Supporting Illinois' Arts Sector

Arts of Life advances the creative arts community by providing artists with intellectual and developmental disabilities a collective space to expand their practice and strengthen their leadership. The organization is driven by four core values: inspiring artistic expression, building community, promoting self-respect, and developing independence.

Arts of Life artists work at studio locations in Chicago’s West Town and South Side neighborhoods and Glenview, with a fourth studio in Highland Park coming this fall. The studios offer a robust range of supports and services, including facilitation from professional fine art staff, career management, photo documentation and archival storage, high-quality art materials, and access to project-based or career-focused groups.

Additionally, Arts of Life advocates for the exhibition and sale of artists of all abilities through its Circle Contemporary Gallery. They are proud to have showcased the work of 107 Illinois-based artists in 2026 alone. These exhibitions are augmented by external opportunities in prestigious venues, including the Chicago Cultural Center, Chicago Design Museum, EXPO Chicago, The Outsider Art Fair in NYC, NADA and Untitled Art Fairs in Miami, Art Fair Tokyo, and Art Collaboration Kyoto.

Executive Director Denise Fisher shared, "Arts of Life’s programming would not be possible without the ongoing support of the Illinois Arts Council. We are proud to nurture the creative practices of emerging artists and offer robust professional career support for experienced artists. Marvin Young exemplifies what is possible at Arts of Life. After a lifetime of making intensely observant drawings of the world around him, his work has finally gotten the spotlight it deserves at Circle Contemporary, Western Exhibitions, EXPO Chicago, and now Intuit Art Museum."

Impressions of a City: Drawings by Marvin Young is open to the public at Intuit Art Museum through August 23.

Allison Lacher is a visual artist, curator, and arts administrator based in Springfield, Illinois. Her artistic practice focuses on installation, sculpture, and collaborative projects that often emerge in response to the physical, social, and historical conditions of a site. Lacher’s work has been exhibited nationally, including at venues such as the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art and the Illinois State Museum. Beyond her individual work, she has collaborated with artist Jeff Robinson and engaged in numerous curatorial projects. Lacher holds an MFA from Indiana University and has been recognized with multiple Illinois Arts Council Artist Fellowship Awards.

Currently, Allison Lacher is co-curating "Phantom Frame" at NON STNDRD in Sauget, Illinois, alongside Jeff Robinson. This exhibition showcases a diverse group of artists, including Alberto Aguilar, Conrad Bakker, Sarah and Joseph Belknap, Danny Bracken, Juan William Chávez, Robert Chase Heishman, and Marina Peng. "Phantom Frame" explores the ways fragments persist and take on new meanings over time. The artists draw from architectural remnants, industrial histories, and material traces to consider the potential of partial forms and incomplete narratives. The works engage the unique context of the National Building Arts Center and the industrial landscape of Sauget.

Said Allison Lacher, "Phantom Frame would not have been possible without support from the Illinois Arts Council's Creative Projects Grant. That support allowed us to bring together an extraordinary group of artists who created ambitious, site-responsive work that engages the unique conditions and histories of the National Building Arts Center. It has been a joy to support artists and to realize a project of this scale and complexity." The exhibition is open to the public at NON STNDRD and has been extended through July 18.