SPlog

The exhibition happens every two years. This year’s exhibition, 2021 State of the Art Ceramics Biennial “The Living World in Clay,” was curated by artist and Parkland professor Chris Berti. The exhibition is on view …

On November 10th, YWCA of University of Illinois is partnering with Business Elevator to  host a free workshop: Elevating Women Entrepreneurs. The workshop will take place at Douglass Branch Library from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., and …

Winter is creeping closer and I am finding myself seeking out warm, hearty comfort food. This led me to stray from my go-to steakburger at Hamilton Walker’s last night and order the meatloaf dinner ($26). …

Krannert Center for the Performing Arts is offering three kid-friendly productions via its Youth Series. They are available for viewing online and can be purchased as group passes through December 1st.  Honolulu Theatre Youth Series: …

Urbana-based jazz and funk band The Data Waves have a new EP out titled Puesta Del Sol. The EP is collaboration with Atlanta-based singer Miyka’el, as well as yourbeautifulruin, who helps provide keyboards and synths. The four tracks …

Meet the artists behind In Between: The Places We Meet at their opening event on Saturday, November 6th, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Lincoln Square Mall. Stay for a while, get inspired, and …

The Community Solutions Incubator, an initiative of the Community Foundation of East Central Illinois, will be starting a new cohort of potential nonprofit starters in 2022. Application are now open for anyone who is looking …

University of Illinois Press is holding a yard sale of overstock books from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday, November 6th at the Oak Street location’s parking lot. This is a shine-only event, so no …

CU Poetry group will be gathering on the front porch at Common Ground Food Co-op on Saturday, November 6th from 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. Arrive a little early, browse the Winter Farmers Market at …

Hunny Bunny Bakes will open a retail storefront location at 2000 S Neil St. The location will have baked goods, of course, as well as some cake-related paraphernalia. Read a little about the new storefront …

Students in the Business in Action class are partnering with The Land Connection on a project that looks at grocery and produce purchasing in the community. In order to better understand what that looks like …

Stop by Lincoln Square Mall on Saturday, November 6th and Sunday, November 7th for the Illinois Prairie chapter of the Ikenobo Ikebana Society of America’s “Harvest of Flowers” exhibition.  Ikebana is a type of Japanese …

The Brass Rail has announced their date and lineup for Rail Fest this year.  Starting at 2 p.m. on December 5th, 2021, the festival will see Brendan Kelly, Matt Talbott (of HUM), Canadian Rifle, Yaptraps, …

Azlan Smith, an HRI Public Humanities Fellow and MFA Candidate in the English Department’s Creative Writing Program, is launching a collaborative community storytelling intiative called Voices: Memory as Connection.  “Voices tells some of the stories …

Yesterday, the CDC gave the final stamp of approval for an Emergency Use Authorization for a lower dose COVID-19 vaccine for kids age 5 to 11, and parents everywhere breathed a collective sign of relief.  …

There are some very unique items that find their way into donation centers, and sometimes those items are quite rare and valuable. Champaign County Restore received this Ghostbusters ceiling fan, and it seems to be …

Halloween has past, and those pumpkins, gourds, and jack-o-lanterns on your front porch are only going to last so long. If you don’t want them to rot and melt into your yard and grow rogue …

After developing the program throughout the past year, Illinois Public Media and the U of I Department of Journalism are officially announcing their collaborative initiative, the Illinois Public Media Student Newsroom. The newsroom will be …

Next week marks the 83rd anniversary of Kristallnacht. On November 9th, 1938, “rioters destroyed hundreds of synagogues, many of them burned in full view of firefighters and the German public and looted more than 7,000 …

Oprah no longer has the legendary “Favorite Things” episodes of her show, but she still makes a favorite things list for her magazine. This year, one of the featured products has a local connection. The …

Alexander’s Steakhouse announced yesterday that the restaurant will be temporarily closed until further notice. Citing negative impacts from lack of staff, the steakhouse hopes to hire and add to their staff, so they can reopen in the …

A new food truck in town called Maria’s Kitchen has not opened yet but will serve Filipino-American food soon in Champaign-Urbana. Although no menu has been posted, we can expect to see both Filipino food …

Parkland’s Staerkel Planetarium is hosting the James B. Kaler Science Lecture Series at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, November 5th. Dr. Caleb Brooks, associate professor in the Department of Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering at the …

An exciting new collaboration between the University of Illinois Ricker Library of Architecture and Art and the Society of Art Historians and Archaeologists opens this week at the Link Gallery. Reviewing the Reviewers: What Critics …

