<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418039/ctrqml6fnzvcqendmh7c.gif"><figcaption>Haley Scott, AKA @sugarmilkk</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By SARAH ADLERLee Godie sold her work on the steps of the Art Institute.A self–taught artist, she insisted her work was better than Cezanne’s. But, it was the late ‘60s, decades before the advent of the Internet, and nearly half a century before Instagram would commandeer the public conscience. In terms of self-promotion, well, the steps of the Art Institute would have to do.Although the internet has revolutionized everything – how we connect with one another, how we look at art, even how we create art, a simple fact remains the same: artists who are starting out, and those without traditional gallery representation, must be their own best advocate. Independent artists are tasked with a critical step after making their work: how to effectively share their art with a wide and engaged audience. Self–promotion can now be created and distributed, for the most part, digitially, originating entirely from the privacy of home or the studio, rather than out on the steps of a major institution. And many of the digital channels available are also, in large part, free.I spoke with two artists without gallery representation on how they self-promote, and in particular, how they use the omnipresent social media application Instagram to do so. I also looked at greater trends in how artists feel about the controversial platform: does its universality and the algorithm of instant gratification ultimately undermine the art, even while bolstering the reach of one’s portfolio? I also wondered, what happens to galleries in the midst of all these great changes?•Haley Scott is a Chicago-based photographer who, on Instagram, goes by the sweetly enticing handle, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/sugarmilkk/?hl=en">@sugarmilkk</a>. With more than 6,700 followers, a bio that proudly claims, “DETROIT MADE * CHICAGO BASED,” punctuated by the link to her professional website, Scott’s feed is a melange of photos united by rich hues as well as a sense of something intimate: there are close-up action shots of limber basketball players contorted into yoga-like positions, friends posing in moody lighting, and selfies of the artist herself modeling her own heavily tattooed arms. In many ways, Scott’s Instagram serves as both an ode to her work as well a window into her own identity.“I know for a fact that whatever my brain is twisted up in makes me see colors differently,” she says, speaking of both her work as well as her personal Instagram. Last summer, a swath of luscious pinks and purples dominated her images; by December she favored rich blues and darker tones.This kind of casual, light relationship to Instagram&nbsp;seems to be the exception amongst many artists today, at least according to several popular articles. <a href="https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/zn8ezy/how-instagram-is-changing-the-art-world">A 2016 piece in Vice</a>&nbsp;by the artist Brad Phillips claimed nearly the exact opposite with its doomsday title, “How Instagram is changing the art world” and subheader, “The app has made me more successful than ever, but at the expense of my own art.”Written in the tone of an artist who is self-consciously biting the hand that has (literally) fed him luxurious six-course meals, Phillips acknowledges the ways in which his own presence on Instagram&nbsp;has dramatically boosted his art practice. Amongst his professional entrees, solo gallery shows and a book deal. His long list of drawbacks, however, underscores a kind of insidious aspect of the social media platform: that it sets up a system of instant gratification, it deletes any merit of privacy or creating work for oneself, and it can arbitrarily choose content to censor (if it transgresses vague community guidelines). In many ways, his criticisms aren’t too different from that of a regular (read: non-artist) user of the application.“The app has been both an amazing and horrible tool for me, as well as other artists,” Phillips proclaims.His frustration at the outwardly capricious nature of Instagram’s algorithms is mirrored by Hailey Losselyong, another Chicago-based artist who goes under the handle <a href="https://www.instagram.com/hai_ey/?hl=en">@hai_ey</a>. Referencing the coveted ability to post active links in one’s Instagram ‘Story’ – a feature that, oddly, is only available to some, seemingly due to a high number of followers or some other account verification (another process with secret guidelines) – Losselyong says, “I think it’s strange that not everyone has access to all the app’s features.”<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418040/iojutaegi7evkbf5g5uq.png"></figure>&nbsp;Despite her grievances with Instagram’s selectiveness, Losselyong warns that it is easy to hate on Instagram, when, in fact, it is also an incredible marketing tool, especially for artists who aren’t represented by galleries, or who do not employ or have access to a public relations team. Instagram, which is projected to surpass 111 million users&nbsp;in 2019, can serve as a very effective form of advertising. “It’s kind of a place to do a less refined version of a portfolio,” she says.Like Scott, Losselyong does not shy away from the selfie. Her intricate, stylized drawings, characterized by fluid and looping lines, are followed up by equally glamorous images of the artist posing, making her feed a kind of ode to not just the art but the life of an artist: subversive, creative, edgy. In one image she sports a head of bleached white-blue and purple hair, using only a blue emoji as the caption. It isn’t a historically typical artist’s portfolio.The effect of Instagram on art spreads beyond the individual artist. When it comes to galleries, Instagram has also introduced radical change. A <a href="https://news.artnet.com/market/emerging-art-dealers-dealing-gallery-crisis-asked-dozen-nada-1414870">2018 