Bricktown Gets Its Own Magazine: 'Avondalia' Print Publication Debuts as Neighborhood Art Show Gears Up for Late Summer

By Socialhood News · Il/Chicago/Avondale · May 16, 2026

Avondale's creative community is writing — and painting — its own story this spring. Avondale resident Matt McCarthy has launched *Avondalia*, a brand-new neighborhood print publication, with his inaugural issue now out in the wild. Featuring work from local artists including a poem inspired by the iconic 1980s girl marquee at Belmont and Milwaukee, the debut issue is a love letter to Bricktown's layered cultural identity and a testament to the neighborhood's growing appetite for hyper-local storytelling.

The timing couldn't be better. Avondale Arts Chicago is already deep in planning mode for the *Avondalia Art Show: In Chorus and Cohesion*, an opening reception set for August 29 at Art Colony — with a series of community art stops planned throughout the neighborhood in the weeks leading up to Labor Day. Organizers are currently coordinating artist curations across Avondale's parks, plazas, cafes, bars, and venues, weaving together the kind of grassroots, neighbor-driven creative fabric that has long defined Bricktown. McCarthy himself is slated to be present at the August 29 opening, making the new publication and the art show natural complements to each other.

It all adds up to a summer of serious creative momentum in Avondale. Keep an eye on Avondale Arts Chicago's Substack — *avondalia.substack.com* — for artist features, event updates, and ways to plug into the show. And if you spot the new *Avondalia* magazine around the neighborhood, pick up a copy: Bricktown's story is being told from the inside, and it's worth reading.

Sources:
1. https://avondalia.substack.com/p/greetings-from-avondalia