Exhibit features West Chicago buildings, scenes

Maggie Capettini may live in Downers Grove, but she draws quite a bit of artistic inspiration from the town where she works - West Chicago.

An exhibit called "West Chicago/Meeting Place" displays nearly 20 of Capettini's oil paintings - featuring historic homes and buildings, train depots and downtown scenes - through Sunday, Aug. 28, at Gallery 200, 200 Main St., West Chicago.

Capettini, who serves as museum educator at the West Chicago City Museum, became enchanted with West Chicago's historic downtown area as she spent time learning its history.

"The town is such a gem, filled with old buildings with beautiful architectural details. People will come into the museum for the first time and say, 'I had no idea what a great town this is,' " Capettini said. "I wanted to create a series of paintings to call attention to the beauty that exists here. Hopefully this will inspire folks who have never been to downtown West Chicago to come and see for themselves."

Year-round, Capettini takes her easel and paints outdoors to create plein air paintings. Also an avid photographer, she creates studio works from a vast collection of inspirational images she gathers in her day-to-day life. Her works are held in private collections in the United States and Canada. Learn more about her at maggiecapettini.wordpress.com or maggiecapettini.com.

For information about the exhibit, visit westchicago.org.