Artnet.com article</a>&nbsp;by Julia Halperin and Tim Schneider describes the phenomenon as an “Instagram takeover.” Gallerists acknowledge that they have discovered artists and evaluated images of art by using the app. Some also claim collectors pay more attention to a gallery’s Instagram posts than their email blasts (which, it’s worth noting, mostly replaced mailed announcements). Halperin and Schneider write, “By providing an unmediated, simple, and ever-present line of communication with collectors, Instagram has allowed the gallery to propel conversations begun with collectors at fairs into finalized sales back at the gallery at a later date…”Like other social media tools, Instagram offers for galleries –&nbsp;which, are in simple terms, small businesses –&nbsp; access to free marketing and publicity. While algorithms may interfere with this in ways that wouldn’t happen in a magazine, per se, much can be said about the fact that not only is the content free, but it’s accessible to everyone. Instagram can ideally be a space to expose contemporary art to anyone who wants to engage with it, regardless of their ability to visit museums or frequent galleries.Instagram, therefore, remains in a kind of polarized space. In many ways, the continual pressure the platform fosters – to create work and then promote perfect images of it – both helps and hurts artists. This modern means of sharing, beyond the steps of a museum, can also create great anxiety while pursuing independence, encouraging a singular quest for likes. According to Scott though, sharing her art on social media doesn’t change the fact that she has never done her work for anyone else. “It’s just the Aquarius rebel in me.”<a href="https://www.instagram.com/chigallerynews/">@ChiGalleryNews</a> follows many artists and galleries. Below are a few that have notable followings and frequently high post likes.<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418041/fiscikszk8hqatlavkpr.gif"><figcaption>From left: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/verticalgallery/?hl=en">@verticalgallery</a> – post likes: 755 • 33.9K followers; <a href="https://www.instagram.com/huntslonem/?hl=en">@huntslonem</a> – post likes: 1,183 • 107K followers; <a href="https://www.instagram.com/sarahraskeyfineart/">@sarahraskeyfineart</a> – post likes: 466 • 29.9K followers; <a href="https://www.instagram.com/yvettemayorga/?hl=en">@yvettemayorga</a> – post likes: 358 • 4,434K followers &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

#INSTAArt: Instagram's Independent Art Connections

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417563/isqrm1gy4fjpynwira7m.jpg"></figure>By GINNY VAN ALYEAAs of Monday, May 20 Chicago has a new mayor, in case you haven't heard. Lori Lightfoot was sworn in yesterday as the 56th mayor of Chicago, becoming the first African American woman and the first openly LGBTQ person to hold the office. We also heard that her physical office is now home to some personally chosen works of art, including a last-minute loan from the <a href="https://smartmuseum.uchicago.edu/">Smart Museum of Art</a>&nbsp;at the University of Chicago, as reported by <a href="https://news.artnet.com/art-world/amanda-williams-lori-lightfoot-mayors-office-1552828">artnet.com</a>A&nbsp;work by Amanda Williams, commissioned by the Smart Museum, that was part of the just closed <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/solidary-solitary-the-joyner-giuffrida-collection">Solidary &amp; Solitary: The Joyner/Giuffrida Collection</a>, drew Lightfoot's notice. A call was made, and the the piece was delivered to the newest chief occupant of City Hall.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417564/baozlcdrng0eapnzlvrw.jpg"><figcaption>Amanda Williams. Photo by Jean Lachat, courtesy of the Smart Museum of Art. &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>Beyond what's on her walls, it's worth noting that Lightfoot was the only one of the 14 mayoral candidates this year who made support for the arts officially part of her platform. Now that Lightfoot is in office, the mayor has shared a list of 31 people who are part of just her <a href="https://bettertogetherchicago.com/transition-team/">Arts and Culture committee</a> – from artists like Theaster Gates and Amanda Williams, to nonprofit arts leaders like Esther Grimm (3Arts), Hector Duarte (Chicago Public Art Group) and Nick Cave (SAIC).&nbsp;Lightfoot benefits on day one (and two) from the fact that everything is ahead of her, and nothing has yet gone wrong, as it surely will in a city of Chicago's size and with a city like Chicago's problems and obstacles. For now, we look to her proposed road map, where she emphasizes, "Real transformation will occur only when Chicagoans believe that their government works for them and their communities, responding to their needs and concerns."&nbsp;It's clear the mayor's office hopes to foster change by using the arts as a prime vehicle for localized as well as general progress in Chicago. In a time where funds are not only scarce but already overextended elsewhere, the transition team's statement about Arts and Culture says, "Artistic power is fundamental to reimagining the creative, innovative, and cultural roots of good governance. The new administration can demonstrate transparency and accountability by dedicating funding up front to arts and culture that is competitive with other global cities, in a clear and open manner, while addressing regulations that unfairly impact certain artist and particular neighborhoods. Our youth should be empowered and emboldened to light the way forward."There is no doubt that, well-funded or not, one of the biggest tourist draws in Chicago is our vibrant cultural scene that includes not only public art but also theater, music, performing arts, and more. The arts are serious job and business generators. In a state with a threadbare economy, our arts are valuable assets that benefit many individuals as well as groups.