<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418944/pettrawdjc62qjrqxnes.jpg"><figcaption>Ray Johnson c/o, front cover with orange ink &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>By JASON PICKLEMAN&nbsp;It’s a wonderful thing that museums continue to create well-produced exhibition catalogs. Blockbusters come and go, but what remains after these shows are gone are the collected photographs, images, and essays reproduced, printed and bound in the volumes that carry the exhibition title. To that end, I present for your consideration Ray Johnson c/o, a marvelous monograph available in advance of the exhibition at the <a href="https://www.artic.edu/exhibitions/9300/ray-johnson-c-o">Art Institute of Chicago</a> of the same name.&nbsp;Edited and curated by Caitlin Haskell and Jordan Carter, Ray Johnson c/o measures 9-inches wide, 12-inches tall, and has a spine width of just more than 1-inch. With a soft cover, artfully folded, the 376-page body feels casual in the hands thanks to the recurrent use of a kraft-color text weight sheet (possibly 70#) that is gently textured on one side, but smoother on the other. It is interesting to note that the images printed on this paper have different levels of clarity and snap depending on which textured side the work is reproduced: just look at the differing density of the black ink on pages 6 &amp; 8, for example. Not that this matters, as Johnson’s work only rarely relies on reproductive verisimilitude. Suffice it to say, the kraft-colored pages give the catalog the air of a vintage store find, a retro suggestion of aged paper and graphic pluck.What is not printed on this kraft paper is printed on an uncoated natural white text weight sheet (possibly 80# with modest show-through). These two papers alternate every 8, 16, 24 or 32 pages creating the visual equivalent of skip and hum. I mention this because the experience of looking at this book is constantly framed by this design decision. The kraft colored pages are mostly dedicated to vintage-looking reproductions of Johnsonian ephemera: letters, collages, drawings, envelopes—the remains of an epistolary exchange. The natural white text pages contain twenty-one short essays, easily digestible, and amounting to a veritable “Ray Johnson Reader”, which, in total, present a strikingly spot-on overview of one of the most wily artists of the 20th Century.&nbsp;The book and exhibition chronicle the 55 year artist-collector relationship between Johnson and his patron/archivist William S. Wilson (commonly referred to, and written as: Bill). The collection spans many thousands of works which were painstakingly saved, filed and inventoried by Wilson. Organized into a series of more than 175 three-ring binders containing transparent plastic sleeves, the collection has entered the Art Institute of Chicago’s permanent collection and will be on view this November. The exhibition in the Modern Wing promises to be an eye opening affair luxuriating in the flotsam and jetsam of aged paper, hand-addressed envelopes, canceled stamps, and cheeky turns of phrase.Johnson’s artwork is all play. Suggestion, innuendo, and mischief seem to be Johnson’s creative repartee. Conventional images are often captioned or titled in such a way as to develop new readings, often sly, humorous, or tawdry. Along with an ever-growing cadre of personal glyphs (bunnies, ducks, snakes, buttons, phalluses), Johnson détourned the most conventional source material into the equivalent of visual koans with attendant instructional dictates.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418944/maysa6di3gb6zhpa4wuj.jpg"><figcaption>Ray Johnson c/o, interior spread with 3-ring binder, pages 198-199 &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Though he showed with the New York gallery Feigen for many years starting in 1967, the bulk of Johnson’s artistic practice skirted the gallery market place; he seemingly preferred mailing his art to friends and colleagues in lieu of pursuing substantive exhibition opportunities. Fabled stories circulate of Johnson’s reluctance to give his gallerist-admirers the pleasure of exhibiting his work. Often, given the opportunity to exhibit or perform, Johnson would produce what he called “a nothing”, and often mistaken as such.&nbsp;The book, Ray Johnson c/o, was designed by Irma Boom, a rock star in the world of exhibition catalog design. When you go see the Rolling Stones you don’t tell Mick Jagger how or what to sing: he can sing whatever the hell he wants, because he’s Mick fucking Jagger. Likewise, if you hire Irma Boom to design your exhibition catalog, you let her do whatever the hell she wants. She’s Irma fucking Boom. For the most part, the team behind the Ray Johnson c/o catalog has given Boom full creative license to interpret and present Johnson afresh. With that freedom, she has delivered a catalog that is gallopingly eccentric, and novel in a thoughtfully sensitive manner with an artistically commiserate wit to keep up with the creative dexterity of the book’s namesake. The catalog is beyond excellent. You should buy one immediately. I paid $60 for mine.&nbsp;Stylistically, the book is adventurous, with graphic conventions nudged throughout: eliminating the use of italics in favor of underlining being one such example. This is the sort of graphic intervention that only a supremely trusting client can foster through the arduous nit-picky process of book production. Everybody always says they want something different; that is, until you show them something different—at which point, most clients turn tail and assume the dictatorial role of conservative editorship. Not so with Ray Johnson c/o. The book layout is awash with odd column arrangements and irregularly placed image reproductions with captions at custom angles relating to the frequently unusual shapes of Johnson’s hand-cut and torn visuals.On a personal note, I’d like to commend the curators and editors for the inclusion of many examples of Johnson’s earliest commercial design practice. Letterhead announcing “Ray Johnson–Graphic Design” and examples of book cover designs for New Directions Paperbooks portray Johnson as someone determined to bring a stamp of personal artistic touch to client-directed projects. How many of you as angsty teenagers had a copy of Arthur Rimbaud’s book Illuminations, with the poet’s serious, side-ways gazing, black and white, high contrast portrait egging you on into artistic admittance. Well, you can thank Ray Johnson for the cover, a 1957 commercial design job. Dare I say, the dot screen, color and demeanor of the Rimbaud portrait could almost be mistaken for one of Andy Warhol’s 1964 Most Wanted Men. Warhol and Johnson were good friends, so one can only wonder if Warhol cribbed the style of Johnson’s Rimbaud portrait for his own pop use.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418945/c7jpzv5a3y9rvjzambwc.jpg"><figcaption>Ray Johnson c/o, interior spread with Rimbaud, pages 304-305 &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Many of the reproductions in Ray Johnson c/o are photographs of the 3-ring binders organized by Wilson and splayed open to various 2-page arrangements (what Boom calls “Bill’s collages”). Wonderfully photographed by Amy Kaczmarek with a dead-pan clarity that includes stray post-it notes and additional hand-written adhesive labels, these documentation photos are clinical but personal—the work of a cold-blooded archivist. The binders are the key to understanding the exhibition. The order and the sequence of images contained within the binders was not dictated by the artist, but by the collector and archivist: Bill Wilson. Without Wilson, there is no Ray Johnson c/o. In this light, Wilson can be thought of as a collaborator and enabler of the artist—a patron of the highest order. Whether money between the two men ever changed hands I don’t know, but nobody continues a 55-year artistic project with another person without the involvement of a far more radical currency: love.The cover of the book is a marvelously tactile collage of Johnson’s greatest hits. Technically a glued-to-the-spine, uniquely folded dust jacket, the cover sports a spot orange ink (most likely Pantone 021U) that I have on good word was not originally specified by Boom. Rumor has it that Boom wanted the name of the show (set in sentence case Cooper Black) to print in black ink; but the book’s distributor, Yale University Press, got worried that the book-buying public wouldn’t recognize and differentiate the typeset title of the book from all the other graphic language of Johnson’s artwork that is also reproduced on the cover. Boom lost this one creative battle. The book title is printed in orange ink, not black. [Hey, Mick: play Sympathy for the Devil for me.]The book’s underlying architecture is that of a 4-column grid that is adaptable into both 2-column and 3-column variations. Set in a typewriter-like font, the text is large and easy to read, with ample word spacing creating text fields that are visually steady even when line lengths get short owing to weirdly-placed inset reproductions of Johnson’s art. Folios are indented from the outer margins. Double hyphens are used in place of em dashes. Two spaces separate sentences. Attention to these conventions matter, as the sum total of them are what gives any book its character, charm or heft. Ray Johnson c/o, the book, comes off as warm, approachable, and lovingly researched and reported—the furthest thing from “fussy” the Art Institute of Chicago has ever produced.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.artic.edu/exhibitions/9300/ray-johnson-c-o">Ray Johnson c/o, at the Art Institute of Chicago</a>, Nov 26, 2021–Mar 21, 2022&nbsp;<a href="https://www.jnldesign.com/studio/">Jason Pickleman</a> is an artist and graphic designer in Chicago. He has produced graphic identities for EXPO Chicago, Millennium Park, and the Museum of Contemporary Photography. His professional design work is in the permanent collection of the Art Institute of Chicago.&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

Book Report: Ray Johnson c/o 

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418952/kvmaihhog34aru9ehruf.jpg"><figcaption>Paula Crown, JOKESTER, 2018 &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By ANNA DOBROWOLSKIA crushed 10-foot-tall red solo cup, a stack of coolers, and acoustic drums may seem like the remnants of a giant’s tailgate—in Milwaukee, WI these larger-than-life sculptures are part of there is there is this We, Sculpture Milwaukee’s fifth run, guest curated by Michelle Grabner and Theaster Gates.&nbsp;Grabner is a Milwaukee-based artist, writer, and curator who was recently named a 2021 Guggenheim Fellow. Gates, a Chicago-based artist and curator and professor at the University of Chicago in the Department of Visual Arts and the College, is known for his work with urban spaces.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418953/wmxz16skrinqatgkcnnj.png"><figcaption>Kara Hamilton</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;This year, Gates and Grabner’s initiative galvanized working artists and the community. In just under six months, the exhibition gained more than half a dozen new works, including Plein Air Super Catcher, a premier sandcast work by Brad Kahlhamer; the first large-scale sculpture by Jason Pickleman, Hand Heart; and work made of locally sourced cream city brick by Kara Hamilton, the Curtain Wall. Facilitating these (often-experimental) processes required a great deal of flexibility, problem solving, and quick thinking by both curatorial and exhibitions teams, according to Bianca Bova, Sculpture Milwaukee’s Associate Curator.&nbsp;“We worked with not just the artists, but a range of commercial fabricators, stone masons, and foundries (along with our dedicated team of installers at Methods &amp; Materials) closely and collaboratively to realize these works,” she said.&nbsp;Students and community members also participated in some installations. In July, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Architecture and Urban Planning students assisted with artist Matthias Neumann’s wood sculptures in his series “Basics 51.”&nbsp;“Sculpture Milwaukee understands the power that artists have, and the power that art has to potentially help give new form to the city,” says Gates. “To reshape the conversations that are happening socially by not just having one or two artist commissions in a downtown but really having a brief that brings in artists from all over, and who have a relevant voice, to be present in Milwaukee – I think that this is a transformation. It’s really the way a radical city should work.”&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418954/yvvegdtniyhd26obmewn.jpg"><figcaption>Curators Theaster Gates and Michelle Grabner</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Grabner mentions the ‘poetics of perseverance’ as the driving factor in selecting the works. As poet Gwendolyn Brooks poignantly conveys in her poem An Aspect of Love, Alive in the Ice and Fire, “In a package of minutes there is this We. / How beautiful.” The exhibition’s title reminds us about the elusive thing we call community. “[It] reflects the collective power of the works included and honors a belief in social change through the provocations of the artistic imagination,” says Grabner.&nbsp; Sculpture Milwaukee’s fifth edition looks at sculptures and public art as social commentary on what’s left behind, and how we can continue building a radical city.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418954/ktlqf4z0rh7dvmmyfrmb.png"><figcaption>Matthias Neumann</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;‘there is this We’: Sculpture Milwaukee 2021 investigates global issues and shared urban spaces using public art. It is free and open to the public until fall 2022 •&nbsp; <a href="http://sculpturemilwaukee.com">sculpturemilwaukee.com&nbsp;</a>&nbsp;</body></html>

Sculpture Milwaukee No. 5: There Is This We

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418944/dorcqeicy22motxrwrjs.jpg"><figcaption>Publisher and Intern Supervisor Ginny Van Alyea enjoying art in person again. Pictured: A Mirror Painting by Anjali Srinivasan at Ken Saunders Gallery</figcaption></figure>By GINNY VAN ALYEAI listened to a church sermon recently about brokenness and disrepair. The priest then asked the parish to consider, ‘What’s wrong with being broken?’&nbsp;We typically regard fragmentation as bad. A mess is there to be cleaned up.&nbsp;His question made me think, if we’re always seeking perfection, we are certain to never achieve it. We will be left unfulfilled. What if we look at broken as a new state of being – like a work in progress? Being less than whole may not equal imperfect.&nbsp;We are each living amidst ongoing uncertainty, and in response many of us have been reaching our individual and collective limits, sometimes hitting new breaking points. As we continue to live life in a pandemic, we also have the chance to look at ourselves with fresh eyes and take on new projects and causes. &nbsp;I keep looking at this fall compared to 2020, or even 2019. I see that day to day life is still weird, but it’s beginning to take shape. At CGN I’m especially grateful we have had the chance to interview artists and collectors in person in order to learn from them as well as be in the presence of figures who have been a part of, and influenced, Chicago’s artistic legacy.&nbsp;&nbsp;In this issue we hear from the following people (stories will all be posted online in the coming days and weeks): &nbsp;• Artist <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2021/8/a-man-walks-into-a-museum-for-tony-fitzpatrick-2021-is-a-return-to-more-than-before">Tony Fitzpatrick</a> says he became an optimist after a serious heart attack in 2015. Now 63 he’s still a work in progress, and he’s not done yet.&nbsp;• Isobel Neal started a revolutionary gallery in the 1980s dedicated to exhibiting Black artists. What Neal saw as an imperfect art market led her to open a business to serve as a solution for more meaningful and representative exposure.&nbsp;• Artist Pooja Pittie was cut off from her new studio space during lockdown, but her day to day challenges living with a disability were eased by proximity to a home studio and by the chance to work on a new scale.• Audrey Niffenegger is putting together the Artists Book House piece by piece, and it’s been a multi-year project already. It won’t be ‘finished’ for years to come. &nbsp;&nbsp;*&nbsp;&nbsp;We are steadily seeing <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events?filter=upcoming">CGN’s exhibition calendar</a> fill up again. In-person art events still change frequently and are less predictable but planning and making the effort is brave. There is still a lot to go out and see.&nbsp;Two exhibitions I visited with my children this past summer aligned with my new outlook on the splintering of things and how to enjoy beauty in the unexpected:• <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/ken-saunders-gallery-bdeab8a5-f8dd-41ff-8ec9-1c2d97c08a4f">Ken Saunders Gallery</a> had two large mirror paintings on display by Anjali Srinivasan (pictured above). The glass had been smashed into pieces that were still held together. Whatever your superstitions might be about broken mirrors and bad luck, the result is beautiful and captivating – the old mirror showed one image. The new, broken one revealed many more.&nbsp;• Theaster Gates’s <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/theaster-gates-how-to-sell-hardware">How to Sell Hardware</a> at Gray Warehouse told the story of a South Side True Value that went out of business and sat, intact, for years before Gates purchased it and scattered the contents into breathtaking gallery installations. The store was never going to be made whole – the stock suddenly for sale again on the shelf, but it did transition into something beautiful and revelatory.&nbsp;&nbsp;Maybe as we look at art again in fall 2021 we can each be rescuers of overlooked treasure, seeing something anew, appreciating the value and opportunity of a fresh start this season.&nbsp; &nbsp;– Ginny Van Alyea&nbsp;You can subscribe to the new fall 2021 issue of CGN <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/print-subscriptions">here</a> for $20/year for three issues&nbsp;</body></html>

