Prime 8 Art League
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About

Our Story

 

In 2011, eight members of Gorilla Group’s creative team set forth to stay connected to Chicago’s local art scene as many of them had backgrounds in printmaking, painting, photography and music. As a result, the team convinced the company to fund a passion project to conduct a local “Call for Artists” application process, commission those artists and host an event celebrating the newly created pieces. 60 applicants later (we selected five) and a cover page write up in the Chicago Reader (see below) provided us with signals that we were onto something worth pursuing. This project would affectionately be called the Prime Eight Art League.

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Here is the first promo video from our local “Call for Artists” application process back in 2011. It’s definitely rough around the edges but then again so were we.

The Prime 8 Art League's mission is to nurture and expose the work of new and emerging artists. We're a different kind of gallery, looking for a different kind of artist.

For the next six years we continued to improve the application process, partnered with strategic brands/companies and leveled up the experience of being part of the Prime Eight Art League ecosystem.

In 2016, we hosted our most ambitious fundraising event at the House of Vans in Chicago showcasing artists from around the world, live painting, big ticket raffle, live entertainment and more (see recap below). All proceeds from the evening went to our great friends and official NFP partner Marwen.

The Prime 8 Art League's 6th Annual Charity Art Event took place at House of Vans, in the heart of Chicago’s bustling West Loop. The free event showcased the 2017 selected applicants work, entertainment, food, refreshments and a charity raffle which included several big ticket prizes. All proceeds generated from the raffle and related activities were donated to Marwen, an organization dedicated to providing visual arts instruction to under-served youth throughout the Chicago area. Sponsors: Gorilla Group, Marwen, Blick, House of Vans, Rightway Signs, Chicago Blackhawks, Lettuce Entertain You, Goose Island Brewery, Tavern at the Park, Leftcoast Food & Juice, Winestyr, Lou Malnatis, The Bird Machine, Matthew Hoffman, Chicago Truborn, Galerie F, Bottom Line Yogo, Franken Toy Mobile, Heritage Bicycles and Unison. Artists: Ches Perry, Anthony Lewellen, Erik Lundquist, Jesse Hora, Junkyard, Lauren Asta, Elloo Elloo and Uncle Harvey Videography/Edit: Furnace FPS - (http://furnacefps.com/) Soundtrack: Just One by Body Music - (https://soundcloud.com/bodymusicband/just-one?mc_cid=0f8348c755&mc_eid=82abe1b652)

In 2017, we shifted gears and sunset the application process to pursue the service offerings of creative consultation and creator representation. As a result, we have been privileged to work with brands like Facebook, Instagram, Vans, New Era Caps, Brooklyn Boulders and more.

 
 
 

Our Mission

Connect the creator community with influential brands, technology shops and creative agencies as a means to activate, inspire and challenge the private sector.

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Events

Our events showcase art from the creator community, live entertainment, food, refreshments and a big ticket charity raffle. All proceeds generated from our events are donated to Marwen, an organization dedicated to providing visual arts instruction to under-served youth throughout the Chicago area.