&nbsp;Some recent figures from the <a href="http://www.artsalliance.org/advocacy/resources/talking-points#2">Illinois Arts Alliance</a>:<ul><li>In Illinois, there are nearly 34,000 creative enterprises -- both nonprofit and commercial -- that employ over 140,000 people. These enterprises are essential to the state's economy: they put people to work, buy from local businesses, generate government revenue, and are a cornerstone of tourism and economic development.</li><li>In Chicago, the nonprofit arts alone are a $2.2 billion industry that supports over 60,000 full-time-equivalent jobs, generates a total of $1.3 billion in household income to local residents, and delivers more than $200 million in local and state government revenue.</li><li>The arts attract tourists to Illinois. There are over 100 million Americans who include the arts along with historic sites, cultural events, and ethnic festivals in their trips each year.</li><li>In Chicago, cultural tourists tend to stay longer and spend two-and-a-half times more money in relation to arts and cultural events than Chicago residents.</li><li>The arts are a magnet for talent and investments. They attract companies that want to offer their employees and clients a creative climate and a vibrant, livable community.</li></ul>So while Mayor Lightfoot has an uphill battle ahead of her, with many more critical topics and fields other than the arts, it's encouraging that her office is officially recognizing the role the arts can play in a healthy economy as well as in vibrant neighborhoods far from downtown. The arts can help the mayor reach, and lift up, the residents in all 77+ Chicago neighborhoods. &nbsp;&nbsp;Earlier this year when the first part of the election was underway, candidate Lightfoot joined with a group of local artists at City Hall and announced a <a href="https://lightfootforchicago.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/LL-Position-paper_ArtCulture.pdf">policy</a> to advance arts and culture in Chicago.&nbsp;Her policy proclaimed, "The arts are powerful. Now more than ever, it is essential that we lift up and invest in our unparalleled Chicago artists. A robust Chicago arts community inspires us, engages us, questions the status quo and has the power to bring our diverse city together in conversation around the critical challenges of our day..."Lightfoot’s plan to advance arts and culture includes the following:<ul><li>Prioritize funding for the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events for increased equitable grantmaking and microfinancing to individual artists, arts organizations and arts corridors.</li><li>Audit and streamline city licensing and permitting regulations, including the Public Performance and Amusement license.</li><li>Develop an Artist-in-Residence program to build job opportunities for artists and mentorship opportunities for young people.</li><li>Bring together ideas and resources from the city, philanthropy, culture and the arts to develop policies and strategies to keep artists living and working in Chicago.</li><li>Build investment in Chicago’s public art program by overhauling the Percent for Art ordinance.</li><li>Enhance the voices of socially-active artists to encourage civic engagement and support developing creative conversations and solutions to our city’s biggest challenges.</li></ul>The arts must be supported and fostered, and they also must be promoted so that more people who live here are aware of what they contribute.&nbsp;In 1986 Mayor Harold Washington's administration developed the original Cultural Plan for Chicago, and it was borne out of a two-year, citywide effort to analyze the City's cultural needs and opportunities and to act on them. Mayor Washington died in office the following year.<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417565/z8qufefgykufhpzyqxt5.jpg"><figcaption>Mayor Harold Washington, whose administration created the original Cultural Plan for Chicago.</figcaption></figure>The City of Chicago and cultural community members came together in 1995 to revise the plan. And Mayor Rahm Emanuel's administration again revisited the plan in 2012 after he first arrived in office, launching the Chicago Cultural Plan 2012. The Year of Public Art in 2017 was also spearheaded by the Department Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) and Commissioner Mark Kelly, followed by the year of Creative Youth in 2018.&nbsp;The arts have not been neglected in the past, but for those who actively rely on and are connected to the current cultural community in Chicago, there is always much at stake with a new mayor in office and many have applauded Mayor Lightfoot's regular and public statements on behalf of the arts.&nbsp;When asked about the significance of loaning the work by Amanda Williams to the Mayor for her office on the day of her inauguration, Smart Museum of Art Director Allison Gass told artnet.com, “Chicago is a city full of hope about shifting histories and moving toward equity, and the fact that the new mayor wanted a work of art about that says a lot,” Gass added. “We believe in the power of art to help shift perspectives, and hopefully the map in the office will help do that.”<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417566/lva4go7idyk0usbmzfsh.png"><figcaption>Additional works by area artists have already made it onto the walls in City Hall. Artist Dan Devening shared, via Instagram @devening_projects, that his work (shown behind Lightfoot's head), Negative, from 1989, is installed, along with works by Tony Fitzpatrick, Dawoud Bey, David Klamen, and others.&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;As stated in Lightfoot's ambitiously worded arts policy from February 2019, "Arts and culture are as essential as clean air and water. They sustain us, create joy, unleash our radical imaginations, and challenge us to see the world in new and better ways. They unite us while recognizing differences and defining our common humanity."&nbsp;What happens next will be key.&nbsp;</body></html>

