TRUE MUSE ARTS: Building Rooms Where Art and Community Meet

I’m Linda Solotaire, Founder and Artistic Director of True Muse Arts. My life in the arts has always lived at the intersection of disciplines and communities — music, theater, movement, words, and the spaces where people gather to share them. I’ve spent decades as a performer, teacher, and collaborator, and if there’s one thing that has remained constant, it’s my belief that art is not something we should only consume — it’s something we should live inside of, build together, and share.

True Muse did not begin as an institution. It began as a practice.

In 2014, I founded what would become True Muse as a teaching and performing arts company — a home for mentoring, experimentation, and cross-disciplinary collaboration. At the time, the work was intimate and fluid: classes, workshops, performances, and creative partnerships that grew organically out of relationships and shared curiosity. Over time, something became very clear to me: what artists were really craving wasn’t just gigs or stages — it was context, community, and conversation.

That realization led, in 2019, to the creation of what has become our core public offering: the Second Sunday Salon Series.

The Salons were conceived as curated, welcoming, human-scale gatherings where musicians, poets, visual artists, dancers, and audiences could meet in the same room — not as performers and spectators, but as co-participants in a shared creative experience. A typical Salon might include music, spoken word, visual art on the walls, and sometimes dance — but more importantly, it includes presence, dialogue, and connection.

At its heart, True Muse Arts is part of a larger shift toward a more open, participatory, and human-centered arts culture — one where people don’t just consume art, but help shape it. True Muse Arts is about access, inclusion, and real human connection through art. We believe creativity is not a luxury, not a niche activity, and not something reserved for a select few. It belongs in neighborhoods. It belongs in shared spaces. It belongs to everyone.

From a Fixed Venue to a Floating Salon

For several years, the Salon series lived primarily in a single home base, which allowed us to grow steadily and build a loyal community. But as the project matured, so did our vision.

In 2025–2026, True Muse is evolving into a “floating Salon” model.

This means we are now partnering with multiple venues across the city in order to reach new communities and more diverse audiences. We are thrilled to count Colvin House on the North Side as one of our hosting collaborators, and we are actively seeking a South Side venue partner as well. This shift is not just logistical — it’s philosophical. We want our audience to be as diverse, expansive, and representative as the Chicago artists we curate and present.

Becoming a Nonprofit

In 2026, True Muse Arts is formally incorporating as a nonprofit organization. In many ways, this is simply bringing the structure into alignment with how the work has already been functioning for years: as a mission-driven, community-centered cultural platform.

Our mission is to:

• Democratize access to the arts

• Create meaningful platforms for artists of diverse backgrounds and disciplines

• Build spaces where culture is not just presented, but shared and experienced together

Artistic Lineage and the NON:op Connection

My own artistic lineage is deeply intertwined with NON:op Open Opera Works, the Chicago-based experimental and participatory arts organization founded by sound artist Christophe Preissing. I was an early performer and founding member of NON:op, and that work fundamentally shaped how I think about art, community, and participation.

NON:op’s long-standing commitment to socially engaged, participatory, and community-voiced work aligns profoundly with the values that guide True Muse. It’s no accident that we’re now exploring collaborations such as Inventory of Lost Books, and looking ahead to future partnerships around projects like Say Their Names and Listening Across Neighborhoods. These works share a core belief with True Muse: that art can hold memory, amplify voices, and create spaces for collective reflection and presence.

Our Collaborators and Creative Community

True Muse has always been built in collaboration.

Over the years, we’ve been honored to work with extraordinary partners and artists, including Cirque Rivera Dance Theatre (CRDT), whose performances have brought breathtaking movement, discipline, and storytelling into the Salon space, alongside musicians, poets, visual artists, and interdisciplinary performers from across Chicago’s creative ecosystem.

We believe in long relationships, not one-off bookings. Many artists return again and again — not just to perform, but to be part of a growing, evolving community.

Access, Students, Volunteers, and the Next Chapter

As we grow, we’re also focused on making our work more accessible in very practical ways. We’ve introduced a Student ticket price to welcome younger audiences and emerging artists into the room. We are also actively seeking event volunteers and new Board Members — people who believe in this work and want to help shape its future.

True Muse has always been built with community, not for it.

A Partial List of Artists Presented at the Salons

Over the years, the Second Sunday Salons have featured an extraordinary range of Chicago artists across disciplines, including (partial list, growing):

• Aimee Bass

• Alex Yelderman

• Andrea Change

• Billy Tuggle

• Bob Long

• Choroscope

• Chris Bernhardt

• Chuck Kramer

• Cirque Rivera Dance Theatre (CRDT)

• Clamor & Lace Noise Brigade

• Cojunto

• David Onderdonk

• Dian Lyn

• Diana Mosquera

• Diane Soubly

• Donovan Mixon

• Doug Lofstrum

• Elizabeth Harper

• Elizabeth Marino

• Fareed Haque

• Fred Simon

• Galina Shevchenko

• Ivan Ramos

• James Cornolo

• James Sanders

• Jean-Christophe Leroy

• Jody Burke-Kaiser

• John Beard

• Jose Porcayo

• Kevin O'Connell

• Laila Lee

• Lance Brown

• Lauren Staten

• Leandro Lopez Varady

• Linda Solotaire

• Louise Cloutier

• Lynn Fitzgerald

• Marc Kelly Smith

• Matthew Skoller

• Michael Levin

• Paul Abella

• Robin Watson

• Roberta Miles

• Sabina L. Lilly

• Sandra Schneider

• Shontay Luna

• Simon Burke-Kaiser

• Steve Hashimoto

• Stu Greenspan

• Tamara Glassburg

• Teresa Magaña

• The Last Word

• Val Leventhal

• Vincent Sanders

(A more complete historical archive of past Salons is being compiled from our Facebook and event records.)

An Invitation

True Muse Arts is, at its core, an invitation.

An invitation to artists. An invitation to neighbors. An invitation to audiences, collaborators, students, and supporters.

It’s an invitation to step into a room where disciplines meet, where stories are shared, and where creativity is not something you watch from a distance — but something you help build.