impact of season changes will allow!
Sponsors: Ravenswood Community Council
About the Artists
Ponnopozz is the studio of Chicago-based artist Adrianne Hawthorne. Adrianne comes from a graphic design background but prefers the act of making art with her own hands. She initially felt uneasy putting so much of herself out into the world, but has since felt a satisfaction that she never found in corporate America. Ponnopozz is named after two imaginary friends, Ponno and Pozzer, that the artist had as a child. The name is a daily reminder of the unbridled creativity of childhood that she continues to nurture through the act of painting and drawing.
Lydia Cash is one of the most recognizable forces of the Chicago art scene, featured by revered local establishments such as Gibsons Italia and Ocean Prime in the LondonHouse. With a sense of freedom and irreverence, Cash focuses on embracing the unknown and trusting her instinct through her mark making. Her paintings are deeply passionate, unbridled, and profoundly felt by both the artist and the observer. Her work has been featured by Free People, Harken Interiors, Cameron Mitchell Restaurants, and Buckingham Interiors, and she has since been sought after by collectors throughout the U.S. and Europe. She continues to partner with interior designers across the U.S. to create custom paintings for the hospitality industry and commercial buildings, and also works with individuals on residential custom work.
It all begins when Omotola started a blog (Style & Forks) in 2015. The original focus was fashion, food, art, etc. but her main interest soon shifted. She was much more excited writing about art or working on creative projects. This eventually led to spotlight interviews which featured women in the creative industry. She fell in love with this project and quickly learned that women are majorly underrepresented in the art world. With that inspiration, the Bon Femmes online shop opened in 2019 as an effort to support these artists by going beyond a screen and bringing their creations into people’s homes. The growing Bon Femmes collection features art, home decor, beauty products and more all created by women. And most exciting, a percentage of sales is donated to women led charities dedicated to helping the community. In 2021, Omotola opened the Bon Femmes brick & mortar shop located in the beautiful Ravenswood neighborhood where her small shop is filled with all the beauty featured on the website.
Sidonie Gaude and her husband Will Goodwin are the owner/manager team behind Spoken Café, a cozy little breakfast and lunch spot on Montrose Avenue. Louisiana born and raised, Will and Sido naturally love to feed people and have a respect for food made from scratch. Their menu focuses on using locally and seasonally sourced ingredients, house made cream cheeses, sauce, jams, pickles. soups, salads, and fair trade & organic coffees. Sido has previously sat on the Board of Directors for the Greater Ravenswood Chamber of Commerce (501c6) and is currently the Board President of the Ravenswood Community Council (501c3). She is also a Garden Leader with the Montrose Metra Community Gardens (501c3).
A life-long Chicagoan, Gene has a soft spot for Ravenswood thanks in part to the fact that his parents met here while working for the Chicago and North Western Rail Road. 40-some years later, he’s thrilled to be working just down the street from their old offices. Gene is passionate about maintaining Ravenswood’s standing as a hub for creative industry. Over 10 years with the Greater Ravenswood Chamber of Commerce and Ravenswood Community Council, he’s fallen in love with working among the artists, artisans, and makers that call our historic industrial corridor home. He strives to develop events and programming that make Ravenswood a wonderful place to live, work, shop, play, and dine.
Amy (she/them) first moved into the Ravenswood neighborhood in 2015 and hasn’t looked back since. She can confidently say that Ravenswood has been her favorite place to live in Chicago yet. Amy is an Illinois Institute of Chicago College of Architecture graduate, and previous to working at the GRCC Amy worked for a local brewery as General Manager and Events Manager. Through her position there she further fell in love with the neighborhood and its residents and holds a deep passion for helping it be the best that it can be. While hanging out in her home she can be found making art, watching copious amounts of television and movies, playing Dungeons & Dragons, and cooking/baking. She has a thriving sourdough starter named Eleanor Sour-strop and has been crocheting and knitting a lot these days.
Christina Pecce, a dynamic professional with a passion for community development and the arts, currently serves as the Business Services Manager with the GRCC. With a rich background in fostering the growth of local businesses, Christina’s journey began in the heart of Ravenswood, where she tirelessly supported numerous small businesses in the neighborhood. In addition to her business acumen, Christina is a multifaceted individual, known for her vibrant presence in the Chicago arts and music community. A seasoned performer herself, she brings a unique perspective to the Chamber, infusing creativity into her role. Christina is excited to leverage her extensive network and artistic sensibilities to further enhance the cultural vibrancy of Ravenswood. Her dedication to both the business and artistic realms reflects her holistic approach to community development.