Launching November 4th, the LIFT program will serve African American youth, and their families, in Unit 4 schools who are experiencing academic and/or personal challenges. The program will provide “trauma-informed care through intensive wraparound support …

The Parade of Lights is back in person this year, and Champaign Center Partnership is looking for some volunteers to help make it run smoothly. There are numerous opportunities, from set up and tear down …

It’s always a good day to shop at a small grocer. I checked out Maligaya’s Oriental Market, a Filipino grocery, at their new location on North Prospect where the store moved to this past March.  Where …

SimBioSys is an EnterpriseWorks startup at Research Park and they are raising capital for their TumorScope software. This latest fundraising brings their total to $21 million. The software is a “simulation-based, precision medicine platform enables …

Word on the street (or at least in the Champaign Urbana History Facebook group) is that the Orpheum Theatre has been sold. It is no longer listed at Champaign County Realty, after going up on …

The Champaign-Urbana based skate punk band Long Birds have unveiled their new website, which you can check out here. It’s a horrible, amazing, ugly, fun, colorful, and unapologetically 90s experience. Seriously, it’s a lot of …

The ​​Champaign County Camera Club is hosting its 2022 Best in Show competition. The entry form is available online; entries are due by 6 p.m. on January 26th, 2022.  There are eight awards (cash and …

If you like your art with a side of Halloween horror, be sure to check out the Nightmare on Fourth Street exhibit at the Bloc Gallery. A celebration of the work of Patrick Hammie’s Art + …

In Between: The Places We Meet, a pop-up art exhibit, will be unveiled at Lincoln Square Mall, outside of Art Coop on November 6th. The portable construction created by Alice Yumi Sinzato and Sara Grace …

After years of stops and starts, the official groundbreaking ceremony for the soon to be Hotel Royer happened today. Urbana Free Library shared some photos of the Lincoln Hotel when it was first under construction …

CUDO Plays annual Playtest Convention is coming up November 6th from 1 to 5 p.m. at the Champaign Public Library. The event is free and open to all ages, though kids under 10 should be …

Last week I tried the stuffed cupcake ($5.50), which was an apple cider cupcake with salted caramel and it was really wonderful. The cake was very moist and tasted like apple cider in the best …

Homegrown, a new restaurant at Atkins Golf Club, will be opening in December for dinner service. The farm to table restaurant will be managed by Ryan and Abbie Rogiers, owners of The Wheelhouse in St. …

Opened this summer, the second Café Kopi resides in Business Instructional Facility (BIF) on the U of I campus serving coffee, tea, salads, sandwiches, pitas, paninis, and more. I was able to check it out …

After two years of postponements due to COVID, the Illinois Marathon is happening in April 2022. Registration is open now for all of the races, and prices will go up Sunday. Here is a rundown …

ICYMI: The Champaign Public Library is sponsoring a short story contest and submissions are due by November 5th. Get the details on guidelines, prizes, and the last of the fiction writing workshops to prepare you …

Spurlock Museum is hosting a dance workout event with Arnol Guity-Martinez, a Garifuna-American dancer and founder of GarifunaRobics. On Thursday, October 28th at 6 p.m., you can learn a little about Garifuna culture, then learn some basic steps …

After a year of going Virtual, Diwali on the Quad is back in person this Saturday. From 6 to 10 p.m., you can light candles on the Quad, purchase Indian food, and enjoy a Bollywood …

University of Illinois Associate Professor of Journalism Nikki Usher was recently interviewed by Book TV, a C-SPAN program, about her latest book, News for the Rich, White, and Blue. I know C-SPAN has a reputation …

Cloud Mountain Kombucha is open and sharing the space with RegCakes in the Lincoln Square Mall. At the new kombucha spot, you can enjoy kombucha on draft by the full and half pint pours, or …

Urbana-based punk rockers The Get Gones have released a new single titled “Risk It All.”  The minute and a half song kicks off with a sample from the film Dumb and Dumber before diving headfirst into some …

Which is a big deal! Oliver is a dancer, choreographer, scholar, and Professor and Associate Vice Chancellor for Research in the Humanities, Arts, and Related Fields at the University of Illinois. The Doris Duke Award …

U of I Extension horticulturists are leading a special Halloween edition of LIVE with the Horticulturists this Wednesday, October 27th at 7 p.m. on Facebook. You’ll learn about all sorts of creepy and spooky plants …

The City of Urbana is partnering with local businesses for Downtown Trick-or-Treat on Friday, October 29th from 12 to 5 p.m. In addition, Urbana Arts and Culture Program and The Urbana Free Library will be hosting …