A New Mayor's Welcome Embrace of the Arts in Chicago

<html><head></head><body>When visiting galleries, wandering a museum or strolling through a fair, the art you encounter is complete. Most of us do not see the process a work of art goes through on the way to completion; we do not often see the artist at work, in the studio testing ideas and concepts or on site tending to an installation.For our summer issue of CGN we asked a handful of artists to share what they are working on now as well as to describe their process so we might glimpse what really happens behind the curtain and see what is still a work in progress. –GV&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417221/cqltn7xdnuln01rrxule.gif"><figcaption>Tony Fitzpatrick</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;TONY FITZPATRICKFitzpatrick is a prolific artist who is always sourcing bits and pieces of found materials for his drawing collages. He’s currently working on a series called The Garden Of All Other Ecstasies as well as making maquettes for a large scale local project that will be publicly announced in late spring.“These works are about the Gardens of our Desire. What moves us, and keeps us up, and makes our hearts beat faster... There are thorns, dirt, bramble and burrs. There is conflict, sweat, and the smell of the earth.”&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417222/grtrxdrebizhezm5ufq9.gif"><figcaption>Jordan Martins</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;JORDAN MARTINS“I’ve been working through ideas relating to camouflage, signalling theory, and gestalt psychology, including the way plants and animals conceal or advertise themselves visually.The work I’m preparing for Goldfinch for my show in September 2019 is, in a sense, beginning with the idea of a painting behaving like a plant or animal in this active way, rather than an inert object on display.In part this is being worked through with the kinds of patterns built up within in each piece, but also in how individual pieces can relate to another in the space, to conceal or distort themselves or perhaps suggest a level of instinctual communication between them.”&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417223/i7ic1ecxbnoskwnshqxc.gif"><figcaption>Zack Wirsum</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;ZACK WIRSUM“These days in the studio I am preparing for a show in October at Jean Albano Gallery. My current body of work is mostly memory related in concept and content; a combination of observational painting from recollections and nostalgic re-explorations of subject matter that fascinated me as a child, now from the perspective of adulthood. The two small paintings [pictured here] are examples of the later working studies for a larger painting about a birthday party for a cryptid attended by monster movie and Disney characters, tentatively titled Feliz Cumpleanos El Chupacabra Expanded Guest List. I am playing with the composition of the party invitees and tweaking coloration. The larger painting, in the background with the masking tape blocking cues and partially obscured by the studies, is about the 1930s Boston Red Sox spring training in Hot Springs Arkansas. It depicts baseball players climbing the wooded Ouachita mountains in full uniform as part of their conditioning, which I learned from a historical plaque. The stylization of the ball players I concocted reminded me of samurais, so I utilized colors I imagine a samurai would chose to paint their house with. I am still working on the patterns and layout of the rock formations and boulders the athletes are scaling. The masking tape is helping to inform these decisions.”&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417224/hdhtkw8kfxgsnkblmmam.gif"><figcaption>Anna Kunz</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;ANNA KUNZAnna Kunz is working towards a collaboration with Emanuel Pratt and the team at the SWEETWATER foundation, which will include new suspended paintings and structures.Parts of the collaboration will be on view in the Artists Garden and Theatre at the Taste of Chicago this summer.Recent exhibitions include Inquiry into Abstraction, University of Cincinnati, curated by Mark Brosseau, and All is Well and Good at Circle Contemporary, curated by Eric Ruschman.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417225/mnu7asympymjiocnumjk.gif"><figcaption>Diana working on a scale model – with helpful Legos – for a show at Carrie Secrist Gallery</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;DIANA GUERRERO-MACIÁ&nbsp;“I use slow craft practices to make hybrid paintings and objects. My core values are: material making is meaningful, craft is a form of consciousness, and the decorative has work to do.Materiality is a meaning that is distinctive. I make surfaces that are collaged, pieced, dyed, and stitched as a reconsideration of the field and form. My early works were constructed from discarded clothing, cut apart, flattened and pieced back together by hand in a way to expand the materiality of painting. I was influenced by Modernism and the Arts and Crafts Movement. In my practice, I admired the Pattern and Decoration movement and artists who used craft and collage methods to challenge categorization of art, craft and design.As a Latina artist, I learned the value of material culture in real-time. My Cuban immigrant parents taught me hand-work, material re-use, and improvisational “making-do.” They understood the need to balance the decorative with the utilitarian to resist subjugation. My artwork comes to me intuitively, through my lived experience.&nbsp;I’m not trying to answer with logic, rather, I look to where my hands-on pursuit leads me.”&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417226/p1thvew0uzk41nltufph.gif"><figcaption>George Klauba</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;GEORGE KLAUBAIn October George Klauba will have a solo exhibition at Hofheimer Gallery of his new body of work. He will have 20 oil paintings and drawings on wood of tattoo–related imagery. As of this spring he had completed 10 paintings. The sketch pictured here is one idea in showing women and men tattooed. Klauba explains, “I usually use the head or face of the subject in animal form to blend a similarity of the person’s inner make-up or angst. It’s part of the belief that tattoos mirror the inner side of the person or soul.”</body></html>

