For the Media

All images are courtesy of Marwen and approved for download. Please contact our Communications team with any further requests.

Kennon Reinard, Director of Communications, kreinard@marwen.org

Panagiota Valkanas, Communications Coordinator, pvalkanas@marwen.org

Our Young Artists

A young artist takes a photo in dramatic purple and pink lighting.

A graffiti wall in progress sits in one of Marwen’s studios.

Bins of pastels and blenders sit atop a wooden table.

A smiling young artist shows a preview of a photo on their camera to another person.

Smiling young artists work on fiber arts in the Marwen fashion studio.

An artist flips a page in a large sketchbook.

A young artist works on draping fabric in Marwen’s fashion studio.

A group of four young artists work on collage pieces.

An artist draws with pastels on a large piece of paper.

A close up image of hands smoothing papier mache spheres.

About Us

Marwen educates and inspires young people to nurture their growth and build their futures through art and community. Founded in 1987, Marwen has supported nearly 16,000 young people through our no-cost studio arts courses, academic mentorship, and professional development programs. Our programs are especially crucial to Chicago’s low-income communities of color, who face systemic barriers to accessing high-quality arts education and pathways to creative careers. Marwen’s programming nurtures young people’s creative expression, affirms their identities and choices, and builds their connections to peers and mentors. The skills, confidence, and relationships that begin at Marwen open doors to futures filled with possibilities. Marwen relies on support from generous donors to sustain our robust programming and to keep all our programs at no cost to young people and their families. Visit us at marwen.org.

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Our Building and Studios

Marwen Events

Executive Director Akilah Halley

Akilah Halley (she/her), a Marwen alum, was appointed Executive Director in October 2018. Previously, she served as Marwen’s Deputy Director and a member of the Board of Directors for eight years. Akilah’s experience focuses on human-centered strategies for social change through youth and community development. Her past roles include leading communications and family engagement with Crown Family Philanthropies, marketing with Urban Gateways, and external relations with Chicago Public Schools. She is a member of Chicago’s Cultural Advisory Council and an alum of the Sorkin Center Children Leadership Program and National Arts Strategies Chief Executive Program. Akilah served on Mayor Lightfoot’s Arts and Culture Transition Committee Co-Chair and is a former co-chair of Chicago African Americans in Philanthropy. She holds a graduate degree in design planning from the Institute of Design at Illinois Institute of Technology and a BFA in industrial design from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign.