Edgar Miller Legacy

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Edgar Miller Legacy

Edgar Miller Legacy advances the appreciation of the life, philosophy and work of Edgar Miller.

Edgar Miller (1899-1993), a prolific artist, craftsman, and architect, never became a household name. Not all artists are recognized, but the tragedy is that Miller is barely known even in Chicago, home to nearly all of his work, and where a celebrated neighborhood would be completely different without his influence. Walk around Old Town and one sees buildings covered in interesting tiles and mosaics, intricately carved doors, zoological bas reliefs, and stained glass. It was Miller who incredibly hand-crafted all these buildings--artistic homes that comfortably rest between old world and modernist architecture--and it is Miller who deserves much credit for inspiring the neighborhood to become a bohemian enclave in the mid-20th century and laying the groundwork for what it has become today. After a recent tour of Miller's Glasner Studio on Wells Street, an architect from Germany, who was astounded, as most are, upon seeing the unknown artist's masterpiece, said he felt newly challenged by Miller's work, saying that "this shows we can all do better than what we are doing... that we can infuse more creativity into our work." This is the ultimate goal of the Edgar Miller Legacy: to inspire current creatives in all fields of art and design to push beyond what they believe is possible, as Miller seemed to do all too effortlessly.

10/06/2026

Join us for our final showcase of our summer-fall exhibition, opening Thursday, October 15th during Lincoln Park Art Night! From 5:30-8:30PM enjoy light hors d'oeuvres, drinks, treats, and music at the Art on Sedgwick Gallery, 1404-1408 N. Sedgwick St., Chicago.

The Handmade Histories exhibition, presented in partnership with Art on Sedgwick, will culminate in a celebration of local creative legacy. Edgar Miller’s full impact is measured not just in the brick and mortar spaces he left behind, but also in the creative lineage he inspired. The “Memory + Legacy” Showcase brings together artists who continue to be moved by Miller’s radical, multidisciplinary approach. Their works are a testament to a century of progress: a reminder that while neighborhoods shift and decades pass, the handmade tradition remains a living, breathing dialogue between past, present, and future.

This last showcase will exhibit the works by Edgar Miller himself, as well as by John Bakker, Jean Birkenstein Washington, Sharon Bladholm, Claudia Cleveland, Hannah Dykstra, Paul Hansen, Bob Horn, Larry Kolden, and Larry Zgoda. Many of these artists were among those who worked closest with Miller over his last decade during the 1980s and early ‘90s, and who have been strongly influenced by his design style and the handmade tradition. This showcase will also celebrate the over fourteen years of community building and creative spirit cultivated by Art on Sedgwick. Come and explore the artistic legacy that weaves its way through the Old Town community.

09/22/2026

Edgar Miller's German shepherd Sculptures for the Exedra of Colonel Robert R. McCormick’s Tomb at Cantigny, in Wheaton, Illinois with Andrew Rebori, 1955. Swipe to view historic photographs of the sculptures under construction and reference photographs.

Depicting two of the Colonel’s family's German shepherds Edgar Miller was offered numerous commissions through close architect colleagues and friends that he met along the way in his early career. Not the least amongst these creative partners was Andrew Rebori, whose well-known 1936 collaboration with Miller resulted in the landmark Frank Fisher Apartments at 1209 North State Parkway in Chicago. Also during the 1930s, Rebori found other artistic commissions for Miller, including to design the sculptures for the tomb of Col. Robert R. McCormick, owner of "The Chicago Tribune" starting in 1910.

McCormick lived at his family’s Cantigny home for the last decade of his life, and upon his death in 1955, he left his entire 500-acre estate to his foundation for use as a public garden and museum. He also wished to be entombed next to his late wife, artist Amy Irwin McCormick, beside their Cantigny home. Rebori had been tapped decades earlier to design the layout of the tomb in a classical style. The final design of the tomb was modeled after an Ancient Greek exedra—a semicircular public meeting place traditionally used for talking and exchanging news. Rebori’s design harkens both to the simplicity of the Greco-Roman era while also fitting in with the art moderne approach he leaned towards in the Thirties.

Edgar Miller was brought in to design and carve the sculptures of two of the McCormicks’ beloved pet hounds to watch over their graves. However, Rebori and Miller weren’t paid for their work until the tomb was built much later, following McCormick’s death in the mid-1950s. When he was finally paid, Edgar said, it was at Depression rates. “That was the colonel.”

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08/28/2026

Now on view at The Art Institute of Chicago in Gallery 144!! A panel of "Edgar Miller's Great Chicago Fire of 1871" mural designed for the Standard Club of Chicago in 1954. Miller carved scenes depicting the onset all the way through to the city's rebuilding across four stunning panels of carved, black "battleship linoleum" material that emulates an Art Deco painted lacquer or etched metal aesthetic.

Miller was commissioned by the Standard Club--a predominantly Jewish social club--that resided in an Albert Kahn building on South Plymouth Court in the Loop. Miller carved the mural panels on site in the club's cocktail lounge, where they remained in place for over seventy years. The entire piece was designed as a testament to the city's industriousness and perseverance even after a devastating cataclysm.

True to his playful nature, Miller's infused his etched designs for the murals with a wide range of human activity, nature, and architectural ornamentation. These elements all add his characteristic whimsical texture to an otherwise staid, monochromatic work. In this piece, the second of four of the "Chicago Fire" panels, one can see different aspects of daily life from 1870s Chicago, especially with the hectic events of the fire depicted in full swing: firemen rousing from bed, a team driving a "steamer" firefighting wagon, a neighborhood official addressing a crowd, and, of course, stray cats and dogs taking advantage of the mayhem. Every animal and person is given their own space and personality in the lively scene. Most interesting is Miller's vision to provide a cross-section of the fire station so that viewers can see the activity within.

The murals are undergoing an extensive restoration by the Art Institute's conservation team, who have worked tirelessly to ensure the artwork is in top condition. This panel ison display in the "Chicago Gallery" at the Art Institute, directly across the foyer from the Marc Chagall America Windows.

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08/23/2026

"Of the millions of men and women who have made their mark here, few were as prolific and artful as Edgar Miller...this spectacular new book, 'A Total Work of Art: The Story of Edgar Miller,' will go a long way in bringing this rare talent into our present frenetic times."

Check out the review in the Chicago Tribune of the newly published graphic novel by Hannah Dykstra and Jeff Kruse, which recounts the biography of one of Chicago's greatest creative minds, "a life story that the writers say 'borders on the unbelievable,' is captured in lively, colorful and evocative drawings and words."

"The words...are to the point and often poetic...Dykstra’s drawings are beautifully detailed, thoughtful, charming and evocative."

Learn more about this one-of-a-kind publication that explores the very nature of art, history, and creative legacy at the link in our bio!

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08/10/2026

A wonderful spread of incredible images from the Edgar Miller Legacy archives and by Alexander Vertikoff in the latest volume of The Journal of Stained Glass.

The essay "Edgar Miller: Chicago's artist-designer and master craftsman" by Zac Bleicher shares the story of Miller's ornamental design-work, particularly his stained glass, as part of a lineage of equally prolific Midwestern modernists including Alfonso Iannelli.

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07/29/2026

Now on view: "Animals in the Garden" by Edgar Miller, c. 1960. Oil on canvas (two of three mural panels). See it at Art on Sedgwick Gallery this month only! See this piece and other original, never-before-exhibited pieces at the Handmade Histories Showcase. Check out the link in our bio for visitation times under Programs & Events.

Edgar Miller's love if animals and nature are on full display in this unique painted scene, where a convention of pawed mammals, feathered friends, and other critters gather together in a garden. Perhaps inspired by Miller’s own garden behind his home in the Edgewater neighborhood of Chicago, and even some of his pets, Miller painted this mural for the children of a neighbor, Margaret Bivins. At some point the piece returned to the Millers. As the neighbors’ and the Millers’ own children grew up, there was less and less interest in displaying murals in their home. In the 1960s, the Millers sold or gave away much of their home’s contents before they moved to Clearwater, Florida, and another neighbor and local collector named John Toman acquired the murals from Miller himself.

Collection of Edgar Miller Legacy | Gift of the Estate of John Toman

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07/25/2026

Join us for our Handmade Histories exhibition opening week at Art on Sedgwick Gallery! Open daily from July 25th to August 1st.

Stop by, see original Edgar Miller art never-before-exhibited, explore the one hundred year-long story of Old Town's art and design, and discover how the new graphic novel was made. More info in our link in our bio!

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07/18/2026

Join us this coming Friday, July 24th starting at 5:30PM for the "Handmade Histories" exhibition opening at Art On Sedgwick Gallery at 1404 North Sedgwick Street, Chicago. Free registration at the link in our bio!

The Old Town neighborhood has grown, struggled, evolved, and now thrives thanks to the unifying spirit that many artists who lived and worked in the vibrant and diverse part of the city. These creative individuals used art to uplift the voices of all members of the community in different mediums and ways over the last one hundred years.

In 1927, artist-designer Edgar Miller began transforming the architectural fabric of what would become the Old Town neighborhood by the midcentury. Now, one hundred years later, Edgar Miller Legacy and Art on Sedgwick are proud to celebrate some of the city’s great artists including Edgar Miller, Jean Birkenstein Washington, William Walker, and Hannah Lee Dykstra who all made a name for themselves in the Near North Side area of Chicago. Through three distinct rotating showcases, Handmade Histories explores how Old Town became a crossroads of a rapidly changing urban environment defined by its artistic nature, modernist aesthetic, traditional craft, and generational legacy.

Join us for our first Showcase: Community + Garden, as we explore how elements and animals from the natural environment inspired local artists to create the neighborhood's iconic aesthetic.

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07/15/2026

Join us for our opening event, Friday, July 24th from 5:30PM at Art on Sedgwick Gallery, 1404 North Sedgwick Street, Chicago, with food, drinks, as well as never-before-seen original Edgar Miller and inspired art! Link in our bio for event and exhibition details.

From July 24th to November 15th, 2026, Edgar Miller Legacy, in partnership with Art on Sedgwick, is proud to present the Handmade Histories exhibition and learning experience. The exhibition celebrates and explores the content of the very first graphic novel about the life of the twentieth century artist-designer, Edgar Miller, published by EML in 2026. Original works by Hannah Lee Dykstra, the novel’s artist and illustrator, will be on display, as well as works by other local Chicago artists, including Jean Birkenstein Washington, Larry Zgoda, Bob Horn, Sharon Bladholm, Claudia Cleveland, Larry Kolden, John Bakker, and Edgar Miller himself. Through three distinct rotating showcases, Handmade Histories explores how Old Town became a crossroads of a rapidly changing urban environment defined by its artistic nature, modernist aesthetic, traditional craft, and generational legacy.

This exhibition bridges the past with the present, charting a hundred years of neighborhood evolution, artistic progress, and the enduring power of the handmade tradition. We hope to see you there!

Address

1408 N Sedgwick
Chicago, IL
60610

Telephone

312.690.7359

Website

http://www.edgarmiller.org/

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