WEST TOWN — Hundreds of buildings across the city and more than a dozen in Ukrainian Village, West Town and Wicker Park will be open to the public this weekend as part of the Chicago Architecture Foundation's Open House Chicago.
The free tours will include seven Ukrainian Village buildings: five churches, a gallery and a museum.
Many aspects of Ukrainian culture still exist in Ukrainian Village — along with influences from the cultures of German, Polish, Slovak and Jewish settlers, according to Open House Chicago.
Here are some of the highlights:
♦ Kenar Studio, 1007 N. Wolcott St., open from noon-5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Artist Jerzy Kenar is the creator of the eye-catching "poop fountain," and while primarily known for his sculptures and paintings, the studio serves as a showroom for many of Kenar's completed works and works-in-progress, previewers say.
♦ St. Volodymyr Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral, 2250 W. Cortez St., open from 10 a.m- 5 p.m. Saturday only (not open for tours on Sunday). The remodeled German Lutheran church exhibits the Medieval-Gothic style of ecclesiastical architecture, including pointed arches, ribbed vaults and flying buttresses, according to a site preview.
♦ Holy Trinity Russian Orthodox Cathedral, 1121 N. Leavitt St., open from 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. Saturday and noon-5 p.m. Sunday. This church, one of only two churches designed by Louis Sullivan, a prominent architect of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Recent work has restored the stained glass windows, a chandelier and an interior dome.
♦ The Robey hotel, 2018 W. North Ave. in Wicker Park, tour hours are 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. Saturday and 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. Sunday. A long renovation of the landmark 1929 Art Deco Northwest tower turned it into a hotel, named The Robey — a nod to Damen Avenue’s pre-1927 name. Check out a restored marble lobby, a second floor lounge (which just debuted an all-day food and drink menu), and The Up & Up, a rooftop bar with amazing skyline views.
♦ Audiotree, 1644 N. Honore St., open for tours from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. Saturday. Audiotree is a recording studio and a music label that also works on live-streaming concerts, music videos, interviews and documentaries. Audiotree is located in a century-old Bucktown building. Visitors can tour Audiotree's recording studio and office.
♦ Studio Gang Architects (Polish National Alliance), 1520 W. Division St. The architecture firm headed by Jeanne Gang moved into the former Polish National Alliance building in 2015, just a year after the Art Deco gem was made a Chicago Landmark. The Studio Gang tour requires an advanced RSVP to tour the site and tours are now closed and at capacity, organizer say.
Other West Town highlights include St. Stanislaus Kostka Roman Catholic Church, 1327 N. Noble St.; Holy Trinity Church, 1118 N. Noble St., and Ukrainian National Museum, 2249 W. Superior St.
For a list of all sites, visit Open House Chicago's website.
