About PhotoNotes

Photos with a neighborhood dimension

PhotoNotes is a visual record of Chicago's Marquette Park community, with stories of places, parish life, Lithuanian heritage, and the people who have shaped the neighborhood.

Joe Kulys

PhotoNotes is written and photographed by Joe Kulys. His work follows a longtime connection to Marquette Park and the city's Lithuanian-American community, where he has documented events, institutions, and questions of neighborhood life.

Across the archive, photographs sit beside first-person observation, historical notes, and links to the wider reporting that helps place a story in context.

What you'll find here

The archive spans 2012 to 2023. It includes the Darius and Girenas Memorial, Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish, Blessed Jurgis Matulaitis, St. Casimir Motherhouse, civic life, community gatherings, and personal moments.