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Arts & Entertainment

Dental Appointment Becomes Tour of Religious, Decorative Art

Dr. Edward Abromaitis' building houses an eclectic collection of furniture, artwork.

dental office on State Street in Lemont is like no other.

Patients and visitors who walk into the vintage building find antique rugs and quilts draped over railings, Art Deco lamps on every surface, walls completely covered in paintings of every age and style, and larger-than-life statues.

His father dabbled in collecting, but the dentist has turned the pastime into a passion. Just a fraction of his eclectic collection is on display in the
reception area. Many more items are in storage. 

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“If someone is looking for something special, give me a few days to see if I can find it,” said Abromaitis, who has lived in Lemont since he was 14 and graduated from .

The unusual, the odd and “anything different” is what catches his eye, Abromaitis said.

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In small, gold letters above the building’s entrance is the name of his alter-business, “Malus Maliforanum, Objects D’Art and Curiosities.”

In a loose Latin spelling, “malus maliforanum” suggests things abnormal or even wicked. The collection in Abromaitis’ office, however, is heavy on the religious.

Pieces salvaged from closed churches include two 4-foot statues, one of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and another of St. Joseph holding baby Jesus. Nearly hidden behind St. Joseph is a white baptismal font. Many paintings are of religious subjects.

A 7-foot tall, gold gilt statue of a Hindu figure came from a Lake Shore Drive condo, Abromaitis said.

Abromaitis finds his treasures at estate sales, auctions and during architectural salvage. Interior decorators and antiques dealers are among his customers.

Perhaps the most startling item on display is a 1920s monkey-fur jacket. Abromaitis said the fur is from an orangutan. 

In the treatment room is a small, black-and-white depiction of a witches’ coven dancing outdoors in a circle. That sort of image is hard to find, said a pleased Abromaitis.

Among the decorative items on display are three antique pier mirrors. The huge pieces have a shelf on the bottom, and wooden columns and carvings that frame 9-foot-tall mirrors. One came from a mansion being torn down in Indiana, Abromaitis said.

Abromaitis' building is an antique itself. The façade of the building at 801 State St. is historically accurate, he said. While the shape of the windows has changed, old photographs show the same front and second floor.

The building, which once housed a grocery store, a birthing room and a card-playing room, has now become a sort of museum for things of beauty from the past.

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