Lake Shore Dive Puts Chicago's Creative Community in the Spotlight
A new window of opportunity exists for Chicago’s creative community to showcase their work. Lake Shore Dive is a new outlet for musicians and artists to collaborate in a unique environment. The pop-up dive bar will appear in various neighborhoods in the city. Chicago natives Julianne Ishler and Katie Conway are the brains behind “Lake Shore Dive”. As a finalist for Red Eye’s 2017 Big Idea Awards under the category of Arts and Design, this pop up dive bar is for the city of Chicago, by the city of Chicago. Julianne explained that “[we] wanted to do a pop up [bar] rather than a fixed location so we can bring opportunities to different neighborhoods around the city”. LSD’s blueprint consists of taking over bars for a specific amount of time, bringing in local artists to showcase their work, as well as local musicians to perform at the bar venue. In addition, hip-hop themed drinks will be available for those who attend the Lake Shore Dive scene.
The Kickstarter party this past Saturday was a spontaneous idea that turned out to be beneficial for Lake Shore Dive’s brand awareness, and helped contribute to funding for future parties before their first official bar scene. Artists of Lake Shore Dive’s signature hip-hop pieces were Meghan Edwards, Emily Martens, Sean Conway, Emily Franklin, Rachel Martorana, and Kevin Deasy. Featured artists included Liz Fang, Jen Adams, Reddor Santiago, and Lydia House. About an hour into the night, Bree Morton and Gabriel Evans kicked off performances, followed by Sterling (Alex Makris and Jake Ishler), and ending with the rap duo $UIT who brought out female rapper Whales. DJ Patzaddy was also contributing to sounds throughout the night. Members of the community who attended were able to socialize, tune into the music, and sip on the Chance and Jeremih themed drinks like the “Merry Xmas Lil Mama” and “Snowed In” cocktails. The tasteful “Cocoa Butter Kisses” shot was another option for people to try. The night was engaging for all who attended and turned out to be a successful event as the end of 2017 nears.
As 2018 approaches, Lake Shore Dive has ambitious plans for the New Year. More events like Saturday’s Kickstarter party will take place before their first official Pop-up at a Chicago bar, which Julianne and Katie are optimistic will happen in the Spring. Be sure to keep up with Lake Shore Dive in 2018 to experience Chicago’s creativity and culture in a new and innovative environment