Fall 2021 Publisher's Letter: Regarding Beauty And Opportunity in The Broken

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418923/tve24w1f2zoqfx7rqhws.jpg"><figcaption>The CGN Super Heroes</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By GINNY VAN ALYEAMy 5 year old son loves Spider-Man. Some days he is dressed head-to-toe in Spider-Man clothes. He likes the Spider-Man socks a little better than his Iron Man ones. He can strike up a friendship at the playground with any other kid wearing a Spider-Man t-shirt.&nbsp;So he's really the reason we bought tickets for the Museum of Science and Industry's Marvel: Universe of Super Heroes. When I went to buy tickets in March, planning for a spring break stay-cation and a return to Chicago museums, I found out, like so many others, that tickets were sold out for weeks. So we waited to go in May.&nbsp;What started out as a "cultural" diversion for our kids turned out to be a deeper education about the artistic storytelling mastery of Marvel for adults, or at least this one. I cannot claim to have ever been interested in super heroes or comics before I had kids, but much like how I gained my broad knowledge of construction vehicles, super heroes have come to our home through my son.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418924/klnqal0tvobicasfqwam.jpg"><figcaption>Human Torch #16, Cover, art by Alex Schomburg, 1944, pencil and ink on Bristol board</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;The exhibit is so big that is spans two galleries at the museum. Some of this is no doubt due to social distancing, but it is also because there is so much to display as well as to explain in detail.&nbsp;Marvel: Universe of Super Heroes celebrates Marvel history with more than 300 artifacts, including original comic book pages (marked as such by a jagged comic book word bubble heralding 'Original Art'), sculptures, interactive displays, and costumes and props from Marvel’s blockbuster films. Visitors are invited to discover the origins of iconic characters such as Spider-Man, Black Panther, Hulk, and Captain Marvel and see how they have evolved alongside society, as well as world history, over the past 80 years, making these characters a pop culture mainstay.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418925/ganzn5xnlknkqx6q52gu.jpg"><figcaption>Marvel Comics (1939) #1, Published: August 31, 1939. Writer: Al Anders, Bill Everett, Paul Gustavson, Ben Thompson. Penciler: Bill Everett, Paul Gustavson, Ben Thompson, Carl Burgos. Courtesy Marvel Comics.</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;The very first Marvel comic, issue no. 1, was published in 1939. Displayed near the entrance of the first gallery, it's a valuable treasure that sets the tone for the significance of this exhibition. A nearby text explains that in the beginning, in 1938, the modern Super Hero "ignited a national craze." Visitors must spend time up close with rare artifacts like this one, as well as rare original covers and artwork making their exhibition premieres at MSI. Accompanying each piece is a contextual explanation that covers its place in time as well as the events that were taking place in the US and beyond - such as the inaugural issue's featured battle between Human Torch and The Sub-Mariner. An explanation goes on to note that the rivalry between the two heroes recedes during WWII, as they become allies against real world forces of evil like the Nazis. The notion is clear that were it not for America's role in the war, "It's unlikely that the Super Hero boom would have taken off as it did." Conversely, once the war was over, interest in super heroes waned when a unified nationalism was not as prominent throughout the country.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418926/utxtz5obnhuzus2ydu1l.jpg"><figcaption>Self-portrait with Marvel Super Heroes, Jack Kirby (pencils) and Mike Royer (inks), 1969</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;I came away with an understanding that so much of the vision for Marvel and its well-known characters was borne from two very talented artists, Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, who were immigrants to the United States and who joined the new company in 1939 and 1941, respectively. They spun stories that have stood the test of time, embodied by characters who have also evolved from moral standard bearers and war effort boosters to those who reflect our diverse population today. Super heroes are not intended to stand high above every day people – they can be allies of hope, bravery and the confidence to be different. The heroes tend towards urban characters who offer save harbor for those who have ever felt left out or at a disadvantage. The villains represent the more evil forces in the world as well as the vulnerability and doom of being on the bad side.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418926/rypqeyd0v6yzfpfo3xul.jpg"></figure>&nbsp;Complementing the historic components of the exhibition are the things that make this fun for the youngest Marvel fans (like mine) as well as very Instagrammable for older kids and adults. Even though my son and his 7 year old sister are too young for the Marvel Studios films, they had a lot of fun posing with life-size Marvel characters including Black Panther, Ms. Marvel, and yes Spider-Man. The thoughtfully designed and set-worn Marvel Studios film costumes are works of art in their own rite.&nbsp;Trippier portions of the exhibition include set pieces like Tony Stark’s lab, the mirror dimension of Doctor Strange, and a tiny exhibit contained in sort of mirrored box with (spoiler) projected images of a flying Ant-Man and Wasp Girl. You have to watch closely, seeking out the art as well as some of the magic of super heroes.&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://www.msichicago.org/explore/whats-here/exhibits/marvel-universe-of-super-heroes/">Marvel: Universe of Super Heroes</a> runs through October 24. And yes, tickets are still selling out weeks in advance, so don't delay.&nbsp;&nbsp;P.S. Shortly after seeing the MSI Marvel exhibition I discovered a 2009 limited edition issue of <a href="https://www.marvel.com/comics/issue/24039/pride_prejudice_2009_1">Pride and Prejudice</a> by Marvel at a thrift store! Had I only known, I may have gotten into comics back in high school!&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418928/wbtsmn24g76lla7wphsj.jpg"></figure>&nbsp;</body></html>

MSI's Marvel Exhibition Tells an Artistic Origin Story

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418918/piwemfolx8lchh7yxubt.jpg"><figcaption>Installation view of the UIMA permanent collection &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>BY ANNA DOBROWOLSKIArmed with my art gallery guide, mask, and hand sanitizer, I headed out West. West Town, that is. On my mission to rediscover art in a recuperating city, I serendipitously came across the gleamingly white façade of the <a href="https://uima-chicago.org">Ukrainian Institute of Modern Art</a>. Docent Elena Smolynets caught me peeking through the door: “Yes, we are open!” No reservation necessary, I sauntered in. Not only is the UIMA open, it’s also preparing to celebrate 50 years of robust existence.President Motria Melnyk, curator Adrienne Kochman, and Smolynets—three women who help keep UIMA’s legacy in the heart of Chicago’s Ukrainian Village alive—spoke with me about the UIMA’s history and plans for the future.Pre-pandemic, the UIMA had an ongoing rotation every six months displaying select works from their permanent collection, which currently houses around 1,200 objects ranging from photography and artifacts to kinetic sculpture. To date the UIMA earned a reputation for having one of the largest collections of Ukrainian art, globally, housing work by Soviet era Ukrainian Non-Conformists such as Alexander Archipenko, Alexis Gritchenko, Mychajlo Andreenko, and other artists of Ukrainian descent. Notably, it features art created by the first generation of artists ever to exhibit with the UIMA, including work by two of its founders: sculptor Konstantin Milonadis and sculptor/painter Mychajlo Urban. It also boasts a growing collection of Chicago-based artists, such as Martin Hurtig, Morris Barazani and Roland Ginzel. Soon (in September) we will be able to appreciate their collection in the context of UIMA’s fast-approaching 50th anniversary.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418918/gpka0kugsdpgob3bugnk.jpg"><figcaption>Mykhajlo Urban, Pulsating Form, 1969 Acrylic, light bulbs, steel plates, Gift of Dr. Philip and Mrs. Falk &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Now, playing catch up with a pandemic-caused backlog of shows slated for 2020, they are leaving exhibitions up longer for visitors to enjoy in person. During my visit, the permanent collection that would usually inhabit the east gallery space was replaced by 38 paintings from Work, People, Art (WPA): selections from the Works Progress Administration collection of the Illinois State Museum. The label introducing the exhibits of WPA, a child program of President FDR’s New Deal, invites us to “consider whose work and perspectives are missing.” Contrary to all talk about ‘unprecedented times’, there is an uncanny parallel between the work of artists commissioned by the WPA, and the art produced eight decades later. Though there are similarities in context, we are challenged to look deeper and be better: art—then and now— is on the frontline, responding to a shift in values spurred by crisis, social fractures, and economic strife.Stepping into the west gallery one could relish in Not Afraid, a dual exhibition featuring the abstract, textural sculptural work of Gina Lee Robbins and the bold, expressionist paintings of Janice Elkins. These two self-taught artists hailing form Oak Park regale in the uncertain, and their uninhibited approach to their practice falls in line with the attitudes of the institute’s founding artists.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418919/jh6pkpqc35bp1ykgla3u.jpg"><figcaption>Ruminate installation</figcaption></figure>The U in UIMASince its genesis, the UIMA existed as an alternative venue for artists. Following WWII, Konstantin Milonadis and Mychajlo Urban emigrated from Ukraine and met while taking courses at the School of the Art Institute under the GI Bill. While they shared a Ukrainian background, what really drew them together was their love for art that did not fit the status-quo. These artists were experimenting with minimalism, geometric abstraction, and even kinetic media—and it was not just a phase. At the time, they were conscious that these modes of expression were not openly practiced in Ukraine. Curator Adrienne Kochman adds, “When they were working in the late 60s and 70s, Ukraine was still part of the Soviet Union. In the Ukrainian Republic, at least officially, it was forbidden to pursue Western aesthetic modes, such as abstraction, or they would suffer dire consequences such as loss of income or jobs. The official aesthetic, at least in the late 60s, was Soviet socialist realism.” Many of the literary, artistic, and cultural figures who pushed back faced persecution, imprisonment, or death. This “fueled the need to have a safe haven for artists who wanted to work this kind of aesthetic mode outside of Ukraine.”In Chicago, these artists wanted to explore these ‘modern’ styles without the limitations imposed by larger, often more traditional institutions and sanctioned “academic” styles. To the artists, “Major art institutions like AIC were conservative, and the general feeling was one of ‘If you waited for them to change, they wouldn’t.’”&nbsp;<figure class="image image-style-side"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418920/efwoi5eozgl4y6onyu1v.jpg"><figcaption>President Motria Melnyk</figcaption></figure>So, the artists carved out a space for themselves through makeshift art organizations such as the Lion’s Club. The UIMA as we know it was founded through the initiative of prominent doctor and active community member Dr. Achilles and Vera Chreptowsky, and lionhearted artists Konstantin Milonadis and Mychajlo Urban. Thanks to Dr. Achilles and Vera Chreptowsky, who became the patrons, and the efforts of volunteers, the UIMA metamorphosed into a proper institution.From the onset, the founders were interested in establishing a permanent collection. What started as a way to promote Ukrainian artists born in America or abroad, rapidly evolved into an institution that welcomes all walks of art— and has so for the past 50 years. Of the works they have acquired over the years, Adriene Kochman mentions that “Most donors of the artwork to the collection purchased it directly from the artist, or UIMA did through fundraising and grants specifically awarded for an organization to purchase artwork for its permanent collection. Some of course, were donated directly by the artist.” It is a dream for those studying provenance, and a testament to the close relationship between the artist community and UIMA.&nbsp;For the 50th anniversary, Kochman hopes to fill both galleries with art from the permanent exhibition so that we can appreciate its scope. Looking ahead, they will continue to welcome all contemporary artists, regardless of nationality: “We will always support Chicago artists! If you have a proposal, please submit it,” says Kochman.&nbsp;Recent Developments‘Survived first pandemic’ is just another tick off the list that makes UIMA relevant today in Chicago’s art scene. When the art world was upended over a year ago; staff remained in high spirits. On March 5th, after a mandate caused the institute to shut its doors to the public, they moved their permanent collections to a virtual exhibition space. President Motria, seizing the moment to get creative while taking stock of their collection, created “Corona Story,” to playfully present the artwork set to the upbeat instrumental version of Gloria Gaynor’s classic “I Will Survive.” In addition to uploading videos on the museum’s history to their website, she also created a downloadable activity book for children, complete with QR codes linking to the actual art.&nbsp;In our Zoom call, she describes her motivation and vision for the Institute, which includes opening up an educational program for young artists. “The founders of the institute not only envisioned an art museum, but also an institution for learning and teaching. Our dream is to incorporate a children’s art center. As an educator, I feel it is important to give young students the opportunities to explore, discover, learn, and express their appreciation and talent for art, enabling them to become life-long art advocates.” says Motria.Official plans for the 50th anniversary will be announced soon. As ever, plans are tentative, but they will find a way to celebrate and thank all those who made the 50 years possible—artists, patrons, visitors, volunteers. Looking forward, Motria says, “We wait for the day when art exhibition openings, musical concerts, distinguished speakers events, conversations, laughter and energy fills our galleries again.”&nbsp;For more information about UIMA visit their <a href="https://uima-chicago.org">website</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