Artists and Their Art: Revealing Works in Progress

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418288/n8mjnvpbnm9cdtgquq3c.gif"></figure>&nbsp;By GINNY VAN ALYEAThe Golden Triangle has sourced global treasures as well as inspiration for customers of its unique, River North Chicago space for 30 years. Founded in 1989 by Douglas Van Tress and Chauwarin Tuntisak, The Golden Triangle has built a reputation for itself as a nexus of antiques, design and art. Today it is one of Chicago’s largest home furnishing stores, housed in an 18,000 square foot former Chicago River warehouse featuring vignettes from various historical periods, such as the Raj, other Colonial periods, ancient China, and 19th Century Europe, as well as an indoor courtyard. As shoppers and designers move from space to space, their experience changes with the context.<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418289/h5vr3l0rojve9nzc8mdj.gif"><figcaption>The arches in two of the buildings are inspired by Georgio de Chirico’s painting, Piazza d’Italia, as well as Southeast Asian shophouses. The third building, says Van Tress, is pure modern.</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Owners Van Tress and Tuntisak travel the globe to hand-pick items for the Chicago store, and they regularly visit Chiang Mai, where they have a warehouse for shipping things to Chicago, at least twice a year since the store’s founding. A misty mountainous city in northern Thailand, with colorful hill tribes housing hundreds of elaborate Buddhist temples, Chiang Mai is considered a destination for handicrafts and antiques. The city houses beautiful hotels, lively nightlife and epicurean delights, and as of this past fall, Golden Triangle Hang Dong.&nbsp;According to Van Tress, “Golden Triangle Hang Dong is something new. We want to sell in Asia and even globally.”<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418290/dy7yt2dydzoyugvhgw3x.gif"></figure>&nbsp;The new store is a collection of three buildings, adjacent to the existing warehouse, which will become a marketplace and restaurant. The goal, says Van Tress, is to be a new kind of retail space, “A design village where the visitor can explore and see things juxtaposed...in a kind of spiritual experience.” He sees Golden Triangle Hang Dong as a means of bringing “the best of the past, history and human culture into modern design. We’re not a normal antique store.”The Golden Triangle will celebrate its 30th anniversary on May 16, 2019 with an exclusive (and already waitlisted) event featuring many local artists and cultural supporters.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418291/rwjpzva1ccafa9vydvvo.gif"><figcaption>Van Tress says the basic idea for the store’s design – modern but also a bit softer, with historical references – was his own, fulfilled by architect Techinphat Khachonphurithanakul.</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;</body></html>

A Chicago Space's Global Reach: The Golden Triangle Expands to Thailand

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418278/cblo9nrg7wqxu1rk6qkh.gif"><figcaption>Kingston-born multimedia artist Ebony G. Patterson is creating a series of five intricate and colorful banners titled …between the below… &nbsp;</figcaption></figure><h3>Chicago Riverwalk&nbsp;</h3>Seasonal walkway opens May 13Stroll along the east branch of the Chicago River and admire new and permanent public art installations along the banks while enjoying creative food and entertainment. New this year: banners by artist Ebony G. Patterson.&nbsp;From Lake Shore Dr./Lake Michigan west to Franklin.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.chicagoriverwalk.us">chicagoriverwalk.us</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418279/axw1eule0d6a9jqgojcm.gif"><figcaption>Art on the Mart will project seven nights a week this summer and coordinate programming with the City’s year of Chicago Theater in 2019 &nbsp;</figcaption></figure><h3>Art on theMART</h3>Nightly May 13–Sept 30With its minimum 30-year duration, its location downtown along the Chicago River and its substantive and relevant content, Art on theMART is a milestone on Chicago’s trajectory of public art. Local and international works are on display and freely accessible with no branding nor sponsorships.&nbsp;Best viewed on The Chicago Riverwalk between Wells and Lake St.&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="http://artonthemart.com">artonthemart.com</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418280/wpajo0uswwiujdrhv2qg.gif"><figcaption>This large, iconic vintage Georg Jensen sterling eel dish is from &nbsp;Greg Pepin Silver from Denmark, exhibiting this year at the Chicago Antiques + Art + Design Show &nbsp;</figcaption></figure><h3>Chicago Antiques + Art + Design</h3>May 16–19The third edition of this dynamic show features 100 exhibitors and a sequel to last year’s splashy, refreshed opening night party benefitting the Woman’s Board of Northwestern Memorial Hospital.&nbsp;Show tickets: $20+. Opening night tickets $200+&nbsp;222 W. Merchandise Mart Plaza<a href="http://chicagoantiquesartdesign.com">chicagoantiquesartdesign.com</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418281/xaaewkfb8z9sk3ipyipi.jpg"><figcaption>Randolph Street Market takes place nearly every month, but the outdoor summer events become more popular every year. Things kick off Memorial Day weekend in the West Loop. &nbsp;</figcaption></figure><h3>Randolph Street Market Memorial Day Garden Party</h3>May 26 and 27Kick off the season’s outdoor markets with a live band, fancy foods, market bars, on site-appraisals and more. Check website for early buying hours. 