John H. Sibley

John H. Sibley is a accomplished artist/author. Art and music have always been a part of his life. He grew up in a Chicago household listening to his father play the Boogie Woogie on his Steinway Grand Piano. His father was offered a gig with the Count Basie Band but he opted to marry and raise a family. John credits his cousin Levi, who is now blind,for mentoring

him in art.

His sci-fi novel BODYSLICK (he created 52 illustrations ) was published in 2008 by Vibe/Kensington in New York. Articles written and about Mr. Sibley has been in numerous publications: " To keep me reading is truly saying something." John W. Fountain, New York Times

"With creative writers like Sibley the sky is the limit." Rob Kenner,Vibe fiction editor

" The Adventurers of Bodyslick: BODYSLICK is set in a vividly detailed version of modern day Chicago." Sam Feldman, Chicago Weekly

" An absurdly gory novel." Publishers Weekly

"Sibley shows us that a futuristic Chicago is not for the timid." Library Journal, Rollie Welch

"There is an undulating jazz beat that courses through the work of John Sibley." Mary Houlihan, Chicago Suntimes

Sibley is a 2007 American Sports Artist nominee. His paintings are owned by: former Chicago Bull, John Salley, NFL icon Walter Payton, Mike Tyson, Revey Sorey,author Manik D.Dover, Mayor Richard J. Daley of Chicago.

He has appeared on WGN channel 9 in Chicago,ABC with Jim Rose, WNUA with jazz icon Ramsey Lewis, and was a courtroom artistfor CNN--covered the FLN trial.

Mr. Sibley is a 1994 graduate of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, holding a BFA in fine art.Sibley has worked 23 years as a supervisor for a hi-tech accoustic company and briefly taught in the Chicago public school system. He (resides in Chicago/Aurora and has two daughters and a son.

He has hired people from the Hesed House homeless shelter in Aurora and donated food to the Pacific Garden Mission in Chicago.

I was a Homeless artist in Chicago for six months. I found that being Homeless in the world, displaced,roofless, is one of the most terrifying challenges a human can experience. That is why I am so proud of my nonfiction book Being and Homelessness: Notes from an Underground Artist. The homeless problems have become a Malthusian nightmare not just in Chicago but in urban areas worldwide. That is why I wanted to share my experience which is both dreadful and liberating. Liberating in the context that " being " homeless made me abolish my need or desire for material trinkets.It liberated me from the worship of " things".

The book would never had been published without the literary genius of David B. Lentz at WordsworthGreenwich Press. A portion of the book sales will go to the Hesed House in Aurora Illinois and the Pacific Garden Mission in Chicago .

Beacon -News January 6,2022 1:08pm

Feature story title: Hesed House experience contributes to writer's being

HTTP://beaconnews.suntimes.com/news/9791