Re-discovering the East in the West: Ukrainian Institute of Modern Art

<html><head></head><body>By CGN StaffWith many of us eager to stretch our travel legs this summer&nbsp; – to make up for all we missed during the last one&nbsp; –&nbsp; an easy trip, or two, around Wisconsin to visit the state’s many destinations for art will satisfy your wanderlust as well as your cultural cravings.&nbsp;Check out these&nbsp;highlights on now, and hit the road!&nbsp; &nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418918/nzoori6lsqaqdmavmnm4.jpg"><figcaption>Mary Giles, Fading Light, 2007, waxed linen, fine copper wire, and fine iron wire, 13 x 17” D, Racine Art Museum, gift of Jim Harris. Photo: Petronella J. Ytsma. Part of Collection Focus: Mary Giles thru July 3.</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.ramart.org">Racine Art Museum</a>The Racine Art Museum holds the largest and most significant contemporary craft collection in North America, with more than 9,500 objects from nationally and internationally recognized artists.&nbsp;A trip to RAM is less than 60 miles from downtown Chicago. &nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418918/p7rwfkhvcgv5zthdbofb.png"><figcaption>Robert Indiana, The American&nbsp;LOVE, 1966-99. Photo by Kevin J. Miyazaki / Sculpture Milwaukee &nbsp;</figcaption></figure><a href="sculpturemilwaukee.com">Sculpture Milwaukee</a>Sculpture Milwaukee’s fifth exhibition will be co-curated by Theaster Gates and Michelle Grabner, starting June 25th through fall 2022. One of the largest annual outdoor exhibitions to focus on contemporary sculpture and public art practices, the works selected by Gates and Grabner will be explored through programming and educational initiatives.&nbsp;Also local community and corporate investment has meant that a growing number of works previously exhibited at Sculpture Milwaukee have been purchased and donated so that they stay on public view in the city.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418919/blb0kuzo2rr8h5mht80m.jpg"><figcaption>The Museum of Wisconsin Art is located about 45 minutes from downtown Milwaukee in West Bend, WI&nbsp;</figcaption></figure><a href="http://wisconsinart.org">Museum of Wisconsin Art (MoWA)</a>For 60 years MoWA has evolved from a small hometown gallery to one of the leading regional museums in the country, devoted to exploring the art and culture of Wisconsin.&nbsp;On view through July 3 is Artists Without Borders, an exhibition that showcases the works of nine artists—all with roots abroad and currently residing in Wisconsin—to explore their distinct takes on the relationship between art and place.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418920/bnmkve2bhq8gnzt3y14y.jpg"><figcaption>Mary Cassatt, Spanish Girl Leaning on a Window Sill, ca. 1872. Oil on canvas, 24 3/8 × 19 in. Collection of Manuel Piñanes García-Olías, Madrid. Photo, Cuauhtli Gutierrez &nbsp;</figcaption></figure><a href="http://mam.org">Milwaukee Art Museum</a>The Milwaukee Art Museum is open to the public again, with several exhibitions planned for this summer, including Americans in Spain: Painting and Travel, 1820–1920, the first major exhibition to focus on the influence of Spanish art and culture on American painting. Jun 11–Oct 3&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418920/sr2yzsu3xwipnpk2dkc6.jpg"><figcaption>Nick Cave and Bob Faust, Amends</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.mmoca.org">Madison Museum of Contemporary Art</a>&nbsp;MMoCA's modern building, designed by world-renowned architect Cesar Pelli, offers 51,500 square feet of interior space, as well as a 7,100-square-foot rooftop sculpture garden. MMoCA also has one of the premier institutional collections of Chicago Imagist works.&nbsp;This summer <a href="https://www.mmoca.org/art/amends-nick-cave-and-bob-faust">AMENDS: Nick Cave and Bob Faust</a> runs Jun 19 – Oct 24. AMENDS is a community-based, interactive art project. The internationally known artists and collaborators created the three-component project in 2020 after the killing of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis. The ultimate goal of AMENDS is to lay the groundwork for the eradication of racism.&nbsp;AMENDS will bring together the artists, community leaders in the Madison area and the state, and members of the public to complete the three components of the project.<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418921/nue0copvhsmxlxi2ihgk.jpg"><figcaption>Painter Annabeth Marks is equally concerned with acts of construction and of deconstruction. Her work considers the boundaries of painting in both process and form. For her contribution to the Return to the Real Marks presents a new body of work in a site-specific installation paintings.</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.jmkac.org">John Michael Kohler Art Center</a>Located along the western shore of Lake Michigan, north of Milwaukee but before you head towards Green Bay and Door County, the John Michael Kohler Art Center (JMKAC) in Sheboygan offers a range of serious, dynamic exhibitions that consider art in Wisconsin and well beyond.&nbsp;Return to the Real, on view through January 9, 2022, responds to the following question: As our lived experience is increasingly mediated by our screens, how can art remind us of the rich rewards of the real? Through a series of exhibitions, performances, and events that foreground the multisensory experience of viewing art in person, the series title is derived from art critic and historian Hal Foster’s influential 1996 book Return of the Real, a theoretical exploration of contemporary art grounded in the materiality of bodies and sites. The work featured in the series affirms the power of objects and human presence, emphasizes the nuances and subtleties that virtual viewing cannot provide or capture, and honors the irreplaceable experience of confronting—and of being confronted by—a physical work of art.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418922/zaylkdvgpf9nhypzo5ih.jpg"></figure><a href="http://artsmp.org">Arts Mineral Point&nbsp;</a>The creative community of Mineral Point offers a haven for working artists as well as a bucolic weekend art destination southwest of Madison, towards the Iowa border. Enjoy late night shopping, live music, workshops, artist receptions and more.&nbsp;The 8th annual Paint the Point live painting fundraiser takes place August 11–14.&nbsp;</body></html>

Head North: Explore Art in Wisconsin This Summer 

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417805/l6roddd2mido4bjxbnjd.gif"><figcaption>Frida Kahlo, The Bus, 1929, oil on canvas, Collection Museo Dolores Olmedo, Xochimilco, Mexico © 2020 Banco de México Diego Rivera Frida Kahlo Museums Trust, Mexico, D.F. / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>BY ALISON REILLYIn March of 2020, Justin Witte, curator of the Cleve Carney Museum of Art at the College of DuPage in Glen Ellyn, was working tirelessly with his staff to prepare for the opening of an expansive exhibition featuring the renowned artist, Frida Kahlo. In order to accommodate the 26 works of art that were scheduled to arrive, the college expanded the gallery from a 1,850 square foot exhibition space focused primarily on showing contemporary artists to a 2,500 square foot museum equipped with state of the art lighting, security, and climate control systems.&nbsp;“While the administration of the college was closely monitoring the coronavirus situation, in the museum, we were very focused on our exhibition. The week of March 10th, we were busy with installation plans, working out final aspects of delivery and really moving towards the exhibition,” Witte recalls. “Because we had come so far with the exhibition, our immediate thought was, ‘How do we operate with less access to campus for what we hoped would be a short period of time?’ We had the idea that we may have to pause some of our in-person preparations for a week or two. At worst, a month.”<figure class="image image-style-side"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417806/uuivfxyhhn5cl169tr5v.gif"><figcaption>Frida Kahlo, The Broken Column, 1944, oil on masonite, Collection Museo Dolores Olmedo, Xochimilco, Mexico © 2020 Banco de México Diego Rivera Frida Kahlo Museums Trust, Mexico, D.F. / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>Witte had been working on preparations for the Kahlo exhibition with Diana Martinez, director of the McAninch Arts Center (where the museum is located) since 2017.&nbsp;Alan Peterson, a longtime supporter of the college and the art center, was a close friend of Carlos Phillips, the director of the Museo Dolores Olmedo in Mexico City and son of the collector Dolores Olmedo. “Alan always had the idea that he wanted to bring the collection to the College of DuPage to help bring awareness to all the amazing cultural things happening here,” Witte explained.&nbsp;While Peterson made the introduction, Witte and Martinez developed a proposal for the exhibition and outlined how it could deeply benefit the local community. “Frida was the people’s artist,” Martinez said, “To bring this to a community college with accessibility to students would have been something Frida loved, because she was a teacher herself.” Witte said that even later in her life, when Kahlo was no longer able to teach at school, her students visited her at her home, La Casa Azul, in Mexico City. “Her students were fiercely dedicated to her, and she offered them a lot.”&nbsp;Inspired by Kahlo’s own example, Witte and Martinez worked with faculty to integrate themes from the artist’s life into the college curriculum. Departments offered classes on Mexican art history, the impact of the Mexican Revolution, and the social and economic context of post-revolutionary Mexico. The fashion department organized projects related to Kahlo’s wardrobe that addressed ideas of self-identity and disability, while the culinary school delved deeply into Mexican gastronomy.&nbsp;“As a community college, we have an incredibly diverse population of students from young to old, from a variety of social and economic backgrounds,” Witte said. “DuPage County is an enormous area of land that covers a lot of different areas. The college serves a lot of communities. That idea of wanting to provide accessible education to such a wide range of people very much aligns with Frida’s beliefs.”&nbsp;Kahlo was developing as an artist at a time in Mexico City when the scene was dominated by “Los tres grandes”—the three big Mexican muralists (Diego Rivera, David Alfaro Siqueiros, and José Clemente Orozco)—whose goal was to make work for the people. “Not squirreled away for the elites but very much for a broad population,” Witte said. “Those are also strong ideals of a community college. I think that nothing would have made Frida happier than the idea that her work would be serving as such a pivotal point in the education of the students at this college.”&nbsp;When it became apparent to Witte and Martinez that the exhibition could not take place during the summer of 2020, they quickly responded by reaching out to their partners at the college and Museo Olmedo to see if it could be rescheduled for the following summer. “It was never on the table,” Witte said, “maybe in the back of our minds as fears, but it was never discussed by the college or the art center or museum that we would not be doing this exhibit—it was just the focus of when. The commitment of everyone involved never really allowed for the idea that it wouldn’t happen.”&nbsp;Fortunately, with the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines across the United States and the support of the College of DuPage and the Museo Olmedo, Witte and Martinez are confident that the exhibition will open this summer on June 5, 2021. Not only have the staff at the museum and the art center worked diligently to move the programming online, many museums in Chicago and throughout Illinois have been able to reopen safely using proper protocols and social distancing. Additionally, Cleve Carney Museum of Art has created a virtual tour so that those who are not able to visit the exhibition in person will still be able to participate.“It’s made us more creative and connected in new ways,” Martinez said. “We hosted a virtual gala where over 460 people tuned in. I think if it had been a regular gala, everyone would have been sitting at their tables, just eating. But we were able to really share information. We had the Consulate General of Mexico speak, and we gave a tour of Frida’s house in Mexico City.”&nbsp;While the museum and the art center at College of DuPage have demonstrated great skill and agility in adapting to the virtual environment, for Witte, who trained as an artist, there is still no substitute for being in a room with Kahlo’s paintings. “I understand how much time is put into each work and how the decisions of the artist are recorded on the surface of the painting in every brushstroke,” he explained. “When you go to see a painting, you’re really spending time in front of something that the artist themselves spent so much time in. The way the paint dries, it captures literally whatever happens to be in the air of the studio at the time—the dust, her cigarette smoke. The opportunity to stand in front of it is the closest we can get to spending time with the artist herself.”The expansion of the space at Cleve Carney Museum of Art will allow visitors to see 19 oil paintings and seven drawings by Kahlo, which is notably the largest exhibition of her work shown in the Chicago area in over 40 years. The paintings and drawings come from the collection of Dolores Olmedo, which was originally owned by one of Kahlo’s major patrons, Eduardo Safa. Visitors may recognize some of the works, iconic self-portraits such as Broken Column or Henry Ford Hospital, which have defined her career. But alongside these notable paintings are lesser known portraits from the late 1920s and early 1930s, which give incredible insight to Kahlo’s development as a painter.“We’re doing all these amazing things for this exhibit,” Witte said, “there’s so many great aspects to it, but in the end, in those galleries, we’re really just creating a platform for Frida to tell her own story.”&nbsp;In the context of the pandemic, Kahlo’s story has taken on even more relevance. As a woman who struggled with chronic pain and illness for most of her life, she confronted the fragility of health in a way that many have experienced this past year. “Even though our time shifted and so much of the world shifted,” Witte said, “we can still find something we can relate to in Frida’s life. Her strength serves as an inspiration for how to navigate this unprecedented time.”&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417807/hpehzxxkymlfivcyhbwt.gif"><figcaption>From left: Frida Kahlo, Portrait of Doña Rosita Morillo, 1944, oil on masonite, Collection Museo Dolores Olmedo, Xochimilco, Mexico © 2020 Banco de México Diego Rivera Frida Kahlo Museums Trust, Mexico, D.F. / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York; Frida Kahlo, Portrait of Luther Burbank, 1931, oil on masonite, Collection Museo Dolores Olmedo, Xochimilco, Mexico © 2020 Banco de México Diego Rivera Frida Kahlo Museums Trust, Mexico, D.F. / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York; Frida on White Bench, Photo by Nickolas Muray; © Nickolas Muray Photo Archives &nbsp;</figcaption></figure><h3>More to See</h3>&nbsp;Accompanying Frida Kahlo: Timeless this summer are several special features designed to enhance a visitor’s experience at the exhibition.&nbsp;&nbsp;Frida in PhotosFrida Kahlo: Timeless features paintings and drawings by the Mexican artist, Frida Kahlo, which will be installed in the Cleve Carney Museum of Art, but the exhibition will extend beyond the walls of the museum to the entire McAninch Art Center, located on the campus of the College of DuPage. In a space adjacent to the galleries, photographs from Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera’s personal collection will be on display. While visitors may be familiar with the iconic Kodachrome color portraits of Kahlo taken by Nickolas Muray, this selection of photographs will offer a more candid view into the artist’s life with husband Rivera.&nbsp;&nbsp;The Artist’s GardenIn 1931 while in San Francisco, Frida Kahlo painted a portrait of Luther Burbank, a pioneering American botanist and horticulturist. Kahlo was impressed with Burbank’s research related to plant hybridization and memorialized him in the painting holding a philodendron. Inspired by Kahlo’s portrait and others in the Frida Kahlo: Timeless exhibition, local plant grower and distributor Ball Horticultural Company will create and install a garden located on the McAninch Art Center’s south patio near the amphitheater. The installation will showcase flowers and plants that were part of Kahlo’s own personal garden at her home, La Casa Azul, in Mexico City. Featured plants for the garden include: agave, alocasia dark star, bougainvillea, canna cannova bronze orange, old man cactus, oleander, prickly pear, pomegranate tree, and yucca.&nbsp;Kahlo's Corner – Frida &amp; Families“Many aspects of Frida’s work and her life deal with very complex, real issues,” Justin Witte, curator at the Cleve Carney Museum of Art said, “and we thought it was important to offer some contextualization for younger visitors to get a sense of who she was.” Diana Martinez, director of the McAninch Art Center, collaborated with several partners to make a compelling and safe area for families. She befriended local author and illustrator Mike Venezia who helped interpret Kahlo’s life through the lens of a child. Venezia – a graduate of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago – has written hundreds of children’s books about artists, as part of The World’s Greatest Artists series. Venezia has also collaborated with the CCMA and the MAC to create “The Frida Kahlo Coloring Book,” for sale at the exhibition’s gift shop. Martinez also partnered with the architectural firm, Wight &amp; Company, to design a full scale replica of La Casa Azul, Kahlo’s home in Mexico City, which visitors can explore. Martinez hopes that the model will allow visitors to understand the particular architecture of the house and the central role that the garden played in Kahlo’s life. Children’s area activities will include an animated video about Kahlo’s life and a mural activity designed by Venezia.Two free printmaking workshops are planned for July 6 and Aug. 21, 10 a.m. -2 p.m., led by printmaking collective Instituto Gráfico de Chicago. Activities are geared for pre-K through third grade.&nbsp;&nbsp;Frida Kahlo: Timeless is on view June 5 – September 6, 2021 from 10am-6pm Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and 10am-10pm Thursday. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit <a href="http://frida2021.org">Frida2021.org</a>Note: On July 5 a new piece, unveiled as part of Art on theMART, will feature several of Kahlo’s most recognizable works, animated by George Berlin and projected onto the Merchandise Mart, accompanied by an orchestral score from Mexican composer Arturo Márquez.&nbsp;</body></html>

Frida Kahlo: Timeless, at the Cleve Carney Museum of Art. A Transformative Exhibition for the Glen Ellyn Community