1340 W. Washington,&nbsp;Tickets: $5–10<a href="https://www.randolphstreetmarket.com">randolphstreetmarket.com</a> &nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418282/hyxkwdfg4w4ymbyu6jvp.gif"><figcaption>Featured in Sculpture Milwaukee’s 2018 exhibition was Richard Deacon's Big Time, 2016, painted and lacquered stainless steel, image Courtesy of Marian Goodman Gallery, New York</figcaption></figure><h3>Sculpture Milwaukee &nbsp;</h3>June–OctoberA free outdoor urban sculpture experience in downtown Milwaukee returns for a 3rd year with works by 20+ internationally and locally renowned artists. Past exhibitors have included Magdalena Abakanowicz, Sanford Biggers, Robert Indiana, Hank Willis Thomas, Erwin Wurm and others.&nbsp;Works on view and for sale.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.sculpturemilwaukee.com">sculpturemilwaukee.com</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418284/qyo66jyv7kaaw2s4rxfp.gif"><figcaption>Joe Mills is just one artist participating in the 72nd 57th street art fair in Hyde Park</figcaption></figure><h3>57th Street Art Fair</h3>June 1 and 272nd annual two-day outdoor celebration of the arts in Hyde Park. 57th St. at Kimbark<a href="https://www.57thstreetartfair.org">57thstreetartfair.org</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418285/eobcv1i1mzvvx6l64auq.gif"><figcaption>CAC’s Work in Progress party is always creative as well as supportive of artists. 2018’s theme was construction attire...</figcaption></figure><h3>CAC’S Work in Progress</h3>June 6Chicago Artists Coalition’s annual benefit is CAC’s biggest night of the year and raises over $100,000 to support residencies, education programs, and resources for Chicago artists.This year’s party honors artist Hebru Brantley + Gensler.2130 W. FultonTickets: $60–$350<a href="https://chicagoartistscoalition.org/get-involved/annual-benefit">chicagoartistscoalition.org</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418286/lj2xjf6ipd5qfgbbpjf3.gif"><figcaption>“The Nate” sculpture park hosts a summer solstice event based around Edvin Strautmanis’s Phoenix, built from steel beams</figcaption></figure><h3>Summer Solstice Sunset Celebration</h3>June 22Arrive at the Nathan Manilow Sculpture Park in south suburban University Park, IL around 6:30pm “Ravinia” style (BYO picnic and beverages) enjoy ambient tunes with our guest DJ next to the bonfire near the lake, take a walk around the park and watch the sun go down through the geometric angles of Phoenix, by Edvins Strautmanis, which is sited to frame the sunset on the Solstice.&nbsp;FREE and family friendly.<a href="http://www.govst.edu/About/Nathan_Manilow_Sculpture_Park/Programs_and_Events/">www.govst.edu/sculpture/</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418287/nahvptfkpisivo1zdgte.gif"></figure><h3>MCA's Tuesdays on the Terrace</h3>June 5–September 25Every Tuesday this summer, the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago hosts free outdoor activities, including the popular Tuesdays on the Terrace live jazz series and the SOARFarmers Market.Tuesdays on the Terrace features Chicago’s quintessential jazz musicians performing outside on the MCA’s terrace. Visitors can experience the musicians up close, enjoy dining al fresco, or relax with a cocktail on the sculpture garden lawn. The performances take place from 5:30-8 pm every Tuesday with support from Luminarts and media sponsor WDCB 90.9 FM, and are hosted by WDCB’s Al Carter-Bey and Richton Guy Thomas from WHPK 88.5 FM.&nbsp;</body></html>

Summer 2019 Art Social Calendar 

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418246/vdyihucctpfvhd24ayn1.gif"></figure>&nbsp;Click to listen to the CGN Publisher's June 2019 <a href="https://wgnradio.com/2019/06/26/how-a-1989-fire-in-river-north-changed-the-art-community-for-years/">WGN Radio Interview</a> about the fire&nbsp;&nbsp;By GINNY VAN ALYEACGN Founder Natalie van Straaten contributed to this article.Photos © <a href="http://www.firescenes.net/?tag=river-north-art-gallery-fire-in-chicago">Jim Skrabel</a> &nbsp;To talk about the River North gallery fire, which happened 30 years ago today, on April 15, 1989, is to travel back in time to a period in Chicago that sounds oddly familiar: the decade heralded the arrival of a visionary art fair amidst a recession, followed by a resounding financial and real estate boom, set against a backdrop of rapid political and social change.1989 in Chicago capped a robust expansion of the local as well as international art market: John Wilson’s Art Expo debuted at Navy Pier in 1980; dozens of galleries moved to or opened in River North throughout the decade. The country enjoyed significant economic growth in the mid ‘80s, only to be gutted by the 1987 stock market crash. For a group of Chicago galleries, April 1989 literally burned it all down.A <a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1989-04-16-8904040385-story.html">Chicago Tribune</a> article about the blaze from April 1989 reads, “Artwork estimated to be worth millions of dollars was turned into ash Saturday as fire destroyed a historic brick loft building, site of the largest redevelopment project to date in Chicago’s trendy River North district.”