Chicago murals: Highwood helps bring healing after Highland Park parade shooting

Laura “Lulu” Reich was living in New York during the July 4, 2022, parade shooting in Highland Park, her hometown. She’s an art dealer and curator in New York and once owned her own gallery there.

But last summer, determined to help Highland Park heal from the tragedy that took seven lives, she returned home to curate a collection of 12 street murals in neighboring Highwood for the town’s first Highwood International Mural Festival.

Walking Highwood streets earlier this month, Reich blinked back tears as she admired the walls. The festival had such a profound impact on her that she and her fiance, Chris “KOZ” Kozloff, are looking to move back. Kozloff is co-owner of Silvertuna Studios production company.

“I know how much everyone has gone through there,” Reich says.

“Our artists painted their hearts out for us, and their work shows how public art heals by bringing us together.”

The couple plans to return not only to reconnect with Reich’s roots, but because they say they realize their work is needed. Some of the artists who painted in Highwood might sell out a big-city gallery, Reich says. But here, their work is featured on walls that are an easy day trip from around Chicago and the suburbs, by car or by train.

“We’re missing an opportunity here. New York is oversaturated” with artists, Kozloff says. The new murals “turned (Highwood) into an art city.”

Reich commissioned six artists from Chicago, six from New York and one from the Netherlands to paint the library, sides of stores and restaurants and walls fronting the Metra train tracks that run through town.

In fact, watching murals from the train in New York was how she fell in love with graffiti and street murals, Reich says, prompting her to switch occupations from her corporate job to the art world.

So, “this is changing people’s commute every day,” Reich says.

The festival also was an opportunity to create bonds among artists she knows from where she grew up and where she lives now — including Al Diaz, Anna Murphy, Asend, Chris RWK, Dont Fret, Eelco, E Lee, Epic Uno, Rubén Aguirre, Stuk One, Wane COD and Zimad. Their creations include caricatures of Highwood and Highland Park residents; multi-tier, Mario Bros.-inspired kitsch; kaleidoscopic animal faces; rainbow-colored, hand-written text musings; pastel robots and more.

Reich originally approached Highland Park about the murals, she says, but the city wasn’t ready to accommodate them at that time. She hopes to work with that city in the future.

Highwood isn’t planning another mural festival this year, but hasn’t ruled it out in the future, says Ilyse Strongin, who handles communications for the city. She said the event joins Highwood’s long tradition of festivals and celebrations.

“It’s in line with what Highwood does. It’s about beautifying the community,” she says.

Highwood resident Lenny Innocenzi, owner of Buffo’s Restaurant, says he’s proud of the multi-tier Mario Bros. art running up the sides and rooftop of his eatery, ending with a green-spotted mushroom on top. He hopes the festival returns with more murals around his beloved city.

“Let’s do it again. Let’s keep it going,” he says.