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417661/htd50vdhqvxk7bstbrur.gif"><figcaption>Haig Aivazian: All of the Lights, installation view, February–March 2021, The Renaissance Society at the University of Chicago, Photo: Useful Art Services &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>By GINNY VAN ALYEALast fall we asked some local art world figures what their <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2020/9/mirror-mirror-on-the-gallery-wall-after-this-year-who-can-predict-2021">2021 Art World Predictions</a> might be. At the time I saw two main scenarios that could shape this year: Life with a vaccine, and life without. Fortunately, we are now several months into a remarkable vaccine development effort and rollout, holding tight to all the cautious optimism we can summon. With this progress in mind, I wanted to check in again with the local art community to see how things are actually going.&nbsp;As in the fall my questions seek everyone’s candid response to how they have been faring and to get their best guess at what’s next. Responses are grouped by topic. I am grateful to those who candidly shared their collective wisdom and hopes for the future as we move through another year.&nbsp;On 2021 vs 2020How are things going for you so far this year?&nbsp;&nbsp;Catherine Edelman, Catherine Edelman Gallery: It’s been a very sobering year, as the pandemic forced me to rethink the gallery model.Tom McCormick, McCormick Gallery: This year so far is a continuation of last, which was outstanding. We finished the year on par with any normal, good year, even with the gallery essentially closed. Almost all sales were out of town and I became a one-man shipping juggernaut. The FedEx store reserved a private parking spot for me (kidding). Demand for certain work, especially from our estates and most especially by women, is through the roof and we cannot meet demand.&nbsp;Julia Nucci Kelly, Asst. Dir. for Marketing &amp; Communications Krannert Art Museum, University of Illinois: KAM has been open since February. Much of our staff is still working from home, but unlike last year, we’re able to have our major student art exhibitions (MFA and BFA) in person. That feels like progress. KAM is addressing multiple pandemics — not just COVID, but political division, racism and violence, and struggles for our environment — as much as we can through art, including exhibitions like Homemade, with Love: More Living Room that creates and holds space for Black girls, women, and femmes in the museum, providing space to gather and support one another with art space to create. In the community, we’re hosting Pandemics as a Portal to Change, a virtual community exhibition that gathers creative writing, visual art, music, and performance centered on hope, encouraging artists of all kinds to envision what we can make better beyond these struggles and pain.Kathleen Waterloo, artist: 2021 has been a whirling continuum of 2020, which proved to be one of my busiest years as an artist. I was very fortunate just prior to COVID-19 to open a solo exhibition in River North at Addington Gallery. The following week Mayor Lightfoot put the city in lockdown. My studio is isolated, so I was able to continue working almost daily on projects while maintaining social distancing. Currently I’m juggling works for a solo exhibition late 2021 at Circa Gallery in Minneapolis, in addition to a few commissions. As an artist during this bizarre time in our society, I am feeling very blessed.Karsten Lund, Curator: I don’t have a simple answer, but I’ve felt grounded by my work at the Renaissance Society throughout everything. I’m grateful to be at a nimble, resilient institution, and it has been energizing to be working very closely with a number of artists during the past year, even if most of our conversations have been over Zoom.At the Ren, we’ve been still able to do a lot, even against such headwinds. I keep returning to the fact that we have a strong close-knit team, and even before the pandemic our museum has been designed to really channel our resources towards our program and artist’s projects, which has made all the difference in a hard year like this.&nbsp;&nbsp;WORKING – OR NOT WORKING – WITH CLIENTSHave you been able to engage relatively well with current and new clients or patrons?&nbsp;&nbsp;Catherine Edelman: Many of our regular clients have stayed home, unwilling to venture to the gallery. But e-blasts, Zooms, etc. have helped us maintain a connection. Now that we are open by appointment only, new clients have emerged. I think the fact that they can have a private experience has been very powerful.Tom McCormick: Yes. One advantage to doing this for nearly 50 years is that you know a lot of people and they know you. A good reputation is the best thing one can develop, full stop, to weather any storm.Julia Nucci Kelly: Yes — our community has embraced the idea that the museum can be a safe in-person activity, and we know KAM plays a role in wellness both on campus and in Champaign-Urbana. Through our virtual programs, we’ve been able to engage a far broader geography vs. in person only. We know virtual programs are a different experience, but we are coming to understand that they supplement what we do in person and make arts programming more accessible.Kathleen Waterloo: Thanks to email, cell phones, the internet, and Zoom I’ve been able to engage with current and new clients in addition to gallerists quite well. Most are familiar with my work already, so communicating size, color preferences, budget, etc. are fairly easy to discuss. Digital images of a site, wall location, and surrounding space further helps a successful end result.&nbsp;Karsten Lund: Some projects, such as publications, can adapt relatively easily to working from home. We finished a 400-page book with LaToya Ruby Frazier this winter, which I still draw inspiration from. Now I’m working on a monograph with Kevin Beasley coming out later this year.&nbsp;It’s required accepting a lot of uncertainty and brought new challenges, for sure, but I’ve also opened three exhibitions this year, at least for more limited in-person audiences. That includes solo shows by Haig Aivazian and Jill Magid, and in ways that speaks volumes to their own resilience, both artists produced ambitious new works.&nbsp;We’ve taken this as a time to experiment too. As we’ve shifted to online talks and virtual exhibition tours, and also debuted a new digital platform, Renaissance TV, we’ve had viewers tuning in from many different countries, with great attendance. We will carry that forward and keep exploring these expanded possibilities for a global audience, or those who can’t visit us, even as we return to in-person programming.&nbsp;IT’S STILL HARD...What challenges remain for you and your business/space since the pandemic began last spring?&nbsp;&nbsp;Catherine Edelman: Creating engagement. Art fairs were a critical part of our business model. It’s been a challenge to introduce new work/artists without that network.&nbsp;Tom McCormick: Even though we are selling well I feel sorry for our contemporary artists (as opposed to the dead ones) as their exhibitions are not well attended. Even when attendance does not equate to sales it is still a great time for friends, family and interested collectors to see the stuff, and COVID has put a lid on a lot of that,Julia Nucci Kelly: I think holding our communities together and supporting one another are our biggest tasks ahead. We’re working hard to make every aspect of the museum’s work accessible to all, and our Curator of Academic Programs Liza Sylvestre is a leader for our staff in that area. We’re also looking forward to when we can do robust school and family programming again as well, so charting the path forward and doing it together in a way that is inclusive and just is an important challenge for us to meet head on.Kathleen Waterloo: Since many galleries temporarily went online and others, sadly, closed their doors due to COVID-19’s economic impact, a few galleries now show my work online only. My work is best viewed in person. If a potential client is only viewing my work digitally some things get lost in the translation – the translucency of the encaustic medium, intimate details that are lost due to the small scale of a cell phone or computer screen, and the experience of seeing the artwork itself which is an ‘object’ in its own right.&nbsp;Karsten Lund: Certain challenges have been unavoidable but we were able to work around them, such as the fact that artists mostly haven’t been able to come on site to install. But more importantly, I think we need to be responsive to the widely varied challenges and hardships different people are facing this year, whether artists, our audiences, or our collaborators. Care feels like an important word and a way of being, more than ever, now and into the future. I continue asking myself how as curators we can meet our moment and what are the best ways we can support artists’ work as our larger contexts shift and so many pressures continue.&nbsp;<figure class="image image-style-side"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417662/qoaswcuammt86rewbt45.gif"><figcaption>Kathleen Waterloo, Texter Road Revisited, 2020, Encaustic on panel18” x 18”, courtesy Addington Gallery. Photo by Tom Van Eynde</figcaption></figure>WHAT ABOUT ARTISTS?How are your artists – or your contemporaries – doing?&nbsp;&nbsp;Catherine Edelman: I started a monthly Zoom meeting with my artists, in an effort to bring everyone together. It’s been an amazing experience for everyone, as we work together to advance the mission of CEG.Kathleen Waterloo: Ex-studiomates and artist friends stay in touch and we give each other critiques, opinions, moral support and pep talks. We like each other’s social media posts. It’s all been vital during the past year. Early during COVID–19 some artists were locked out of their studio buildings for months – a devastating blow. Those who had studio access and continued working did so diligently; it was the fuel needed to keep them going mentally. Most were prolific. Now many of us are also prepared to face the future with a toughened stamina, honed during this pandemic. I’ve seen a few artists, not previously working, who have emerged from isolation producing new and ridiculously stunning work that comes from being either on lockdown, in fear, actually sick, or recovering from 24/7 child care and home schooling – a situation which has affected many artists and non-artists alike. They are exploding with creativity and waiting impatiently to rock the town.&nbsp;Tom McCormick: The dead ones are still dead, but thriving in the market! My living artists, mostly from Chicago, seem to be getting on OK, at least they are not complaining to me. &nbsp;IF THE GLASS IS HALF FULL IS IT ONLY BECAUSE YOU’VE BEEN DRINKING?What are you optimistic about?&nbsp;&nbsp;Catherine Edelman: December in Miami. I believe collectors are hungry to see art in person, and the art fairs in Miami will be a barometer of the return to some semblance of normalcy.Amy L. Powell, Krannert: We are excited to reunite with objects and continue to build community in our spaces. In addition to A Question of Emphasis: Louise Fishman Drawing opening this fall with questions of queer feminist drawing and abstraction, we’re opening Crip*, a group exhibition and symposium curated by Liza Sylvestre that addresses disability and intersectional thinking. Things cannot “go back to normal,” and we are excited to center artists and our audiences to figure out ways of transformation, together. We’re optimistic about the lessons we learned for virtual content and programming, and hope to take those forward.Kathleen Waterloo: Galleries, museums and even art fairs will fully reopen their doors in the near future. Perhaps a few precautionary measures from COVID–19 will remain, but I’m eager to see public space become just that again, with people able to become the social animals they are. I’m still concerned about the galleries that cannot, or won’t, reopen and will only have an online presence. I recognize that for many that digital business model works, and it might be here to stay. The virtual world has been a lifeline for many attempting to keep the arts afloat. I’m hopeful that physical galleries are also here to stay. Fund the arts now – visual, dance, theater, music, film – let’s get them back on their feet.Karsten Lund: I draw so much optimism from artists, and this year is no exception. As much as ever, I’ve been reminded of how they help us see the world differently, almost in real time in some cases. LaToya Ruby Frazier, Haig Aivazian, and Jill Magid’s projects will all stay with me in that way.Maybe most of all though, this feels like a moment when so many things have the potential to be recalibrated, for museums and other institutions and in our individual lives. Change feels possible when it comes to systemic racism, inequality, accessibility, and our looming climate crisis, though that work will have to carry on long beyond this year.Tom McCormick: Oh, I’m very optimistic about everything. While many, many people were devastated economically by COVID, many collectors and others with financial means have been willing to spend more than ever. This will surely level out once things return to some sort of normal, but something good is always just around the corner.&nbsp;That from Mr. Rose Tinted Glasses!&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

Taking the Temperature in 2021: How Is It Actually Going in Chicago's Art World?

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image image-style-side"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417655/opxqnu5ng5wjmr59qpde.gif"><figcaption>Balancing work and life with one of CGN’S top interns, pictured here on an official outing to the Art Institute with publisher Ginny B. Van Alyea, spring 2021 &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>By GINNY VAN ALYEARemember when many businesses and corporate leaders declared that women “lean in” to achieve professional progress as well as a work-life balance? I think at some point we started to lean so much we tipped over. I physically did this at the time Sheryl Sandberg’s book of the same name was published, and I was a few months pregnant with my daughter. I was leaning in to admire something at an art fair, and I didn’t yet understand how my own bodily center of balance had shifted. My mother had to help me stand back up and I had to brush off my embarassment.For me, eight years after that art fair and two children later, the center of many things has continued to shift. 2020 was basically one big lurch in another direction for all of us. Settling into 2021 I’m not sure I will ever go all the way back to the late night multi-tasker I was before the pandemic. I’m finding I’m a better mother, wife and publisher when I lean back – I get more sleep and I keep my to-do list short and my social calendar more limited. Leaning, for me, is balancing, not falling over or getting whiplash.&nbsp;*When the pandemic hit last spring, I fretted about what to do at work – how could CGN help galleries and artists? Should we organize a benefit auction? A crisis symposium? Would CGN even survive? Should we find a way to build e-commerce into our website? How could I fix everything?&nbsp;Ultimately, in the CGN office Emily and I decided to just keep doing what we always do: cheerlead the arts. Doing one thing for over 38 years has worked. We haven’t taken over the world, but it also hasn’t managed to take us over either. Leaning back this past year is what kept us on track and balanced as we navigated unpredictable, sometimes scary times. &nbsp;In this summer of 2021 issue we’ve tried to seek balance and perspective once again, grateful to be publishing according to our usual schedule, not under lockdown, and with a host of exhibitions and news to cover, all while keeping our eyes open for good news and green shoots.&nbsp;So far we have seen a <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2021/5/expansions-plans-forward-momentum-after-a-hard-year">notable number of galleries</a> moving and smartly expanding this year, deepening roots in the creative economy long term. Mayor Lightfoot also announced “Arts 77” — a citywide arts <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2021/4/we-built-this-city-on-the-arts-city-of-chicago-pledges-60-million-for-recovery-and-reopening">recovery and reopening plan</a> with an initial investment of over $60 million to ”place the arts at the center of our city’s recovery efforts.” We are back to posting new (and in–person) events and exhibitions on chicagogallerynews.com every day.&nbsp;If 2020’s flood almost wiped us out, 2021 is a year of replanting ahead of what we hope will be a cultural harvest in 2022 and beyond.&nbsp;For now openings still look different and are fewer in number, and the art fairs and large events haven’t officially returned yet, but we do see people seeking out art in person this summer, visiting galleries in small groups, buying timed tickets to museums, and hitting the road on weekend trips to Midwestern cities and towns that offer art and culture within a couple hours drive. A year of leaning back has helped artists and dealers reevaluate plans as well as resources, and it has helped me build up the resolve, not to mention appreciation, to wade back into the water and enjoy our city again. I see I don’t have to do it all, but I will strive to do it well.Grateful to be able to continue publishing CGN as we approach our 40th anniversary next year, we’ve recommitted to making sure this lovely magazine continues to exist and connect to many in our little part of the art world.&nbsp;As long as I can keep my balance, and my head, we can stay right where we are. That is good, and it’s enough.&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

