LOGAN SQUARE — Peanut Gallery at 1000 N. California Ave. took a hit in October when its lease wasn’t renewed to make room for a pie shop at the intersection of California Avenue and Augusta Boulevard.
But, much like the phoenix, the Humboldt Park art gallery has risen again.
This time in a Logan Square apartment building, according to members of the art collective.
“Usually, it goes the other way, from apartment gallery to commercial space, but we like to do things differently,” said Kelly Reaves, whose partner, Charlie Megna, plans to operate Peanut Gallery out of his home.
“Our goal is to nurture a vibrant, inclusive creative community while questioning established norms and inciting good-spirited mischief.”
While the new Peanut Gallery’s first show isn’t until May, a grand opening for the space is set for April, according to a Facebook post for the gallery, located near the corner of California and Fullerton.
“The rest of the apartment will be our studio,” Reaves said. “Everything and everyone you've come to know and love about Peanut Gallery will remain the same, only new and improved.”
The scrappy art gallery is back, despite the loss of its former space at 1000 N. California Ave. — directly across the street from the former Knockbox Café, 1001 N. California Ave. which closed the same month as Peanut Gallery when its lease was also not renewed.
Though the closures weren’t directly related, both came on the heels of news that high-profile restaurateur Brendan Sodikoff would be owning and operating two new outlets at the same intersection — the renovated California Clipper, 1002 N. California Ave., and an upcoming restaurant on the corner’s southwest corner, currently A Car Discount Muffler & Brake, 958 N. California Ave.
Plans to open a brick-and-mortar version of Cheap Tart Bakery at the former Peanut Gallery location are in the works.
As promised in October, Peanut Gallery has spent the intervening time figuring out a new game plan.
"Gentrification got the best of us and we lost our storefront ... We are currently on hiatus, interested in relocating to an inexpensive space in or around the Humboldt Park area," read a Peanut Gallery website post from October simply titled "Hiatus."
The 4-year-old gallery is now accepting submissions for the remainder of 2015 at their new Logan Square location — work that will be displayed in “a cozy white room with just enough space for a succinct manifestation of your wildest imaginings,” Reaves said.
Check the gallery's website and Facebook page for show updates and information on submissions.
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