For Immediate Release July 9, 2019 Media Contact: Ann Fink Carol Fox and Associates 773.969.5042 [email protected] “FRIDA FEST” KICKS OFF YEAR-LONG CELEBRATION OF FRIDA KAHLO AT THE MAC SEPT. 8 Family-Friendly Day-Long Fiesta Offers Live Music, Dance, Interactive Events Plus Opportunity to Purchase Untimed Tickets to “Frida Kahlo 2020” Exhibition GLEN ELLYN, Ill. – The McAninch Arts Center (MAC), located at 425 Fawell Blvd., and the Cleve Carney Art Gallery host “Frida Fest” a day-long outdoor, celebration Sunday, Sept. 8. “Frida Fest” is the first of the 2019-2020 Frida Kahlo Performance Series events presented by the MAC in in anticipation of “Frida Kahlo 2020” coming to the new Cleve Carney Museum of Art June-August 2020. Frida-inspired attire is welcome. Admission is free. 12 noon Lakeside Pavilion park area, featuring Mexican food vendors and skilled craft artisans opens. 1 p.m. Activities (salsa lessons, cooking demos, hair braiding, loteria) begin. 1-9 p.m. “Frida Fest” performance events: 1 p.m. Belushi Performance Hall Miss Mexican Heritage hosted by The Mexican Cultural Center of DuPage Tickets: $10 suggested donation Miss Mexican Heritage is a scholarship program for and to help Mexican- American young ladies continue their education and become future community leaders. This event, featuring live music, presentations and folkloric dancing, is “Frida Fest” Kicks Off Year-Long Celebration of Frida Kahlo Page 2 of 4 an opportunity to not only meet the young ladies, but to experience and learn about Mexican Culture. 3 p.m. Lakeside Pavilion Ballet Folklorico Quetzalcoatl Free Admission This nationally acclaimed folk dance troupe was originally formed to preserve one of the most important aspects of Mexican culture, folkloric dance. Currently under the direction of Juan Manuel "Nery" Cruz, this 35-year-old, Aurora-based company has been hailed as “a kaleidoscope of color, shape and motion” (LA Times). 5 p.m. Lakeside Pavilion Live Mariachi Music by Mariachi Monumental de Mexico Free Admission Since 2010, Mariachi Monumental has brought the best traditional and folkloric mariachi repertoire to Chicago and surrounding areas. Ensemble members have shared the stage with acclaimed artists including Pepe Aguilar, Alejandro Fernandez, Joan Sebastian, Jose Feliciano, Angelica Maria and Lila Downs among others. For six consecutive years, Mariachi Monumental de Mexico has been the preferred and official mariachi of the Chicago White Sox, Chicago Bulls, Chicago Fire Soccer Club and many Fortune 500 companies in the Chicago-land area. 7 p.m. Lakeside Pavilion Artrageous! Free Admission This troupe of 12 artists delivers a high-energy performance combining visual art, live music, singing, dancing and humor to convey the message that the arts are an integral and valuable part of human existence and fun! This performance will feature the live creation of paintings of Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo on stage as the company performs a mix of musical styles from pop to country in concert. At the end of the concert, the audience will have the opportunity to come on stage to view the artwork created during the show. All Day (noon-6 p.m.) Cleve Carney Art Gallery Director and Exhibition Curator Justin Witte will be offering free tours of the current exhibition of José Guadalupe Posada: Legendary Printmaker of Mexico. José Guadalupe Posada (1852-1913) was a Mexican political printmaker and engraver whose work has influenced many Latin American artists and cartoonists. His work, often featuring skulls and bones, captured all aspects of daily life in Mexico City from 1889-1913 and inspired artists including Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera and José Clemente Orozco, among “Frida Fest” Kicks Off Year-Long Celebration of Frida Kahlo Page 3 of 4 others. Now, more than 100 years later, he continues to impact countless artists creating today’s social movement imagery. This exhibition runs in the gallery through Sept. 13 and was curated and organized by Lee Cohen and Lois Sarkisian in association with Landau Traveling Exhibitions. Exhibition Tour Management by Landau Traveling Exhibitions. The MAC box office will be open to offer attendees the opportunity to purchase Untimed Tickets for “Frida Kahlo 2020,” the inaugural exhibition of the new Cleve Carney Art Museum opening next summer and featuring 26 original artworks spanning Kahlo’s life on loan from the Dolores Olmedo Museum Collection. Untimed Tickets are date-specific, but offer the holder one-time admission on the date selected. Additional restrictions apply. Ticket Price: $35.Timed Tickets go on sale at a later date to be announced. To receive the most up to date ticketing information, sign up for the Frida Kahlo 2020 mailing list at Frida2020.org. Seating and participation opportunities for free events and activities are on a first come/first