Summer 2021 Publisher's Letter: When Leaning Back Moves You Forward

<html><head></head><body>We’ve all heard of doubling down. It’s harder than it sounds to face adversity, take a big gamble and make it happen. Amidst a challenging pandemic fortunes have been varied in Chicago’s art spaces, but everyone has been adversely affected in one way or another. CGN has been seeking out the gallerists and others who decided to make some lemonade out of 2020. Each effort is a testament to the enduring power of art and the creative people behind it all. This summer visit these spaces and places to see what’s new and to wish those leading the charge well. – GV&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417619/s7j4ovqvfa46ahjob7yo.jpg"><figcaption>Patron's new home at 1612 W Chicago Ave</figcaption></figure>PATRON has been talking about a move from its original River West location for quite some time, but 2020 put plans on hold. As of April 2021 they have moved to a fabulous new space in a reclaimed theater in West Town.&nbsp; •&nbsp; <a href="https://patrongallery.com">patrongallery.com</a>&nbsp;The Golden Triangle held an epic sale to clear out its 18,000 sf. Clark Street space in River North to move to West Town. Co-founder Doug Van Tress says, “Our new space is a more industrial space, a combination of gallery and atelier-workshop where things are not just sold; they are made.&nbsp; •&nbsp; <a href="http://goldentriangle.biz">goldentriangle.biz</a> &nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417620/efghayafgyxxtsapcxrn.png"></figure>2020 dealt the vintage mainstay Randolph Street Market a near-fatal blow, with the cancellation of in-person events. With construction planned this summer for the market’s traditional Plumber’s Hall home, Schwartz moved the market to Three Oaks, MI for five weekends from Memorial Day to Labor Day.&nbsp; •&nbsp; <a href="http://randolphstreetmarket.com">randolphstreetmarket.com</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417621/jsugau4tohjuhhbxk5iq.jpg"></figure> Kavi Gupta Gallery has two expansions happening. They recently announced plans for a new, multi-functioning art space on the main strip of the lakeside town of New Buffalo, MI, a common spot for Chicagoans to vacation. Plans include an exhibition space, outdoor sculpture garden, as well as art storage facilities.&nbsp;The gallery also announced in April plans to expand their 2nd floor space at 835 W Washington down into the ground floor space where <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/carrie-secrist-gallery">Carrie Secrist Gallery</a> was prior to moving nearby to 900 W Washington. Gupta owns 835 W Washington. This expansion creates a new, multi-purpose, museum-quality exhibition space. In addition to our new rooftop sculpture garden, the space&nbsp;will allow us to host expanded programming and events, as well as a curated bookshop that extends our art publishing arm, Kavi Gupta | Editions."The inaugural exhibition in the new street-level space, opening May 22, 2021, is the gallery’s debut solo show with South African artist Mary Sibande. The gallery still has its nearby Elizabeth St. warehouse as well. •&nbsp; <a href="http://kavigupta.com">kavigupta.com</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417622/azrjtijfon8mmzkhgjla.jpg"></figure>ALAN KOPPEL GALLERY expanded beyond their downtown Dearborn Street space to open a satelite gallery in <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/alan-koppel-gallery-north">suburban Glencoe</a> April 1. Their first show featured photographs by Diane Arbus, along with works by artists she influenced.&nbsp;&nbsp;Art De Triumph &amp; Artful Framer Studios, based at 2938 N. Clark since 2000, announced it is expanding to a gallery / artist retreat / learning center in their historic home in Rockford, &nbsp;85 miles from downtown Chicago. They're inviting clients and fellow artists to come for the day, or come for a stay. • <a href="https://artdetriumph.com/pages/about-us">artdetriumph.com</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417622/nxxq6hrhkgawpozv844j.jpg"><figcaption>Ron Gard</figcaption></figure>Chicago Sculpture International (CSI) opened 3D4D by CSI on April 16 at 1912 N Damen Ave. The space's program focuses on sculpture, time-based and performance art and is an experimental art space run by artists with the mission of showcasing fresh perspectives through unique programming. 3D4D aims to engage young emerging artists and curators whose work drives attention to current issues affecting our society. Community philanthropy is embedded in all programming, and 3D4D by CSI is under the direction of Chicago based artists, composed of women, LGBTQ+ and people of color. &nbsp;• &nbsp;<a href="https://www.3d4dbycsi.org">3d4dbycsi.org</a> &nbsp;</body></html>

Expansions & Plans: Forward Momentum After a Hard Year

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418894/pwucyv9ktljitq5qyhiz.jpg"><figcaption>Balloon Girl, Courtesy of The Art of Banksy</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.theartofbanksy.com">Banksy Comes to Chicago... Sort of.</a>The Art of Banksy, the largest touring exhibition of authentic Banksy art works in the world, announced that it will open July 1 in Chicago. Hosted in a yet-to-be-disclosed location in the West Loop The Art of Banksy will feature 80 authenticated and certified original Banksy works from collectors across the globe, offering the public a rare opportunity to view art that is now privately held.&nbsp;The Art of Banksy is not authorized or curated in collaboration with the artist, but rather sourced from private collections. The exhibition features many of Banksy’s most recognizable images, including Flower Thrower, Rude Copper and Girl with Balloon, famously shredded at auction in 2018. The canvasses, screen prints, sculptures, one-off and limited-edition pieces on display date between 1997 and 2008. Banksy, whose identity is the art world’s biggest secret, is an enigmatic artist and world-recognized political activist. <a href="https://www.theartofbanksy.com">Tickets to see the works</a> – which normally you would once pass on the street for free – will go on sale at 9 a.m. May 6 and start at $39.99 ($29.99 for under 16.)&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418895/p4zsxvftoin7ad6izhvj.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.terraamericanart.org/home/grantees-announced-re-envisioning-permanent-collections/">Terra Foundation awards 35&nbsp;grants to&nbsp;US&nbsp;arts and culture&nbsp;organizations for permanent collection projects</a>The Terra Foundation for American Art is pleased to announce the awarding of nearly $2.5 million in grants to 35 arts and cultural organizations across 30 cities&nbsp;in the United States. These grants support projects through the foundation’s new two-year exhibition grant initiative,&nbsp;Re-envisioning Permanent Collections: An Initiative for US Museums. The Terra Foundation established this grant initiative to encourage museums to delve more deeply into their collections to reveal a fuller multiplicity of artworks and voices that have shaped, in the past and up through the present, the artistic and cultural heritage of the US.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.57thstreetartfair.org/fair-canceled">57th Street Art Fair Announces It Will Take Place Virtually, Not In-Person as Hoped</a>The 57th Street Art Fair Committee announced they have made a final decision regarding the possibility of holding a scaled-down physical fair in June, 2021.&nbsp; Sadly, after much deliberation, they regretted that this will not be possible.There were many considerations behind this difficult decision, but the primary concern was for the health and safety of our artists, visitors, volunteers and community.&nbsp; And in the end, time and cost to implement a safely modified in-person event became insurmountable factors. &nbsp;Without the city permit and permission from CPS, and with only a month to go before the early June fair date, there will not enough time to implement any of the plans considered for 2021’s 74th Annual 57th Street Art Fair.&nbsp; The Committee felt they had no choice but to cancel this year’s physical event, and focus on the currently ongoing <a href="https://www.57thstreetartfair.org/virtual-fair">2021 57th Street Art Fair virtual event</a>, which is live through May 2022.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

CGN Art World Recap: 5/5

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418887/u4iz2jwu2es2o7akxowx.jpg"></figure><a href="https://patrongallery.com">PATRON Has a New Home in An Old Theater</a>PATRON announce the opening of their 5,000 square foot new home at the site of the historic Alvin theatre in Chicago’s West Town gallery district. Located at 1612 W. Chicago Ave., this historic structure, originally built in 1914, was the site of a vaudeville theater run by the Lynch Circuit and later became a part of the Balaban &amp; Katz chain, two pioneering theatre corporations that were integral to perfecting the “palace” theatre concept in the early 20th century in Chicago. The original theatre sat 540 people and, in the 1970s, the site operated as a Spanish-language movie house. The historic building serves as a perfect home for PATRON as they deepen their commitment to the city of Chicago and its vibrant art community. Drawing from their name, the mission of the gallery has always been rooted in an artist-centered approach, which engages art audiences from all walks of life, and is fueled by the belief that a patron can be anyone with a passion and drive to champion and support artists. The gallery’s layout and design will take cues from our existing location and expand on the concept of home, featuring three separate gallery spaces and open communal spaces that foster a warm, inviting approach to accessibility. With seating areas throughout as well as a multi-purpose screening and lecture hall, they hope to invite audiences to come to not only experience art but to spend time at the gallery contemplating and engaging with the community and team.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418888/ug4dvlny0dbam4ygadts.png"></figure><a href="http://kavigupta.com">Kavi Gupta Is Expanding</a>When <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/carrie-secrist-gallery">Carrie Secrist Gallery</a> left the ground floor of 835 W Washington last year and moved nearby to 900 W, their expansive space became vacant. The owner of the building, however, is fellow gallerist Kavi Gupta. That gallery is opting to take over Secrist's old space and expand (they will remain on the second floor too). They shared yesterday via PR: "After two decades operating in Chicago’s West Loop neighborhood, Kavi Gupta is fulfilling our original vision for our gallery at 835 W. Washington Boulevard by expanding our operations to include our building’s 4,000-square-foot&nbsp;west suite on the ground floor. We are thrilled to share this news in anticipation of the restoration of community gatherings following the difficulties of the past year.This expansion creates a new, multi-purpose, museum-quality exhibition space. In addition to our new rooftop sculpture garden, the space&nbsp;will allow us to host expanded programming and events, as well as a curated bookshop that extends our art publishing arm, Kavi Gupta | Editions."The inaugural exhibition in the new street-level space, opening May 22, 2021, is the gallery’s debut solo show with South African artist Mary Sibande.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418889/ydtlffxlhh0y6mzpumet.png"></figure><a href="www.3d4dbycsi.org">Chicago Sculpture International Opens New Art Space: 3D4D</a>Chicago Sculpture International (CSI) has a new art space, 3D4D by CSI, at 1912 N Damen. The gallery opens its first exhibition April 23 with a retrospective of the late Ron Gard’s work, “Nexus Between Spaces”.The exhibition will feature Gard’s small and medium sculptures, as well as a digital display highlighting Ron’s artistic legacy. 3D4D by CSI’s first opening reception is Friday April 23, 6-9pm and was planned to coincide with the International Sculpture Center’s&nbsp;International Sculpture Day, #ISDay, on April 24. The exhibit will run six weeks through June 5. The reception will be in-person (10-15 people) with staggered gallery visits, observing social distancing, and masks required.Ron, a well-known local Chicago Sculptor, passed away in 2019. Gard was a member of Chicago Sculpture International since 2010 and a long-time board member. Ron had been making sculpture since 1977, and his work has been exhibited throughout the country. He was a large contributor for multiple Chicago public sculpture shows, including the famous Chicago Lakefront Sculpture Exhibit, 2012-2013, hosted by the Chicago Park District.3D4D also plans on live streaming the events on Instagram.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418890/kqrghy9pnd1fjhwead9w.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/dca/supp_info/arts_77.html">City of Chicago Announces Arts 77 Recovery and Reopening Plan</a>Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot, the Department of Cultural Affairs&nbsp;and Special Events (DCASE),&nbsp;the Chicago Park District,&nbsp;and other City of Chicago departments announced “Arts 77” —&nbsp;a citywide arts recovery and reopening plan&nbsp;for all of Chicago’s 77 community areas, representing an initial investment of&nbsp;over $60 million to support local artists and organizations. Additional&nbsp;updates regarding&nbsp;financial&nbsp;grants&nbsp;and programs to&nbsp;support&nbsp;arts&nbsp;recovery&nbsp;will follow&nbsp;in the upcoming weeks.“Arts 77”&nbsp;signals&nbsp;a new direction&nbsp;for&nbsp;Chicago’s cultural policy,&nbsp;in which the arts are&nbsp;embedded in initiatives&nbsp;and strategies&nbsp;across&nbsp;City government.&nbsp;This&nbsp;plan seeks to expand access and participation in the arts citywide, prioritize employment of creative workers through City programs and services, and deepen public sector investment in the creative sector though financial support and cultural&nbsp;policy. Today’s&nbsp;announcement&nbsp;launches&nbsp;new and expanded programs including&nbsp;the&nbsp;Neighborhood Access Program, the&nbsp;Chicago Band Roster and Chicago Presents grant programs, Culture in My Neighborhood (a $40 million collaboration by DCASE, the Chicago Park District,&nbsp;and Chicago Public Library),&nbsp;Individual Artists Program&nbsp;grants,&nbsp;Artist Response Program&nbsp;grants, and $18.5 million in art&nbsp;and&nbsp;infrastructure investments.&nbsp;For details&nbsp;and upcoming Arts 77 webinars for the cultural community, visit <a href="http://link.mediaoutreach.meltwater.com/ls/click?upn=Fx6ZlfogyykExOP4a2vWQ4TXG4aEpmBXWyior40nHaWAo1VE03LSQKj1M6FDUhuWuWJ9_BYLPtpUivDHORxxkVXshLCRT3wjV7CgXbLJWP9J5MP9LJ6jv7-2Bb0c97UF1yE1XeiKasl3Q0KHAlfCn9N7XONZksYe5OIXa5kf5eLUqZODuRSP9aq4SJ-2B49W0jH0wJ361JczapSvf6rbhPl3ofH-2F0oe7S01YlpSH23Pryiy4gAY8fw38eIs9J-2FbJWHRTvmSCMnvVd1mQZ2CICfFLzJBY5eoKuGOjLY7fqz4d4EE7SRvj0v-2Bq-2BvJLFN3pMpEo3Uu4qdxY-2BZn5isqNnFzRlPp186tcyURXdTVTCQGbVU0VcHfZPmDgXwc8hdYYPCMa-2BaEGoYvjaGBuylnfYtss-2Bd1ZFrXIkXfGMSkKqd30G1iWd2YYwLvk7jXxGifYEdUKn0QcvBBtXIi3nRHcckvTUvEqXbw-3D-3D">Chicago.gov/Arts77</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

