CHICAGO — The Andersonville Arts Weekend is taking over the Far North Side, showcasing dozens of Chicago-based artists.

Long-time employee Samuel Saenz has tended to the Flora and Fauna for years with his artistic flare on display.

“The people I work with are incredible,” Saenz said.

He is one of the dozens of Chicago-based artists showcased in this year’s Andersonville Arts Weekend.

Though he works with multiple mediums, many of his paintings tell a deeper story.

“Showing one piece, showing three pieces, or five pieces or selling artwork is an insane feeling every time,” Saenz said.

He says the Mexican tradition is you do what gives you life, and the symbols in his work are an ode to it.

Another young artist just starting out at Las Manos Gallery on Foster Avenue is participating in his first show ever.

“Chicago always treats me well,” Ian Peterson-Garcia said.

Peterson-Garcia recently moved to Chicago from Puerto Rico is displaying his enhanced photos of New York City.

“My abuela does mosaic, my aunt does woodwork, my dad is a painter, my mom was a jeweler and Puerto Rico has music and culture is always open to the goodness of people, “Peterson-Garcia said.

It is the goodness of people and their stories told through art in a unique way.

“So as opposed to an art fair where people set up tents, this is an entire self-tour of businesses in Andersonville — hosting individual artists,” Charlie Wein, from the Andersonville Chamber of Commerce said.

In a neighborhood born of Swedish roots, art is the bridge of culture coming together along one street.