Artists from Little City Featured at Intuit, Beg. Today

Over 50 drawings, paintings and computer-generated images will be featured in the Beyond Influence: The Art of Little City exhibit at Intuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art in Chicago. Past and present artists with intellectual and developmental disabilities who work out of Little City's Center for the Arts will showcase work at this prestigious museum, dedicated solely to presenting self-taught and outsider art.

The exhibit runs from today, May 10 through August 30. A free reception will be held opening night on Friday, May 10 from 5-8 p.m.

"I'm particularly excited about this exhibition because we're presenting riveting pieces from new artists whose work has been kept a bit private up until now," commented Little City Center for the Arts Administrator Frank Tumino. "Overall, we'll have an eclectic and truly unique collection representing all of our artists' work-something different from what is typically included in exhibitions."

Intuit will feature work from 11 artists who have exhibited both nationally and internationally. These artists include: Andy Bell, Charles Beinhoff, Peggy Brostrom, Lori Couve, Tarik Echols, Joe Flasch, Harold Jeffries, John King, Mike Lyon, Wayne Mazurek and Luke Tauber. The exhibit was co-curated by Matthew Arient and Frank Tumino.

"The title Beyond Influence refers the attitude of our artists and of outsider artists in general. They create because of an inner drive to create, and their work is a more personal expression than the work of other contemporary artists," said Frank Tumino. "No artist is free of influence altogether and the imprint of popular culture on our artists may certainly be pointed out. However, they remain relatively free of the influence of other contemporary artists and trends, and even free of each other's influence, although they share a working space."

The exhibition will also include advanced film previews of the much anticipated documentary, "Share my Kingdom," which delves into the lives of three of the exhibiting artists and premieres at the Gene Siskel Film Center on Oct. 9, 2013.

For over 25 years, Little City's Center for the Arts has been dedicated to providing opportunities for artistic expression for individuals with autism and other intellectual and developmental disabilities. Little City's Center for the Arts has exhibited in the most prestigious outsider arts museums around the world including London and Belgium most recently. Located on Little City's 56-acre campus in Palatine, the Center consists of a series of studios that focus on visual arts, painting, drawing, sculpture, printmaking, the applied arts and time-based media.

To purchase artwork, visit http://www.littlecityarts.org.

For complete information, visit http://www.littlecity.org or contact Sally Blake at sblake(at)littlecity(dot)org or 847-221-7831.

About Little City Foundation
For more than 50 years, Little City Foundation has developed innovative and personalized programs to fully assist and empower children and adults with autism and other intellectual and developmental disabilities. With a commitment to attaining a greater quality of life for Illinois' most vulnerable citizens, Little City actively promotes choice, person-centered planning and a holistic approach to health and wellness. Little City's ChildBridge services include in-home personal and family supports, clinical and behavior intervention, 24/7 residential services and special needs foster care and adoption. Little City's LifePath Adult Services offers a variety of residential options, employment opportunities, home-based services, case management, day supports, Special Olympics, an award-winning Center for the Arts and more. The organization has a 56-acre campus in Palatine and offices in Chicago. Visit http://www.littlecity.org.