“Artist Roger Brown’s former home and studio has cleared its first major hurdle toward becoming a Chicago landmark, months after preservationists warned the 19th Century building could be vulnerable to demolition after being put up for sale.

“The Commission on Chicago Landmarks’ Program Committee voted unanimously this month to recommend landmark status for the property at 1926 N. Halsted St. The full landmarks commission will next consider the recommendation, followed by a vote from the Chicago City Council.

“The three-story building, where Brown lived and worked from 1974 until shortly before his death, became the focus of a preservation push this fall after the School of the Art Institute of Chicago listed it for sale. The building is currently under contract.

“After the building was listed, preservation groups quickly urged the city to intervene, arguing that the house played an essential role in Brown’s career and in Chicago’s Imagist movement.

“Susannah Ribstein, an SAIC historic preservation alum, helped author an open letter calling on the school to safeguard the property. The letter received nearly 600 signatures before it was submitted to the landmarks committee.

“In nearly 400 responses submitted to organizers, alumni and former students described the Halsted Street home as ‘one of the most magical places in Chicago,’ a ‘living archive,” and a space that ’completely changed the trajectory’ of their artistic lives.

“Brown was a leading figure in the imagist movement, a group of figurative artists in Chicago whose work gained popularity in the mid-1960s. He used the Halsted Street building as a combined home, studio and display space. SAIC operated it as the Roger Brown Study Collection for more than two decades after Brown donated the property to the school in 1996.” (Filbin, Block Club Chicago, 11/26/25) ss

Read the full story at Block Club Chicago

• Artist Roger Brown’s Lincoln Park Home And Studio Moves Closer To Landmark Status; Preservationists say the 19th-century Halsted Street building, once home to the famed imagist painter, deserves protection as the sale of the property continues, Patrick Filbin, Block Club Chicago, 11/26/25
• Preservationists rush to head off potential demolition of Roger Brown home, Dennis Rodkin, Crain’s Chicago Business, 9/19/25
• Roger Brown Home and Studio secures preliminary landmark; The 1888 home and studio building stands at 1926 N. Halsted, Lukas Kugler, Urbanize Chicago, 11/24/25
• ‘Incredibly important’ Imagist Roger Brown gave his collection to Chicago. How’d it end up in Wisconsin? As a new exhibition opens in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, some in the art world ponder whether the School of the Art Institute let slip a key piece of the city’s cultural history, Kyle MacMillan, WBEZ Chicago, 10/16/25
• Artist Roger Brown’s longtime home and studio for sale by School of the Art Institute, Dennis Rodkin, Crain’s Chicago Business, 9/12/25
• Landmark the Roger Brown Home and Studio — or lose it forever, Elizabeth Blasius and Susannah Ribstein Op-Ed, Chicago Tribune, 9/19/25
• The Future of Roger Brown’s Home & Studio, Rachel Freundt, Architecture and History of Chicagoland, 9/22/25
• Can Preservationists Save Artist Roger Brown’s Former Lincoln Park Home From Demolition? The famed artist’s Halsted Street residence and studio is under contract. Advocates want the city to landmark it before its history is lost, Patrick Filbin, Block Club Chicago, 9/23/25
• Open Letter to Preserve, Don’t Demolish, The Roger Brown Home and Studio
• Roger Brown Study Collection, Time Tells, Vince Michael Blog
• School of the Art Institute of Chicago to Sell its Roger Brown Study Collection to Kohler Foundation, School of the Art Institute
• Roger Brown House, 1926 N Halsted St, Chicago Listing