<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418247/bj1amwbaoaapuimyhid7.gif"></figure>Much of what has changed in River North in the last three decades can be traced back to that five alarm inferno. At the time River North was truly the heart of the art gallery scene. The fire obliterated an entire square block – bounded by Huron, Sedgwick, Orleans and Superior Streets – that contained nine galleries in a former manufacturing building. It smoldered for weeks, while the shock persisted and anger grew. While most of the galleries in the fire were resilient and reopened, the neighborhood changed. It was a couple of years before the vibrant spirit returned. The district continued to house the largest number of galleries in Chicago until the early 2000s, but gradually the block that burned became a site for townhouses and design firms, and new neighborhoods drew many galleries elsewhere in the city. &nbsp;&nbsp;Today the district is still home to more than a dozen galleries, with Zolla/Lieberman Gallery remaining as the only one from the group of nine that burned in the fire. Most of the galleries and people directly affected by the fire are no longer around or in the gallery business: Ann Nathan/Objects Gallery, Klein Gallery, Peter Miller Gallery, Sazama/Brauer, East West Contemporary, Rowe Company Fine Arts, van Straaten Gallery, and the original Habatat Gallery.A year after the fire, a follow up article in the Tribune relayed, “The city Fire Department never reached a determination on the cause of the fire,” spokesman Tom Shephard said... The evidence was so badly damaged, we couldn’t come up with a cause.”The destruction of art was ultimately the biggest casualty: a year’s worth of work by Zolla/Lieberman artist Chema Cobo was lost, and the entire estate of a deceased artist at Rowe was incinerated. For dozens of artists work up in smoke meant devastating personal losses, from irreplaceable art to financial lifelines. A tragedy that affected so many throughout the community is worthy of rememberance 30 years later.</body></html>

30 Years Later: The 1989 River North Fire

<html><head></head><body>By RILEY YAXLEYSometimes, I loathe working in the arts.I rarely admit this sentiment, because doing so makes me feel ungrateful for the incredible opportunities and experiences that I’ve had in the arts, especially whenever I hear people &nbsp;romanticize a career in the arts and the gift of distance from the mundanity of a corporate career. How could I dare to not adore working in the arts?Anne Carson writes in her book ​Eros: The Bittersweet t​hat “no one in love really believes that love will end... They are astonished when they fall in love, they are equally astonished when they fall out of love.”&nbsp;Last time this year I had just started working part-time at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago as a Visitor Services Associate. I worked every Tuesday and Thursday until 10:30pm. Maurizio Cattelan’s ​Felix ​– a 26 foot tall skeletal sculpture of a cat – was on view in the MCA’s Kovler Atrium, which I had to cross through in order to leave each day. One night on my way out I stopped for a moment in the atrium, alone except for the distant, musical commotion of Michigan Avenue traffic. The sculpture was lit only by the dim glow of auxiliary lighting and, while standing there admiring the absurd polyvinyl resin and fiberglass feline, I felt a tingling warmth in my chest, despite mid-January's bitter cold. I had fallen in love.Less than six months later, however, I recall feeling completely disillusioned. I was burnt out. I had just completed my undergraduate program at DePaul University, and I was &nbsp;working at the newly opened Wrightwood 659, doing an internship at Intuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art, pitching an ambitious new interview series for CGN, and also starting an internship at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago. Each morning I begrudgingly climbed out of bed, making sure to grab everything I would need for a twelve hour day of working. I had fallen out of love.Recently I was again reminded why I adore working in the arts when I attended the opening of ​object / item / material / me,​ an exhibition curated by Graham Feyl. I ​<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2018/7/art-is-graham-feyl">interviewed​ Graham</a> about this exhibition for Chicago Gallery News in July 2018 and was now ecstatic that the eight artists and their work had finally found a physical space in which to be shown. When I first sat down with Graham for the 2018 interview, we met at Fork, an American fare restaurant in Lincoln Square and we talked for nearly two hours, exhausting a number of topics that veered back and forth between the professional and the personal. At the time we both expressed our common frustrations and joys of doing the work that we do, but to write my first interview I was skeptical of whether or not I could communicate the personal perspectives. I resolved recently that it is exactly these experiences that are perhaps the most fruitful things I can write about.So here I am now, writing about what it's like to fall in and out of, and then back in love with art again.Through a partnership between The Overlook and Annas, a gallery space and curatorial residency at 629 W Cermak, object / item / material / me opened on January 26 and will close on February 24th.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418145/bi1woii6ekiwb6gktiz3.gif"><figcaption>Installation view of&nbsp;object/ item/ material/ me&nbsp;at Annas, L to R Julia Arredondo&nbsp;Give Me Space hats, 2018&nbsp;HOME PROTECTION AMULET (aka Stay Away), 2018, Jennifer Sova&nbsp;men with children, Selections from a Living Archive, 2016 and Janelle Miller&nbsp;Building Virtue: A Study&nbsp;(2017-)</figcaption></figure>A paralyzing snow storm barreled into Chicago on the opening night of ​object / item / material / me. I spent nearly an hour and a half in an uber, inching along the Kennedy Expressway from my apartment in Lincoln Square down to the exhibition in Chinatown. I was half expecting an empty gallery space, assuming that the majority of people would have given up because of the weather. So I was surprised when I arrived and saw that the large, warehouse–style space was so crowded I could barely push my way past the entryway. Nearly 100 people attended the opening, rivalling some of the more traditional gallery openings that I’ve been to in the past few years.In the hallway outside the gallery, there was a large bucket filled with ice and IPA beer, which I drank, but I can’t remember if I enjoyed it or not. I was accosted by several co-workers from the MCA almost immediately, and for the rest of the night I bounced around the space like a silver marble flung around inside a pinball machine. I was overjoyed to run into Jenn Sova, the founder of The Overlook, and to have the opportunity to view ​men with children,​ an ongoing series where Jenn collects photos from thrift stores, online, and from friends to explore relationships between men and children.