C Drew - Street Artist Adventures

Artists Give Chicago an Ultimatum,

Chicago Artists from the Free Speech Artists’ Movement have given the City of Chicago an ultimatum to exempt artists from the peddlers license or go to court over the artists’ First Amendment right to sell their art on the public sidewalks and in the parks of Chicago. The artists of the Free Speech Artists’ Movement (Free S.A.M.) say the City writes broad laws claiming to control traffic on sidewalks that impact their speech rights enormously. The artists point out First Amendment case law demands narrow laws whenever writing laws that limit First Amendment protected speech. Free S.A.M. artists claim their art is protected speech. They are willing to fight for their right to survive in Chicago.

In Chicago, homeless persons have won the right to panhandle in the Loop based on their protected First Amendment right to free speech. But a homeless person, if he is an artist, can’t ask you for the same dollar for a portrait on a paper plate because he has lost his speech right to do so. Jobless artists also miss this speech right. Street artists are criminalized in Chicago. Their rights are legislated away. World famous, Lee Godi, who made her mark selling her paintings around the steps of the Art Institute, under today’s laws, would be jailed and never be able to become known.

Art fairs, neighborhood festivals and especially the closed gallery scenes of Chicago are not viable alternatives to the right to sell your art on the street, where you are able to meet directly with your audience on a daily basis. With their freedom to sell in public, artists can create open-air art markets with poetry and song in Chicago. More tourists and more artists would be attracted to Chicago. Our economy would grow.

The Free Speech Artists’ Movement is producing the Art Patch Project to use the art of a growing number of Chicago-based artists to educate the public about artists rights to sell art openly. Artists are giving art patches away in locations wherever art sales are prohibited in public. Art-patch activist, C. Drew expects to build the Art Patch Project for as many years as it takes to change Chicago – to make Chicago friendly to artists.

The first exhibit of art patches submitted will be at the annual “T-shirt Art Harvest Festival”, September 25-27, at the American Indian Center, 1630 W. Wilson. “This exhibit will grow and these Art Patches will travel the world before they rest,” community art organizer C. Drew boasts. “Because,”he says, “the patches promote each artist and also fight for artists’ rights. It is a win-win situation for artists.” Visit art-teez.org/free-speech.htm for more info and to submit art to the Art Patch Project. Or read c-drew.com/blog to follow Movement adventures.

Chicago must showcase its local artists and be a friendly place for artists to locate to compete in a global theater with other cities for tourism. The City wins when it supports its artists because it becomes an artist magnet that will make Chicago able to compete with other world class cities. Increased art activity strengthens the local economy. Artists need their right to sell their art to survive. Chicago must flower culturally. This is why a copy of this press release has been e-mailed to all 50 Chicago Aldermen with a request for them to propose and pass legislation to exempt all Chicago artists from the peddlers license requirement. We want our speech rights back.