CGN Art World Recap: 4/21/21

<html><head></head><body>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417626/ybpoan1vqiompgjjon4w.jpg"><figcaption>John Kiley, Blue Halo, 2020, blown and cut glass, 14.75 x 14.25 x 9 in. Courtesy of Traver Gallery</figcaption></figure><a href="https://intersectchicago.com">Intersect Chicago (the old SOFA) announces fall in person dates</a>Intersect Chicago — the future of SOFA will take place in-person November 4–7, 2021. This year the fair presents an exploration of materiality and meaning in design, objects, furniture, and art with a focus on local, regional, and global creation. The fair's focus on glass continues to grow and evolve, and viewers can anticipate that glass will be a highlight of the 2021 edition. Visit <a href="https://vgmgt.us19.list-manage.com/track/click?u=63b52f0348afa8b143fb2ed1c&amp;id=9d0959fc8c&amp;e=dff93cd990">IntersectChicago.com</a> for updates and news in the coming weeks about virtual programs and events leading up to November.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417627/e5udabmd00cgouocwnam.jpg"><figcaption>Lori Sapio.&nbsp;Denise Gardner, 2021. Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago &nbsp;</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.artic.edu/press/press-releases/297/art-institute-of-chicago-announces-denise-gardner-as-next-chairperson-of-board-of-trustees">The Art Institute Announces the Next Board Chair, Collector Denise Gardner</a>The Art Institute of Chicago announced today the election of Denise Gardner as the organization’s new chairperson of the Board of Trustees. Gardner will succeed Robert M. Levy as the leader of the governing body of both the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) and the Art Institute of Chicago museum. Levy will remain on the board and Gardner will take over as chair when Levy’s term ends in November.With her professional background and a nearly 30-year relationship with the Art Institute as a volunteer and philanthropic leader, including 15 years as a trustee and five years in her current role as vice chair of the board, Gardner is uniquely positioned to advance the strategic vision of both the museum and the school. Deeply invested in and knowledgeable about the Art Institute of Chicago, she has modeled support and advocacy for the museum and school by championing artists and the accessibility of art and art education for historically underrepresented audiences. She has built a personal collection of art that is internationally recognized and cultivated rich relationships with many artists and educators.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417628/n34cfe3yow4pam65f2jv.jpg"><figcaption><a href="https://www.artsy.net/artist/stephen-towns">Stephen Towns, </a><a href="https://www.artsy.net/artwork/stephen-towns-we-will-rest-our-thoughts-in-the-embers">We Will Rest Our Thoughts in the Embers</a>, 2020, <a href="https://www.artsy.net/de-buck-gallery">De Buck Gallery</a></figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-10-best-booths-expo-chicagos-online-edition">Check out 'the 10 best' booths at EXPO's online edition&nbsp;</a>More than a year after the realities of the COVID-19 pandemic set in and art fairs around the world canceled their plans for the foreseeable future, Chicago’s EXPO fair is holding its 2021 edition online, rescheduled from the fair’s usual in-person time slot in September. This year’s edition, known as <a href="https://www.artsy.net/fair/expo-chgo-online">EXPO CHGO ONLINE</a>, gathers presentations from more than 80 U.S. and international galleries showcasing both contemporary upstarts and well-known figures working in painting, sculpture, fiber art, and much more.Three of the chosen galleries are from Chicago (Daiter, Meloche, and Mickey)Via Artsy&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417629/qlkt8tgwcaxwgfxvbshw.png"><figcaption>Amy Sherald, Breonna Taylor, 2020, oil on linen Joseph Hyde/© Amy Sherald. Courtesy the artist and Hauser &amp; Wirth</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-10-best-booths-expo-chicagos-online-edition">SAIC Grad Allison Glenn curates Exhibition Devoted to Breonna Taylor</a>"To have a contemporary exhibition by majority Black artists in this space acts as a decolonization of these galleries," Glenn says.The show is laid out in three sections to reflect the words in the title: "Promise, Witness, Remembrance."Via NPR&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417630/dtwofikjpyz2hbekn3pj.png"></figure><a href="https://bradlippitz.com/properties/680-n-lake-shore-drive-unit-523-chicago-il-60611-10978559">680 N Lake Shore Drive, Unit 523</a>Completely gutted and masterfully redesigned this oversized one-of-a-kind 1-bedroom/1.5 bath residence exudes sophistication. Featuring art on nearly every wall, including works by Alexander Calder and others, this art filled unit could be yours for under $500K.Via Compass/Brad Lippitz&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

CGN Art World Recap: April 13

<html><head></head><body>By GINNY VAN ALYEAWhile we are all yearning &nbsp;for a return to 'normalcy' soon, there are moments and events that still manage to remind us that we have shifted to a new normal, if you will. Last May EXPO CHICAGO's Tony Karman announced that EXPO would be taking an early, preemptive step to move the fair from its usual September dates to April 2021. This seemed, at the time, to be abundantly cautious but prudent, and an April in-person was totally doable.&nbsp;Well, a year goes fast, even when it's rough. EXPO's team has been busy preparing for a strong virtual showing, one that showcases contemporary and modern art features presentations of available artwork from over 80 international galleries, Art Dealers Association of America (ADAA) members, EXPOSURE galleries, and Special Exhibition participants.&nbsp;The online iteration of EXPO includes the usual line up of best feet forward, even in this virtual format, with strong offerings from local participants as well as from international exhibitors and partners. EXPO CHGO ONLINE will offer a series of dynamic discussions, film screenings (presented in partnership with Daata), exhibition tours, and performances reflecting Chicago’s interdisciplinary arts scene.&nbsp;Programs taking place during EXPO CHGO ONLINE will be free and open to the public April 8-12 via the&nbsp;<a href="https://expochicago.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=feab88d1702b05fff44372e88&amp;id=eafb9b310e&amp;e=b25d02ccd1">EXPO CHICAGO microsite</a>. Each gallery has also been invited to present one artwork that contributes to a broad rethinking of the environment, to be exhibited within a focused programming section.Just a few highlights of the exhibition include:&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417652/af1xxnonq7ovtgyexiae.jpg"><figcaption>The April 8 kick-off event is Presented in partnership with Chicago Architecture Biennial</figcaption></figure>• The fair kick's off for VIPs on <a href="https://program.expochicago.com/expo-chgo-kick-off-program-framing-the-moment-on-music-architecture-and-improvisation/">Thursday, April 8 </a>with a special event featuring David Brown (Artistic Director, Chicago Architecture Biennial), Ken Vandermark (Musician), Rosa Barba (Artist), and moderated by John Corbett (Gallerist, Corbett vs. Dempsey), this panel convenes thought leaders from visual art, music, and architectural backgrounds to discuss the ways improvisational techniques influence their diverse practices in the creation of visual, sonic, and constructed spaces. Panelists will explore how improvisational methods impact both collaboration and community.&nbsp;• Friday, April 9 <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/emerging-artists-with-humberto-moro">Humberto Moro</a>, deputy director and senior curator at the Museo Tamayo and EXPO CHICAGO’s EXPOSURE curator, leads a tour of EXPO CHGO ONLINE. Moro will present a selection of works from a range of galleries featured in the EXPOSURE section of the digital exposition, in addition to key pieces from emerging artists throughout the fair.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417653/ezmfnyfkyxdnqarjdstu.jpg"></figure>• Saturday, April 10 – Corbett vs. Dempsey presents the fifth incarnation of its&nbsp;Sequesterfest&nbsp;series, this time as part of the program for EXPO CHGO ONLINE art fair, presented in the Experimental Sound Studio’s miraculous Quarantine Concert series, which has been streaming live music and audio art directly into people’s homes since the outbreak of the pandemic.&nbsp; Sequesterfest&nbsp;5 singles out three members of Wilco – singer and guitarist (and most recently author!)&nbsp;Jeff Tweedy, guitarist&nbsp;Nels Cline, and drummer&nbsp;Glenn Kotche&nbsp;– inviting them to show how a few seasons off-road adds up.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417654/jcvfe4v5iy38f5uybxos.jpg"></figure>• April 12 The Arts Club hosts a panel, <a href="https://program.expochicago.com/panel-for-and-from-the-void-artists-on-making-in-an-empty-institution/">For and From the Void: Artists on Making in an Empty Institution</a>. Unable to host audiences en masse for performances in the actual building, The Arts Club of Chicago opted, during a pandemic-induced hibernation, to explore the generative potential of emptiness. The club invited three artists in three disciplines to ponder the question, “What does one do with an empty institution?” Musician Angel Bat Dawid, Dancer Jasmine Mendoza, and Theater maker Kurt Chiang (with their collaborators Isaiah Collier, Keaton Fox, and Livia Chesley respectively) took on the task of making art for and from a void. The three lead artists, with programmer Jenna Lyle, discuss their discoveries from the process and the inherent contradictions in the original prompt: is an arts institution ever really empty?&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417654/xdv8xhauevtukdzu5fgp.jpg"><figcaption>Ellen Lanyon</figcaption></figure>• Locally, Gray Gallery will be highlighting artist <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/ellen-lanyon-a-bit-of-magic">Ellen Lanyon</a> with a solo exhibition of paintings from the late artist's, sold to benefit the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.The Arts Club of Chicago opens its exhibition featuring the work of Turner Prize-nominated artist <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/hurvin-anderson-anywhere-but-nowhere">Hurvin Anderson, Anywhere but Nowhere.&nbsp;</a>&nbsp;Of course, if you're local you can visit area galleries all week, as all are open at least by appointment.&nbsp;Enjoy this version of EXPO. Though it is the new normal for now, it's a strong connection to what we used to experience in years past and what we can look forward to again, hopefully some day soon.&nbsp;&nbsp;From the archives:<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2020/5/expo-chicago-to-move-from-september-to-april-8-11-2021">EXPO CHICAGO to Move from September to April 2021</a><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2020/9/expo-chicago-s-tony-karman-on-fall-without-a-fair">Tony Karman on Fall without a Fair, Sept 2020</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

EXPO CHGO Online Opens This Week

<a href="https://www.chicagobusiness.com/greg-hinz-politics/847-million-raised-mid-fall-groundbreaking-set-obama-center?utm_source=breaking-news&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=20210330&amp;utm_content=hero-image">Mid-fall groundbreaking set for Obama Center</a>With more than $800 million in commitments and cash on hand, the Obama Foundation intends to begin construction of the long-planned Obama Presidential Center in Jackson Park by mid-fall, officials said today.In a meeting with Crain’s editorial board, foundation Chair&nbsp;Valerie Jarrett and construction chief Lori Healey said that, with only routine city building permits yet to be obtained, land clearance work on the 18-acre site will begin “around Sept. 1,” with actual construction perhaps two months later but definitely before winter.Via Crain's&nbsp;<a href="https://news.wttw.com/2021/04/04/chicagos-arts-community-sees-wave-new-black-leaders">Chicago’s Arts Community Sees Wave of New Black Leaders</a>Chicago’s arts organizations have always been enriched and influenced by the work of Black artists and performers, though they have not always been inclusive of Black voices. And Black leadership in those organizations have historically been even less inclusive.Amid the turbulence of the last year, a wave of new Black leaders has arrived in Chicago’s arts community. Now, they are tasked with navigating some of the city’s best-known institutions through incredibly challenging times for the arts.Via WTTW&nbsp;<a href="https://www.adfwebmagazine.jp/en/art/museum-debt-deprives-us-of-our-future/">Museum Debt Deprives Us of Our Future</a>Art museums across the United States are in a dire financial crisis. As a result of closures during the Covid-19 pandemic, many museums have undertaken drastic measures such as furloughing and laying off staff, selling artwork from their permanent collection, and scaling back programming and exhibitions in order to mitigate massive revenue losses. However, museums rarely acknowledge the extent to which industry financial practices, in particular the use of debt to finance capital projects, endanger their sustainability, especially during times of national and international economic crisis.By Riley Yaxley, ADF Web Magazine&nbsp;<a href="https://myemail.constantcontact.com/VAS-Weekly-Newsletter--March-27--2021.html?soid=1102371355349&amp;aid=FAexjWQiHmc">The MCA Blows It</a>Wrapping the corner walls of the entrance to “The Long Dream” at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago are the names of the more than 70 local artists exhibiting work in the exhibition. Some of these names belong to my friends and colleagues, and there are others I don’t personally know but greatly admire. Rather than feeling vicariously buoyed by reading these names, and appreciating the institutional recognition of a segment of Chicago’s arts community, I instinctively flinched.By Robin Dluzen&nbsp;&nbsp;Thumbnail image: Diane Christensen and Jeanne Dunning with Steve Dawson, “Birth Death Breath,” ﻿2016, inflatable opera. Installation view, Elmhurst Art Museum, Elmhurst, Illinois&nbsp;

What We're Reading: 4/5

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418881/g9vpyre2dfq8hgi74fqa.jpg"></figure><a href="https://smartmuseum.uchicago.edu/?mc_cid=28cea9dbe1&amp;mc_eid=a6ad3ea4a5">The Smart Reopens Next Week</a>On April 8, the Smart Museum of Art will open to the public, offering timed reservations to visit Lust, Love, and Loss in Renaissance Europe, a new exhibition in which passion, violence, and virtue emerge as fundamental, intertwined elements in European artworks of the fifteenth through seventeenth centuries. In addition, the Museum will be open to University of Chicago classes and individual or small group student research visits coordinated through the Feitler Center for Academic InquiryThe Museum also shared an article from nine UChicago experts discussing the <a href="https://news.uchicago.edu/story/what-experts-have-learned-from-covid-19-pandemic-one-year?mc_cid=28cea9dbe1&amp;mc_eid=a6ad3ea4a5">past year's impacts</a> on health, science and more.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418882/nxy8f21hpmn52rn74gni.png"></figure><a href="https://www.artdesignchicago.org/adcnow/">Art Design Chicago is Back</a>Art Design Chicago&nbsp;is back again with Art Design Chicago Now,&nbsp;a series of free public conversations, hands-on workshops, behind-the-scenes collections tours, and digital storytelling amplifying the voices of Chicago's diverse community of makers―past and present. Details <a href="https://www.artdesignchicago.org/adcnow/">here</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418883/ct9rctkmcmcfavk5equx.png"></figure><a href="https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/900-N-Lake-Shore-Dr-APT-712-Chicago-IL-60611/3849428_zpid/?">900 N Lake Shore – An Accessible 'Miesien' Home</a>A renovated "12" tier 2 bed / 2 bath unit in the architecturally significant Mies Van Der Rohe building is for sale with a recent price cut.&nbsp;&nbsp;<h1>&nbsp;</h1></body></html>

Art World Recap: April 1

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image image-style-side"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418876/q4lag3i2ki4k9qvemwgk.png"></figure><a href="https://www.hydeparkart.org/get-involved/artist-opportunities/artists-run-chicago-fund/">Artists Run Chicago Fund Deadline: March 31</a>Attention Chicago artist-run spaces, time is running out! Don't forget that applications are open for Hyde Park Art Center's Artists Run Chicago Fund. HPAC's Artist Run Chicago Fund <a href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001u2enedW6KuGOEGlRzJp6Jeh6OLYbTXAeB6PYyCRK0i7Y64ZIaUcxgNFYzNlRuN6XLXqVhpUvwcZbVteW5zjW3Lq3QmCd53zdzS22_vLA4wHPyptQJZZo7rloBNe7Ov-Ns2Q-OCznCb7okYyGHc1Z_C886Xyom_9MDUquICWln9FmbgTo1ovkjIu-fTQZlWuDjM3i8Uzq8L6bMmaDdlRzXiMKHjkx6nwUoNZawIgkcDo=&amp;c=3ode9-ISYXoGbSyqiKc2y8_47ZR8H9Ev9h8n3AZiQPPWps9u1lVv3A==&amp;ch=832h_-AbCsEqaZ2UKkv01m0bH_iAFez41xmghCPNjWHovGIVUEwLpA==">open call </a>seeks to award 20 $8,000 grants to artist-run spaces, programs and platforms through a juried open call.⠀The deadline to apply for an Artist Run Chicago Fund Grant is March 31, 2021. This initiative is being funded by an anonymous donor and is being fully administered by Hyde Park Art Center.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418876/njdyh9uczyxy577f8gu9.gif"></figure><a href="https://artadia.org/?mc_cid=5d971b1564&amp;mc_eid=46cd983d87">Announcing the 2021 Chicago&nbsp;Artadia&nbsp;Awards Finalists</a>Artadia, a nonprofit grant making organization and nationwide community of visual artists, curators, and patrons, is pleased to announce that Andrea Carlson, Melissa Leandro, Cecil McDonald, Jr., Carlos Javier Ortiz, Celeste Rapone and Nate Young have been selected as the 2021 Chicago Artadia Awards Finalists.&nbsp; The Finalists will each receive virtual studio visits with second-round jurors, who will ultimately select three artists to receive $10,000 unrestricted funds.&nbsp;The 2021 Chicago Artadia Award application was open to visual artists working in any visual media, at any stage in their career, who have been living and working within Chicago Cook County for a minimum of two years.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418878/kkrggqnqwcepu213cgb4.png"></figure><a href="https://www.hfas.org">The Harlem Fine Art Show is running online through May 28</a>The Harlem Fine Art Show ran in Chicago a few years ago, as well as in other cities, and now it's running virtually through July 2021. Open 7 days digital visitors can examine each gallery’s artworks, singularly and vividly, in both 2D or 3D on the wall. 60+ booths present select artists and galleries from around the world highlighting the African Diaspora in virtual reality. Inspired by the Harlem Renaissance, HFAS provides a platform African Diasporic Visionaries as well as American visual artist to exhibit and sell their artwork. The Harlem Fine Arts show has also created economic empowerment, educational opportunities and professional recognition within the multicultural community.&nbsp; &nbsp;</body></html>