served basis. Outside alcohol is not permitted onto the property. Neither are coolers, kegs, umbrellas, tents and skateboards. In the case of inclement weather, outdoor activities will be moved indoors and notice will be posted on the MAC’s website. For more information and event updates, visit AtTheMAC.org or call 630.942.4000. “Frida Fest” is sponsored by the DuPage Foundation. About “Frida Kahlo 2020” (June-August 2020) “Frida Kahlo 2020” hosted by the new Cleve Carney Museum of Art and the MAC will be the largest Frida Kahlo exhibition in the Chicago area in more than 40 years. The exhibition is being curated by Museum Director and Curator Justin Witte with programming directed by MAC Director Diana Martinez. The multifaceted exhibition will feature 26 original artworks spanning Kahlo’s life on loan from the Dolores Olmedo Museum Collection, a multimedia timeline with more than 100 photographic images from the artist’s life, a video presentation, reproductions of Kahlo’s clothing, a family-friendly children’s area, poetry garden and gift shop. The exhibition will run June through August 2020. Year-long programming of national and international music, theater, dance, films and lectures will support and surround the exhibition. About the Cleve Carney Art Gallery/ new Cleve Carney Museum of Art The Cleve Carney Art Gallery, located on the campus of College of DuPage, adjacent to the McAninch Arts Center, 425 Fawell Blvd., offers year-round visual art exhibitions showcasing works by regional, national and international artists. Its goal: to encourage the growth and understanding of modern and contemporary art through exhibitions and educational programming that cultivate a variety of perspectives, and its vision is to be one of the best centers of modern and contemporary art in the Chicago area. Funding is provided by the Cleve Carney Endowment Fund, which supports vital programming including artist engagement opportunities for community members and students, gallery exhibitions, artist commissions, new acquisitions and other teaching and learning tools that foster cultural enrichment in our community. The late Cleve Carney provided a significant legacy gift to establish the Cleve Carney Art Gallery. The gallery opened in February 2014 with its inaugural exhibition “Selections from Cleve Carney’s Art Collection.” The gallery recently announced it will be expanding to a 2,500 “Frida Fest” Kicks Off Year-Long Celebration of Frida Kahlo Page 4 of 4 square-foot museum, titled the Cleve Carney Museum of Art scheduled to open spring 2020. The museum will maintain the standards set by the American Alliance of Museums. More information can be found at CleveCarneyGallery.org or by calling 630.942.3206. About the MAC The McAninch Arts Center at College of DuPage is located 25 miles west of Chicago near I-88 and I-355. It currently houses three indoor performance spaces (the 780-seat proscenium Belushi Performance Hall; the 236-seat soft-thrust Playhouse Theatre; and the versatile black box Studio Theatre), classrooms for the college’s academic programming, the outdoor Lakeside Pavilion, and the Cleve Carney Art Gallery. The MAC has presented theater, music, dance and visual art to more than 1.5 million people since its opening in 1986 and typically welcomes more than 100,000 patrons from the greater Chicago area to more than 230 performances each season. The mission of the MAC is to foster enlightened educational and performance opportunities, which encourage artistic expression, establish a lasting relationship between people and art, and enrich the cultural vitality of the community. Visit AtTheMAC.org or facebook.com/AtTheMAC for more information. About the College of DuPage Foundation Established as a 501(c) 3 not-for-profit charitable organization in 1967, the College of DuPage Foundation raises monetary and in-kind gifts to increase access to education and to enhance cultural opportunities for the surrounding community. For more information on “Frida Kahlo 2020” sponsorship opportunities, contact Karen Kuhn at (630) 942-2698 or [email protected]. For more information about the College of DuPage Foundation, visit foundation.cod.edu or call 630.942.2462. # # # The MAC’s 2019-2020 Season is made possible in part with support by, L.L. Bean, Follett, Double Tree by Hilton Lisle/Naperville, Follett, WDCB 90.9 FM and the College of DuPage Foundation. Established as a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit charitable organization in 1967, the College of DuPage Foundation raises monetary and in-kind gifts to increase access to education and to enhance cultural opportunities for the surrounding community. For more information about the College of DuPage Foundation, visit foundation.cod.edu or call 630.942.2462. Programs at the MAC are partially supported through a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency. .