Stories by Marc Vitali

Buddy Guy called him “the next explosion of the blues” when he was still a teenager. The debut album by Christone “Kingfish” Ingram arrived this summer on Chicago’s Alligator Records – and this week earned a Grammy nomination.

An artist with a cult following in Japan and Europe has his first show in the United States, and it is in Chicago. We visit the exhibition “Self-Portrait of Other” for a strong dose of surrealism and satire.

Pop art gets reframed in a museum show that looks closely at the visual culture of the 1960s and ‘70s – and sheds light on an entire hemisphere of artwork that really pops.

From a Chicago blues club to South Africa, a new show at Steppenwolf Theatre explores music and love across cultures. We get a behind-the-scenes look at “Lindiwe.”

There are many treats on Chicago stages these days. Theater critic Hedy Weiss joins us with her latest roundup.

It was a moving memoir that became an Oscar-winning film before premiering as an opera in 2000. After more than 60 productions around the world, “Dead Man Walking” is now headed to Lyric Opera of Chicago for the first time.

George Klauba is back on the scene, but he no longer inks people. These days, he’s an acclaimed painter sought after by collectors locally and abroad. And his new series of paintings features tattoo art.

Louis Comfort Tiffany led an all-star team of artists and designers who could create almost anything out of glass: lamps, jewelry, mosaics and also artwork of a spiritual nature. We visit the exhibit “Eternal Light.” 

We go backstage as an actor prepares “The King’s Speech” at Chicago Shakespeare Theater – and remembers his role on “Downton Abbey.”

Bárcena, who last year became the first woman to hold her position, discusses immigration and the political relationship between the U.S. and Mexico. 

Artwork once under attack by the Russian government is now on view in Chicago. We explore a show at the One After 909 gallery in West Town.

Colorful and playful paintings hang next to erotic works and dark visions. An overlooked group of Chicago artists is getting its due – at a museum in Elmhurst.

Pizza is on the menu at a Chicago museum dedicated to the world-famous dish. We check out the collection of a curator with a craving.

Damon Williams has worked at City Hall, Subway and – for the last 27 years – has been a very busy stand-up comic. We catch up with Williams ahead of his benefit for Teamwork Englewood on Friday.

The legend of street photographer Vivian Maier has grown immeasurably since her death. Now the collector who acquired the majority of her work has made a gift to the University of Chicago: 2,700 of her images and some artifacts.

With a new record in the wings – and concerts around the world – one of Chicago’s hidden musical talents is increasingly becoming not so hidden. He recently turned 21 years old – but musically, Isaiah Collier is an old soul. 

There is a great variety of theater on stage in Chicago this fall. Critic Hedy Weiss recommends her current favorites.

As Ken Burns’ latest series “Country Music” airs on PBS, a look at Chicago’s role in the history of country music with local band Big Sadie.

It is an international destination for architecture fans. We visit Ludwig Mies van der Rohe’s Farnsworth House in Plano, Illinois, with a photographer from Berlin.

When there’s a jazz band on stage, there’s often an artist in the crowd. We visit a Chicagoan who obsessively draws the area’s jazz scene.

We visit The Conservation Center, the country’s largest private conservation lab, for a look at how they are rejuvenating an artful piece of Chinese history.

A Mexican artist who died 100 years ago still influences popular culture. Inside the exhibit “Jose Guadalupe Posada: Legendary Printmaker of Mexico.”

For decades, the southern border of the U.S. has been a flash point for conflicting points of view. Now, artists from both sides of the border – including Chicago – are navigating the rocky road of migration in “The Border Crossed Us.”

On Aug. 22, 1929, the North Side theater opened its doors as the first dedicated “talkie” house in Chicago. What makes this old movie house unique today.

Coins and cash are the focus the annual World’s Fair of Money. It’s in the Chicago area this year and we visited to get a load of all the loot.

We visit the newly upgraded Nettie McKinnon Gallery inside in Park Junior High School in La Grange Park.