Austin’s Front Porch Arts Center Plans Grand Opening June 15

Local author and community arts advocate Keli Stewart invites friends and neighbors to a Grand Opening of Front Porch Arts Center’s new storefront space at& 5851 W. Madison St., Saturday June 15 from noon to 3 p.m. The fundraiser for the 501(C)3 nonprofit, now in its fifth year,& will feature readings by local poets plus the “(R)Evolution” Art Exhibition,& a Juneteenth& show by local artists curated by Westside artist Tony Collins. The exhibit includes art work by quilter Jacqueline Doctor Johnson, community activist Corey Dooley, and 29th Ward Ald. Chris Taliaferro. Refreshments will be served.& The center’s documentary& West Side Classic& will be screened, which features personal life story interviews with Bethel New Life elders, produced in partnership with the Chicago Sinfonietta.& “Growing up in Austin, I was surrounded by a vibrant community that nurtured in me a passion for storytelling and the arts,” said Keli Stewart, a Columbia College graduate with an MFA from Chicago State who taught at the School of the Art Institute and published a poetry book& Small Altars.” My family has lived on the West Side and had businesses for three generations, and I’m proud to own a home in Austin. As I pursued a...