Strange Closets

Agent Gallery owner Mariano Chavez looks a little bored when I arrive to see his new storefront on a stretch of Damen Avenue near the border of Ukrainian Village and Wicker Park.  Home to a diverse population of yuppies, bobos, immigrants and hipsters, the neighborhood seems tailor-made for Mariano’s merchandise, which includes unusual pieces (Catholic [...]

You may have noticed that I didn’t post anything last Monday or Tuesday.  Then again, maybe you didn’t notice.  If that’s the case, I only have one thing to say, and I’ll say it with my trademark sexy swagger; no you didn’t!

Tomorrow I’m posting Don and Jackie’s Open House.  Don and Jackie are among the most fascinating couples I’ve spent time with, and their home among the most interesting I’ve visited.  There’s so much to see that I’m splitting the tour into three or four parts starting today with Don’s studio.  If you’d like to hear [...]

What do you think of the painting on the left?  While I’m normally very shy, the artist made me feel very comfortable . . . pretty even. As a music accompaniment for this post, may I be so bold as to recommend Plush Gun?  Try “Just Impolite,” which I’ve intuitively added to the right sidebar [...]

This post may contain tangents that may be unsuitable for most readers.  Reader intoxication is advised. Some are saying “Chicago Secrets” is bogus, that my use of the word “Secret” is misleading.  They say that just as trashy tattler rags (sorry mom, but they are) use salacious headlines to attract pop culture junkies, I use [...]

West side antique dealer Arthur Swirgon knows a lot about a lot:  European antiques expert, jewelry dealer and self-taught mid-century modern expert (he can run circles around most), Arthur knows the history and importance of many of his store’s pieces. So it kills me that he’s doing so well on his Ebay store and developing [...]

Two days ago, a mere 48 hours, I exposed the Field Museum’s unintentional secret, a secret that can only be called the Harris Loan Center because like most of us, the Harris Loan Center has just one name . . . three if, defying convention, you count Harris, Loan and Center as three separate names, [...]