When the Bronx-born Chicago house legend Frankie Knuckles passed away last year, he left a big empty void behind. Of course, the music he made will never be forgotten, but now it’s looking like his legacy will be taking some other forms as well, particularly in his adopted hometown. For one thing, the new Stony Island Arts Bank, a center for African-American art on the city’s South Side, will be the new home of the house pioneer’s vaunted vinyl archives. The Arts Bank’s founder has said that the center, which is scheduled to open its doors on October 3, will be “a hybrid gallery, media archive and library, and community center.”
Meanwhile, elsewhere in Chicago an effort is underway to recreate the Frankie Knuckles memorial mural that was just removed from a building in Logan Square due to water damage sustained by the structure. Word has it that the mural may be duplicated in Rogers Park. The public art organization Mile of Murals may be involved in the project, which has been successfully crowdfunded to the tune of $2,000. So Frankie Knuckles’ corporeal form may no longer be in Chicago, but it seems clear that the spirit of his music will continue to be celebrated there for a long time to come.