SIDE STREET
STUDIO ARTS
Where Elgin Creates
Join us to celebrate 13 years of Side Street!
YEAR 13 marks thirteen years of creativity, collaboration, and community at Side Street Studio Arts. Join us in honoring this milestone and be part of a dynamic exhibition that celebrates both individual expression and our shared creative ecosystem.
This is a juried exhibition with over $500 in prize money and prize packs for artists that get the most 'audience favorite' votes.
Each year, our anniversary show celebrates bold artistic experimentation and creative risk, featuring work across a wide spectrum of forms, disciplines, and genres. Artists of all backgrounds and experience levels were encouraged to submit work that reflects growth, exploration, and where their practice stands today.
Join us Friday, March 6th from 6-10pm with special performances by Self Xplanatory breakdance crew and the Omar Garcia Jazz Trio!
6-8pm - Voting is Open
7pm - performance by Self Xplanatory
7:30pm - performance by Omar Garcia Jazz Trio
8pm - performance by Self Xplanatory
8:30pm - performance byOmar Garcia Jazz Trio
9pm - Judges Announcements
Opening Reception: Friday, March 6, 2026 | 6–10 PM
Exhibition Dates: March 6–29, 2026
CONGRATULATIONS TO THIS YEAR'S ACCEPTED ARTISTS
Bobby Rowland
Lily Norgard
Mike Rende
Christopher Palm
Joshua Smith
Sam Burzak
Sara Peak Convery
Ken Simonsen
Melina Scotte
Chris Block
Karl Jahnke
Julie Ashley
Eli Tatosian
Oliver Pollack
Moritz Kellerman
Kimberly Stourton
Erin Cramer
Melissa Routzahn
Abby King
Joan Ackerman-Zimny
Roxanne Bjorklund
Margaret Mirkov
Horror Floral
Jorge Jaén
Sara Commo
Emily Baughman
Cait Blais
Leigh Hugenberg
Yuliya Klochan
Anna Lentz
Sam The Jam
Ben Sapet
John Franklin
Belen Ashley
Carrie Cranwell
Ryan Klopfenstein
Ashley Hanna-Quade
Kitt Beier
Trai Orthal
Julie Brandon
Robb Walker
Buddy Plumlee
Allison Hausladen
Brad Cahill
Emily Rodriguez
Erinn Karis
Kathryn Fredrickson
Tricia Marcella Cimera
Amaris Danak
Hannah King
Nadia Gordeuk
Ivette De Santiago & Nick Jostes
Dallas LaCassa
Alejandro Uribe
Michael Del Valle
2026 YEAR 13 GUEST JUDGES
We’re thrilled to welcome our first Year 13 Exhibition Juror — and our newest Side Street Studio Arts Artist in Residence — Nicki Fortunati-Warren.
Nicki is a multidisciplinary artist originally born near Milan, Italy, now based in the Chicagoland area. Her work spans ink, watercolor, gouache, textiles, colored pencil, oil, and collage — often blending delicate detail with layered storytelling and bold material exploration.
As both a juror for our Year 13 Exhibition and an Artist in Residence at Side Street Studio Arts, Nicki brings an expansive artistic lens and international perspective to this milestone celebration. We’re so excited for her to help shape this year’s exhibition and to deepen her creative footprint within our community.
Follow her work and connect:
@made.by.nfortunati_warren
Introducing Sam Raue Hebert. (she/they)
Sam is a writer, producer, optimist, and proud fourth-generation Elgin-area resident. Through her operations and communications consultancy, Brightly Built Solutions, she serves as the Executive Director of Elgin Pride, championing visibility, inclusion, and vibrant community connection right here in our region.
You may also recognize Sam from the front desk at Explore Elgin Area, where she works part-time as Marketing and Community Outreach Coordinator, helping spotlight the incredible events, artists, and amenities that make Elgin shine.
Artistically, Sam’s creative practice includes graphic design, collage, and singing. She also spent 13 lucky years as a theatre performer and producer — getting her start on Elgin-area stages and continuing to nurture the local arts ecosystem ever since.
We’re honored to have her insight, community knowledge, and artistic perspective helping shape our Year 13 celebration.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/samantha.r.hebert/
Instagram: @samrauehebert
We’re honored to welcome another Year 13 Exhibition Juror — and a featured artist in our upcoming season — Andrés Dominguez Fernandez
Andrés is a Chicano interdisciplinary artist specializing in ceramics. His work explores identity as a layered experience shaped by cultural duality, political discourse, and lived memory. Drawing influence from Mexican folk art, graffiti, and flea market aesthetics, he merges instinctual mark-making with cultural symbolism.
For Andrés, ceramics function as both material and metaphor — reflecting his navigation between Mexican and American identities, and the space between craft and fine art. Through personal and communal narratives, his work challenges reductive frameworks and invites viewers to reconnect with shared humanity.
Based in Elgin, Andrés has curated and exhibited work throughout Illinois and serves as a ceramic instructor at Nuna Studios in downtown Aurora. He holds dual bachelor’s degrees in Art Education and Studio Arts from Illinois State University and is currently pursuing his MFA.
We’re especially excited that his upcoming solo exhibition, Where the Sun Is Lifted, will open this November at Side Street Studio Arts.
Please join us in giving Andrés a warm welcome as a Year 13 juror!
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Estamos muy emocionados de dar la bienvenida a Andrés Domínguez Fernández como jurado de nuestra exposición Year 13
Andrés es un artista interdisciplinario chicano que trabaja principalmente con cerámica. Su obra explora la identidad como algo formado por la cultura, la política y las experiencias personales. Se inspira en el arte popular mexicano, el grafiti y la estética de los mercados de pulgas, combinando marcas espontáneas con símbolos culturales.
La cerámica es para él tanto un material como una metáfora. A través de ella expresa su experiencia entre la identidad mexicana y la estadounidense, así como su interés por el espacio entre la artesanía y el arte contemporáneo. Su trabajo invita al público a reflexionar y a conectar con una humanidad compartida.
Vive en Elgin, donde ha curado y exhibido su obra en varias exposiciones. Actualmente cursa una Maestría en Bellas Artes y presentará su próxima exposición individual, Where the Sun Is Lifted, este noviembre en Side Street Studio Arts.
¡Denle la bienvenida en los comentarios!
We’re excited to welcome another talented voice to our Year 13 Exhibition Jury — Arnaldo Utrera!
Born in Caracas, Venezuela, Arnaldo began his photography training in 2006 with renowned photographers Roberto Mata, Ramón Grandal, Leo Álvarez, and Ricardo Jiménez. His work has appeared in numerous national and international publications and exhibitions, reflecting a strong commitment to visual storytelling and contemporary photographic practice.
He brings valuable curatorial experience to our jury, having served as a Selection Jury Member for the 10th Dycvensa Visual Arts Salon (2012) and as an Awards Jury Member for the 11th Dycvensa Visual Arts Salon (2013) in Caracas, Venezuela.
Arnaldo’s photographic series People of Philly received honorable mentions at the PX3 Grand Prix de la Photographie (France) and the International Photography Awards (IPA) in 2021, highlighting the depth and impact of his work.
We’re honored to have Arnaldo’s global perspective and artistic expertise helping shape our Year 13 celebration. Please join us in welcoming him!