CGN Art World Recap: March 29

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418876/samxodelh1g2ct06ntjv.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.edelmangallery.com">Catherine Edelman Gallery Announces New Plan to Stay Open After Closing in December 2020</a>Catherine Edelman Gallery announced this week that they are staying put in their West Town brick-and-mortar space at 1637 W. Chicago Ave. As Edelman said, she built the space out of nothing and she's thrilled to be able to keep it open after a very challenging 2020. In a video message, Edelman takes a moment to acknowledged her former staff, Juli Lowe and Tim Campos, who were with her for 11 and 9 years. Edelman had long planned to pass the gallery on to Juli, but the pandemic changed the course of the best–laid plans.&nbsp;Together, with her artists, Edelman is now working to develop a new and sustainable gallery model. CEG also announced the debut of an innovative Viewing Room that allows the public to walk through the show as if they were in the gallery, no doubt anticipating that some members of the collecting community, both local and around the world, may opt to view art virtually beyond the pandemic. This new experience, coupled with in-depth artist interviews, and in-person and online programming, offers a fresh approach to the traditional Tuesday through Saturday hours while giving Edelman flexibility to spend time with viewers and clients one by one and also to continue mounting exhibitions. “Artists need a space to see their work. And the public needs a space where they can see, learn and ask questions. I look forward to engaging with the public in a new, more personalized way,” said Edelman. Currently the gallery is open by appt. The current exhibition, Gallery Artists 2.0, runs through May 29, 2021&nbsp;<a href="https://link.chicagobusiness.com/click/23300690.72558/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5jaGljYWdvYnVzaW5lc3MuY29tL3Jlc2lkZW50aWFsLXJlYWwtZXN0YXRlL2FtaWQtYnJvYWQtb3Bwb3NpdGlvbi1hbGRlcm1hbi1kcm9wcy1wcm9wb3NhbC1ob3VzZS1tdXNldW1zP3V0bV9zb3VyY2U9YnJlYWtpbmctbmV3cyZ1dG1fbWVkaXVtPWVtYWlsJnV0bV9jYW1wYWlnbj0yMDIxMDMyMyZ1dG1fY29udGVudD1oZXJvLWhlYWRsaW5l/5f4c3915c90d524d8471bc4aC086285f9">Amid broad opposition, alderman drops proposal on house museums</a>Facing broad and powerful opposition to her proposal to limit conversion of houses into museums, Ald. Sophia King dropped the plan today, just ahead of a City Hall meeting about it.&nbsp;Several area arts leaders and organizers made a full press to draw attention to the ordinance and its potential impact.&nbsp;Via Crains&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418876/ae6gzmd0ozkes0bzcjnw.png"></figure>Randolph Street Market Takes a Detour to Michigan This SummerFounder Sally Schwartz had to stop her famous Randolph Street Markets in Chicago last spring due to the pandemic. Now, with the home of the markets, Plumber's Hall, being under construction all summer, she's decided to head to Harbor Country Michigan instead.&nbsp;As Sally shared on Facebook, "You can't keep a good show down! Ninety minutes from the city your world will be transformed! Three Oaks is a quintessential small “hometown” community nestled within Harbor Country, which is the summer home to many Chicagoans.&nbsp;&nbsp;Come shop our curated dealers treasures, cruise the main drag and even stop for a swim at Warren Woods State Park. It will be worth the trip and the start of a new tradition."&nbsp;The market returns May 28, 2021. Visit their <a href="https://www.randolphstreetmarket.com">website</a> for details.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418877/wzl7o6ut7p2yak43cjwv.jpg"></figure>New Chicago Takes 10 Performance Series Spotlights Performers Impacted by COVID-19Chicago Takes 10, a new, virtual performance series sponsored by the Walder Foundation that supports performing artists and arts organizations who have been negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The series premiered March 18 and highlights diverse performance styles throughout the Chicago region, featuring local musicians, performers, and dancemakers. Chicago Takes 10 hopes that artists and organizations will have a new platform to share their work with audiences here in the Chicago region and beyond. Join Emcee <a href="https://www.chicagotakes10.org/artists/sandra-delgado">Sandra Delgado</a> every other Thursday at 6 p.m. CT. All performances run 60-90 minutes. Visit <a href="https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.chicagotakes10.org%2F%3Ffbclid%3DIwAR2YWZBGnCfAi5hQMYSJqz-XWsjCI_bxVZvMqFf_romZjdls9_HtlJFTEr8&amp;h=AT0QjbLqBWc15VKlov9JaytAsZj3bzGIJ8gcO6h06x6w8AW2ySS4hmOxa2uEFFBNTP-U_3o3aVhRD5BGgMiHdh0mh_KUVo8nYX6oY-kZJmG1vHc2FO9ueD7HibfMXPUEQVp_4hM&amp;__tn__=-UK-R&amp;c[0]=AT3qrHqzf4M82yK7czb7rDHMNL8sOe1l51frrT30E2NMtvOsPTtbcmgQu6rC8meG96Mj5rllfll6Hbn8j-xX1adH3QaO0gXN_iIgeHRzQ3oxSe464WQfuCGSrZeNTVaqt2jJCLIepTkEd8kkwh2LHym8bvx15BiyEVPz9CMDRpSFCwBB91vMWclH0iBOA82rucZYwrW-tisA">www.chicagotakes10.org</a> for details and to view performances.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418878/n1cbhigvvavqs1ece2hc.jpg"><figcaption>Via TANK Shanghai</figcaption></figure>Theaster Gates in ShanghaiGates shared via Facebook that he has opened a sprawling new exhibition in Shanghai called BAD NEON at TANK Shanghai. Gates &nbsp;said, "BAD NEON transforms TANK No. 3 into a space where light, sound, and roller disco can live alongside two of my favorite visualists: the painter Agnes Martin, and the social theorist W.E.B Du Bois. These synergies feel particularly relevant in this moment, and I’m excited for people to experience the energy of the space."&nbsp;Gagosian shared, In his exhibition Bad Neon,&nbsp;<a href="https://gagosian.com/artists/theaster-gates/">Theaster Gates</a> transforms the unique space of Tank Shanghai—which is housed within decommissioned aviation fuel tanks of a former airport—into a roller-skating rink, complete with neon lights, music, and artworks. Visitors are invited to experience the energy of Gates’s art on skates, including two iceberg-shaped sculptures, Houseberg (gold) and Houseberg (silver), which pay tribute to 1980s Chicago house music and clubs. Over the course of the exhibition, musicians and artists will craft different genres of music, introducing more possibilities to the site."&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

CGN Art World Recap: March 22

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417670/wjaxzwy4lvinngzdgtoo.jpg"><figcaption>Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times</figcaption></figure><a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/3/17/22336357/aldermans-bid-to-restrict-house-museums-draws-outrage-from-emerging-tourism-sector">Alderman’s bid to restrict ‘house museums’ draws outrage from emerging tourism sector</a>An ordinance introduced by Ald. Sophia King (4th) to restrict “house museums” in residential neighborhoods has drawn outrage from a small but passionate community of existing or planned operators of such museums — including projects honoring Black history icons Emmett Till, Phyllis Wheatley, Lu Palmer and Muddy Waters.Via Chicago Sun Times&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/art-world-gets-crash-course-in-nfts-a-frenzy-ensues-11616039940?st=5o3sg8vygrxyfli&amp;reflink=article_gmail_share">Art World Gets Crash Course in NFTs; a Frenzy Ensues</a>After Beeple’s $69 million sale, Christie’s remakes its sale categories, Sotheby’s is offering digital artworks and accepting Bitcoin and galleries are setting up task forces to study up on crypto-millionaires. It’s ‘like we just discovered an unknown continent.’Via The Wall Street Journal&nbsp;<a href="https://news.artnet.com/market/deubt-london-gallery-weekend-1952681?utm_content=from_&amp;utm_source=Sailthru&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=US%2010%3A11%20a.m.%20newsletter%20for%203%2F18%2F21&amp;utm_term=US%20Daily%20Newsletter%20%5BMORNING%5D">London Dealers Are Debuting the City’s First-Ever Gallery Weekend This Summer to Revive the Local Art Scene After a Year of Lockdown</a>To celebrate the end of lockdown and resuscitate the local scene, a group of London galleries are launching the city’s first gallery weekend this summer.Via Artnet&nbsp;<a href="https://blockclubchicago.org/2021/03/15/chicagos-newest-music-venue-epiphany-center-for-the-arts-is-staging-live-social-distanced-indoor-shows/?fbclid=IwAR0QHEt7VrsPCqUKSK8uhbfyXxzrqjkdfWOQ9RhmI6E6y3E3zF8ASCoMNnA">Chicago’s Newest Music Venue, Epiphany Center For The Arts, Is Staging Live, Social-Distanced Indoor Shows</a>While Chicagoans eagerly await the return of live music and entertainment to venues across the city, Chicago’s newest venue has been putting on live indoor shows already.Epiphany Center for the Arts, which includes the <a href="https://blockclubchicago.org/2019/11/06/historic-church-of-the-epiphany-transformed-into-15-million-wedding-and-event-venue-opening-this-winter/">former Church of the Epiphany</a> at 201 S. Ashland Ave. along with other buildings on its 42,000-square-foot campus, is home to three unique venues — Epiphany Hall, The Sanctuary and The Catacombs — along with a cafe and a courtyard.Via Block Club Chicago&nbsp;</body></html>

What We're Reading: 3/18

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418870/hcviolsjmcesh1tshujc.jpg"></figure>&nbsp;<a href="https://news.wttw.com/2021/03/11/elmhurst-exhibit-fair-housing-features-rare-mlk-photos?fbclid=IwAR2GzVjiBpNim8Ovf4NME1ZqgnCyi5LW3StY8Xb8zDRhDuML-rqEKIT6Lp4">Elmhurst Exhibit on Fair Housing Features Rare MLK Photos</a>A new exhibit at the Elmhurst Art Museum is using photography to explore Chicago’s fair housing history and features rare color photos of Martin Luther King Jr. during the Chicago Freedom Movement.The images of King mark his time in Chicago in the 1960s. They were captured by Wheaton-based photographer Bernard Kleina.&nbsp;Via WTTW&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://news.artnet.com/art-world/mca-chicago-artists-withdraw-1951456">A Group of Artists Has Withdrawn From an MCA Exhibition in Protest</a>A group of artists have withdrawn their work from “The Long Dream,” an exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, to protest the museum’s layoffs of more than 40 staffers in January.On Thursday, the group met with museum director Madeleine Grynsztejn to make multiple <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1STp7ViO3mTSn7WFIbIy4U-RwlOKHyhWWxoOLjQ5DavY/edit">demands</a>, including&nbsp;public apologies to laid-off staffers of color, the adoption of&nbsp;progressive standards for compensating artists who participate in exhibitions, and a restructuring of museum leadership.Via Artnet&nbsp;<a href="https://blockclubchicago.org/2021/03/11/pilsen-and-south-shore-artists-team-up-to-curate-art-exhibit-highlighting-the-shared-experiences-of-black-and-latino-families/?fbclid=IwAR3UcrP3YhUYvzdAKy0ckIm-WWtGnFJymWvTOg4JTndfncnzDCeDnCT7gyU">Pilsen And South Shore Artists Team Up To Curate Art Exhibit Highlighting The Shared Experiences Of Black And Latino Families</a>A new exhibit looks to build bridges between Pilsen and South Shore by highlighting the parallel journeys of the Black and Brown residents of the South Side neighborhoods.Seeds In My Pocket aims to create a space of healing through art after a year of civil unrest. Curated by South Shore artist Dorian Sylvain and Pilsen artist Pablo Serrano in partnership with the Chicago Art Department, the exhibit is focused on the shared journey of Black and Latino families who navigate barriers to create a sense of home and place in Chicago.Via Block Club&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/11/theater/performing-arts-super-fan-lockdown.html">How A Super Chicago Theater Fan Has Adapted During the Pandemic</a>&nbsp;What has this year been like for the most voracious of culture vultures? A super fan in Chicago lets us into his life without the arts.Via New York Times&nbsp;<a href="https://news.artnet.com/art-world/gardner-heist-docuseries-netflix-1951491">A Netflix True Crime Series About the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum Heist</a>Netflix’s latest true crime documentary will revisit the infamous heist at Boston’s Isabella Stewert Gardner Museum, an unsolved robbery in which a pair of thieves posing as policemen tied up a night watchmen and made off with 13 masterpieces by the likes of Rembrandt, Johannes Vermeer, Edgar Degas, and Édouard Manet, collectively worth an estimated $500 million.Next week marks the 31st anniversary of the break-in, carried out in the wee hours of the morning amid St. Patrick’s Day celebrations. There is still a $10 million reward for information leading to the paintings’ return, and it remains the most expensive art theft in US history.Via Artnet&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bisnow.com/san-francisco/news/architecture-design/the-first-to-get-cut-the-case-for-arts-power-in-cre-108028?utm_source=outbound_pub_13&amp;utm_campaign=outbound_issue_46589&amp;utm_content=outbound_link_11&amp;utm_medium=email">The First To Get Cut: The Case For Art’s Power In CRE</a>Funding for the arts is generally placed low on society’s list of priorities during economically challenging times. The coronavirus pandemic has significantly impacted the arts more broadly with the temporary closing of galleries, museums and performing arts venues across the country.However, long-standing Percent for Art programs, which place fees — usually a percentage of the development cost — on commercial new-build projects&nbsp;to fund public art, have bolstered the resiliency of art in commercial real estate.Via BisNow&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

