March 10–April 21

Photography by Mike Rivera

Opening Reception Friday, March 10, 6–8 pm

 

MEET UPTOWN, meet gritty, meet old school. Meet Uptown Theater, meet Mr. Arthur who makes a daily trek to Uptown just to hang. Meet Montrose Beach and the vendor hawking pastel clouds of cotton candy. Meet the lady at the bus stop with theatrical pancake makeup. Meet the characters that round out one of the most diverse neighborhoods in Chicago.

Everybody’s Coffee presents its newest art exhibit: MEET UPTOWN, comprised of poster-size photos.

Uptown has a history of attracting artists and in turn has become the inspiration for art. Beginning with our first show in 2015, Portraits of Uptown by Bob Rehak, Everybody’s Coffee has featured the faces and people of this great neighborhood. Mike Rivera continues in this tradition. One day he presented himself with a challenge: For one 24-hour period only shoot Uptown. He has caught unfiltered moments, the lakefront just at sunrise, the sun setting behind Uptown Baptist, the homeless guy at hot noon resting on a fire hydrant, the Riveria, the Aragon, the tattooed crew posing in front of Golden Pancake House. It’s all here in raw yet colorful characters, dim sidewalks hooded by L tracks, and neon-lit streets. MEET UPTOWN, MEET UP.

MEET MIKE RIVERA. Mike grew up in Dallas, Texas where he briefly attended college where he discovered his passion for dynamic photography. He eventually received his bachelor’s in Visual Journalism from Western Kentucky University. Since then he has worked in New York City, Japan, and southeast Texas. After moving to Chicago two years ago he worked in the photo department of the Chicago Tribune. Currently Mike is the in-house photographer/videographer for CEDARst. Along with his writer wife, Mike is the director of photography at Northmag.co.

Everybody’s Coffee is located at 935 W. Wilson, Chicago 60640.