What We're Reading: 3/15/21

<html><head></head><body>A brief summary of what's news and what's happening in our art community, from exhibition notes and auctions, to real estate ogling. – CGN Staff&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418870/l2g7omm914q8tspvjrff.jpg"><figcaption>The House That John Built,&nbsp;deconstructed doll house, 4 constructions, each approx. 32” x 34” x 3”&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</figcaption></figure><a href="https://chicagoprintmakers.com/print-making-gallery-chicago/">Chicago Printmakers Collaborative – Storefront Takeover</a>In Celebration of&nbsp;&nbsp;Women’s History Month, The CPC is proud to feature artist, Catherine Jacobi and her work, “The House That John Built” as part of their new ‘storefront takeover’ series. Catherine Jacobi has been a designer and sculptor for over 30 years. She is a longtime friend and resident of the CPC. Her work can be found in many private collections.Visit the storefront exhibition 24/7 - the installation inspires dialogue and discussion, and makes a great destination for experiencing culture in the safest way possible!&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418870/nlebulyt2vlktzaesixm.png"><figcaption><a href="https://auctions.toomeyco.com/asp/fullCatalogue.asp?salelot=126+++++++47+&amp;refno=+++36704">George Wesley Bellows</a>, (American, 1882-1925), In an Elevator, 1916 , lithograph , signed in pencil lower right (by daughter), edition of 54, 10" x 8"</figcaption></figure><a href="https://auctions.toomeyco.com/asp/searchresults.asp?st=D&amp;pg=1&amp;ps=50&amp;sale_no=126">Toomey Issues Last Call for Bids for March 14 Auction</a>...along with a helpful reminder about Daylight Savings Time this weekend. The Fine Art + Furniture &amp; Decorative Arts auction takes place this Sunday, March 14To place an absentee or telephone bid you're invited to log in or register on Toomey's website. There is also an option to place multiple bids at once as well as contact the auction house for last-minute condition information and additional photos of any lots in the sale. Bidders may also participate in the auction in real time via two third-party platforms, <a href="https://toomeyco.us17.list-manage.com/track/click?u=1f8d495e0000b56f45f7d7be2&amp;id=3426c38d1b&amp;e=e94c9cc705">LiveAuctioneers</a> and <a href="https://toomeyco.us17.list-manage.com/track/click?u=1f8d495e0000b56f45f7d7be2&amp;id=da1a9ec7fc&amp;e=e94c9cc705">Invaluable</a> but absentee bids must be made now and previews are by appointment only.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418871/rjqagemew7ibwcwjt1as.jpg"><figcaption>Via Compass</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/2727-N-Seminary-Ave-60614/unit-2R/home/172628509?utm_source=myredfin&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=instant_listings_update&amp;riftinfo=ZXY9ZW1haWwmbD00NTg1OTA2MiZwPWxpc3RpbmdfdXBkYXRlc19pbnN0YW50XzE1JmE9Y2xpY2smcz1zYXZlZF9zZWFyY2gmdD1pbWFnZSZlbWFpbF9pZD00NTg1OTA2Ml8xNjE1NDk2MzMzXzImdXBkYXRlX3R5cGU9MSZzYXZlZF9zZWFyY2hfaWQ9NDkyNDA3NzImbGlzdGluZ19pZD0xMjk0ODgzODcmcHJvcGVydHlfaWQ9MTcyNjI4NTA5JnBvc2l0aW9uX251bWJlcj0w">Architects Designed A Home for Themselves. Now it's on the Market</a>Described as an architectural sensation and an indoor/outdoor tour de force imagined, designed and created by the architect/owners for themselves, this Lincoln Park home features lots of light and modern architectural details, as well as an abundance of art hung on all available wall space.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418873/zbyptokc8blo4bfh2svd.png"><figcaption>Reach Toward Dawn</figcaption></figure><a href="http://www.decaturarts.org/gallery/1705/Memory-and-Meaning/">Dan Addington Show at Madden Art Center in Decatur, IL</a>Memory and Meaning: The Art of Dan Addington is on view at the Madden Art Center in downstate Decatur through March 30. Addington runs his namesake gallery in Chicago, and he is also a practicing artist who has shown works throughout the United States. Addington’s mixed media paintings suggest a history and a physical weightiness associated with monuments and memorial sculptures. Through the use of a combination of anatomical imagery, memorial sculpture, and religious iconography, he attempts to explore the nature of mortality and address our desire to find spiritual meaning.&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

CGN Art World Recap: 3/12/21

<html><head></head><body>A summary of what's news and what's happening in our art community, from exhibition openings to space closings, and even real estate ogling. – CGN Staff&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418863/dv3b8pdmpegzhnjp7w2w.jpg"></figure>Via 57th St Art Fair<a href="https://www.57thstreetartfair.org">57th Street Art Fair Gets Green Light in 2021</a>The 2021 74th Annual 57th Street Art Fair will happen, rain or shine, despite the COVID pandemic. They recently shared that their current plan features a robust virtual fair with hopes of producing a safe in-person event on June 5–6, if the City of Chicago determines it is safe to issue the special event permits that would allow this.&nbsp;Planners are actively monitoring the situation for any changes to the city’s permit policy, and are currently working on plans for a physical fair with a modified footprint that considers booth spacing, traffic flow, visitor access, and any resulting impact on the neighbors and local businesses within our usual footprint of 57th Street between Kenwood and Woodlawn Avenues, and on Kimbark Avenue between 57th and 56th Streets.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;They envision the 2021 Virtual Fair component as a fully interactive online art fair where artists will be able to promote and sell their original artwork via the 57th St. Art Fair <a href="https://www.57thstreetartfair.org">website</a>.&nbsp;Shoppers will be able to browse artists by category, click on an artist to see more images and their bio and will be directed via a link to access the Artists's personal website or email for queries and purchasing.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418864/zlgaz44yjvneehnjb5g9.jpg"><figcaption>Aerial views of the Clarence Buckingham Memorial Fountain in Grant Park in Chicago on Wednesday, May 13, 2020. (Zbigniew Bzdak/Chicago Tribune)</figcaption></figure><a href="https://naturemuseum.org/explore/exhibits/without-a-trace/?fbclid=IwAR2Es2__Cr_n1UHp1D4LtTuAHZr_zQ5eGW6QS6-JEaqxa1puB-Rmb-OJ4dw">Notebaert Nature Museum Opens Without a Trace Exhibit One Year After Lockdown</a>In response to the reopening of Chicago institutions affected by the COVID-19 crisis, Without a Trace features a selection of photographs by photojournalist Zbigniew Bzdak.These works were first published in March 2020 in the Chicago Tribune and presented to the public astonishing views of emptiness in the streets of Chicago, following the stay at home order of Governor J.B. Pritzker in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418864/sxzl42hclyhc4phymqjl.jpg"><figcaption>Listed by Berkshire Hathaway Home Services Chicago</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/428-W-Roslyn-Pl-60614/home/13365814">A Lincoln Park House For Sale Features Jimmy Carter in the Living Room</a>Back on the market this week is an architecturally/historically significant Victorian Benjamin Green-built brownstone rowhome on Roslyn St in East Lincoln Park. Featured around the home are many prints by Matisse and Miro, plus a Warhol image of Jimmy Carter in the living room. And lots of wallpaper.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418865/v5mtus6p9xuug0tgi3ea.jpg"><figcaption>Listed by @properties</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.redfin.com/IL/Lake-Forest/901-Rosemary-Rd-60045/home/108239583">A Lake Forest Home Offers History, and a Room for Dolls...</a>For $10,500,000 you can go home to some Great Gatsby-linked history in a totally restored home and have plenty of space for art, or whatever you collect (stuffies and pool swans anyone?)&nbsp;&nbsp;Top image/thumbnail: Aerial view of empty North Avenue Beach in Lincoln Park neighborhood of Chicago at 11:45 AM on Thursday, April 2, 2020. (Zbigniew Bzdak/Chicago Tribune)&nbsp;</body></html>

CGN Art World Recap: 3/8/21

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418862/v71y3bjbpvwcfd0rhuy6.png"></figure>Spudnik Launches&nbsp;First Online Class&nbsp;Spudnik press announced last week they are launching their first online class --&nbsp;<a href="https://spudnikpress.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=5b3ff316031fa71b1c8cd675c&amp;id=6684430750&amp;e=421f57ee7c">Textile Art: Print, Embroidery, &amp;&nbsp;Dyes </a>with <a href="https://spudnikpress.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=5b3ff316031fa71b1c8cd675c&amp;id=74d83eeb08&amp;e=421f57ee7c">Willa Goettling</a> and <a href="https://spudnikpress.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=5b3ff316031fa71b1c8cd675c&amp;id=92eed2d9f8&amp;e=421f57ee7c">Shannon Bodrogi</a>.&nbsp;Students will explore multiple entry points into textile art in 5 sessions. The class will emphasize the use of eco-friendly materials such as natural&nbsp;inks, and&nbsp;use embroidery&nbsp;and relief printing to experiment with color and pattern.&nbsp;All demonstrations covered will be tailored for executing at home. Students can follow demonstrations in real time, or take notes and use the workshop experience to guide future projects.&nbsp;The class begins Thursday, April 1 and meets for 5 weeks on Thursdays, 5:30 - 7:30 p.m<a href="https://spudnikpress.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=5b3ff316031fa71b1c8cd675c&amp;id=c6ae4b9e68&amp;e=421f57ee7c">Read More</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418863/wkhbchyusvpisxlkmtwd.png"><figcaption>K Dao, Easter Sunday Fashion</figcaption></figure>360 CHICAGO launches Photography SeriesVisitors to 360 CHICAGO Observation Deck at 875 N Michigan Ave. (formerly known as the John Hancock Center) can view a photography exhibition more than 95 stories above the city. Apart, Together is a retrospective exhibit that&nbsp;features 21 compelling images hung in the Skywalk windows at 360 CHICAGO through April. Entry to enjoy this exhibit is included with the price of general admission. Chicago photographers included in the exhibition include: Colin Boyle, Danielle Braun, Khoa A. Dao, Chris Datskos, Christopher Mariano, Paul Martin, Harvey Pullings II, and Alex Qian.&nbsp;&nbsp;Images will be available for sale and profits (after printing costs) will benefit My Block, My Hood, My City.More tickets and information at <a href="http://www.360chicago.com/">www.360Chicago.com</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418864/zuqnclc5d3uzomqfkncr.png"><figcaption>An image from 1622 N LaSalle via Coldwell Banker</figcaption></figure>Art + Real Estate&nbsp;<a href="https://www.coldwellbankerhomes.com/il/chicago/1622-n-lasalle-dr/pid_39987752/">Bertrand Goldberg's Last Residential Design is For Sale.&nbsp;</a>1622 N LaSalle was the last home designed by the renowned architect, famous for the reinforced concrete Marina City complex downtown. Located in Old Town/Lincoln Park, this home overlooks the Chicago History Museum and is also near the heart of the Gold Coast and lake. There is a lot of art on view in the current listing. The home is listed for $1,499,000.Via Coldwell Banker<a href="https://www.coldwellbankerhomes.com/il/chicago/1622-n-lasalle-dr/pid_39987752/">Read More</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418865/bwdkzcdko1d3iltysbhm.jpg"></figure>The MCA Reopens March 2<a href="https://mcachicago.org">The Museum of Contemporary Art</a> has been closed to the public since November, and it reopens March 2. Several exhibitions pick up where they left off in the fall, while a few open for the first time this month. In order to manage occupancy, the museum requests that visitors reserve a <a href="https://experience.mcachicago.org/events?tnewq=3da9ad4f-07d3-4dc8-b52e-c4a6fa7b3269&amp;tnewp=3bf9afd9-9b90-498f-b916-b99ea4902f7e&amp;tnewts=1594324386&amp;tnewc=mcachicago&amp;tnewe=mcageneral&amp;tnewrt=Safetynet&amp;tnewh=3b755c2bab664d391fb3980909360d8d">ticket online prior to visiting</a>. Limited tickets will also be available at the admissions desk on the first floor.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418866/qv9jxujddi2nzmsejlgj.jpg"><figcaption>Lauren G. Peterson</figcaption></figure>Role Change at Philips&nbsp;Lauren G. Peterson has taken on a new role at Philips. She is now Director, Museum &amp; Corporate Collections and is managing these collection relationships for the firm in the US. The auction house is now <a href="https://www.phillips.com/careers/410">looking to fill</a> the position of coordinator in Chicago. Formerly Peterson was Regional Representative, Associate Vice President at Philips. Prior to that she worked at Christie's for nine years.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

CGN Art World Recap: March 1

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418862/xtishu7ahdeebwgb8iyg.jpg"><figcaption>Soil Lab Team Photo L to R Vester, Bruun, Martin, Ni Chathasaigh_Photos by Benita Marcussen (left) and Rob de Boer (right), 2019 . Image Courtesy of Chicago Architecture Biennial and Danish Arts Foundation</figcaption></figure>Chicago Architecture Biennial Announces Winners of its First Commission, the DAF Open CallThe Chicago Architecture Biennial (CAB) and the Danish Arts Foundation (DAF) have selected Soil Lab as the winning project of a DAF Open Call for a major new commission in the North Lawndale neighborhood of Chicago.By Christele Harrouk, ArchDaily<a href="https://www.archdaily.com/957414/chicago-architecture-biennial-announces-winners-of-the-daf-open-call">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418864/ysexpvgilogsrjcfyrtt.jpg"></figure>With Art Hubs and Performances, Theaster Gates Is Redefining Chicago’s South SideThe artist is injecting new life—and art—into abandoned and run down spaces, and investing in community in the South Side.&nbsp;By Evita Robinson, Conde Nast Traveler<a href="https://www.cntraveler.com/story/with-art-hubs-and-performances-theaster-gates-is-redefining-chicagos-south-side">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418864/j0gv5rl8jpguoz23aqhh.jpg"><figcaption>Federal prosecutors say these are among several historical and valuable artifacts that went missing from a Deerfield storage facility last spring. Three people have been criminally charged in connection with the alleged heist.U.S. District Court records</figcaption></figure>‘This guy is Saint Michael and is over 600 years old’: Sculptures, paintings, poster nabbed in art heistThe FBI set up a sting operation after records show at least $112,000 in cash changed hands in exchange for some of the items. The investigation has since led to criminal charges against three people.By Jon Seidel, Chicago Sun Times<a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/crime/2021/2/22/22296221/sculptures-paintings-poster-nabbed-in-art-heist">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image image-style-side"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418865/efrd8iqknocbvjkpohvp.jpg"><figcaption>Ernest Hemingway’s earliest short story, “The Judgment of Manitou,” appeared in his Oak Park, Ill., high school literary magazine in 1916.Credit...via Grolier Club</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Are Magazines Dead? Not at This Exhibition“Magazines and the American Experience,” at the Grolier Club in Manhattan, explores the rich, colorful and sometimes deeply strange history of American periodicals.By Jennifer Schuessler, The New York Times&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/18/arts/design/magazines-grolier-club.html">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

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