&nbsp;I took photos with Janelle Miller and her ​Building Virtue: A Study (2017-cont.)​, an ongoing project where Janelle collects fans that used to be used during service by churchgoers in African American churches. The fans were mounted on a wall that had been painted a delicate lavender in a shape reminiscent of a church’s stained glass window.&nbsp;I admired Kimberly English’s ​Love is, e​xcited to see the work in person and not merely as the background on the exhibition flyer. ​Love is​ is made from a deconstructed t-shirt with only the outline of the skeletal hem remaining with price tags that reflect where the garment has been and how its value has decreased over time.&nbsp;I congratulated Graham on having brought the exhibition to fruition and having rallied such a supportive, engaged community around the work.Since the opening was scheduled to end at 9pm, the director of Annas had to loudly, and forcefully, announce that the gallery space would be closing but that the group would be moving to Skylark, a quaint, cash-only bar a block away. I didn’t follow everyone to the bar, because I was headed to a friend’s birthday party nearby, but a sizable crowd did leave together to trudge through the snow to continue the night and the conversation. An enthusiastic and loving community had rallied around a new exhibition.<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418146/btaqz5u8sfrczewk8zyy.gif"><figcaption>Kimberly English,&nbsp;Love is, 2018&nbsp;&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>I was practically giddy on my uber ride home, grinning like a child that has been told they can stay up late and watch TV on a weeknight. I could not remember the last time an art event gave me that elation. I remember going to bed thinking, “How lucky am I?”I had fallen in love again.&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

Art Is... The Bittersweet

<html><head></head><body>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418019/mgv0odg3goaj5yrvouit.gif"></figure>&nbsp;Life After Art School is an interview series by a former CGN Intern. The first part was written in 2014.&nbsp;This five-year follow-up is broken up into three parts:&nbsp;• Megan Bonke's Five Year Follow up (article below)<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/2/life-after-art-school-making-transitions-and-transactions">• Life After Art School: Making Transitions and Transactions – Part I</a><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/2/life-after-art-school-making-transitions-and-transactions-part-ii">• Life After Art School: Making Transitions and Transactions – Part II</a>&nbsp;By MEGAN BONKEFive years ago when I was an intern at Chicago Gallery News, I set out to write an article about <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2014/5/life-after-art-school-disappointments-and-future-plans">what to do after art school</a>. I was just over one year out of undergrad myself and still very much confused on what direction to take for a career path. While living at home, balancing odd jobs and internships, I went out and asked a number of former art students what they did after leaving school, rather than choosing to write an article about all of my own floundering. Some of the people I talked to were recent graduates, some were artists with long careers, and some never graduated from any art school at all. I didn’t get any specific answers for myself then, but I did see that there are many different paths for artists. Perhaps there were no answers because they can’t teach (ie: guarantee) success in the arts. Or at least, that’s what I thought after researching and writing the article.Since that time I’ve have many more jobs, with each one effectively leading (though hardly in a linear way) to the next. I am grateful for the work I have today, and I feel more comfortably on a path than I’ve felt before. I do, however, still have more questions about life after art school, and those questions are about mainly about money. An elusive, even taboo, topic, one that is an underlying driver in the overall market, money and art is also something that many desperately want to know more about. I want to ask, as a professional artist now, where and how do you make or get money? And then how do you manage it?In my current profession as a Studio Manager for artist René Romero Schuler, I’ve been getting lessons on how to thrive as a professional artist – lessons that were never taught — hardly addressed, actually — in school. My biggest lessons about money so far are within my own practice. For instance, a client once commissioned a piece from me — a big, intensive, collaborative piece — and I messed up the money because I never directly and definitively talked about the numbers. Wires got crossed, and I didn’t ask for compensation until it was too late. I had thought there would eventually just be a fluid payment for an amount that was negotiated based on labor and materials that would be seen as fair at the completion of the project. I didn’t name a number in the beginning because, the truth was, I didn’t know that was when I had to do it and I didn’t know exactly how much time or how many hours the commission would take. It ended up being something bigger than I had ever done, and I was very insecure about the client ultimately being happy with the work, and with me.When the job was finished, and I put a number out there that I thought was fair for me, the rebuttal from the client was so far beneath what I thought was my fair asking price that I was floored. The client was firm – condescending, actually, and I was stuck. As a result the situation revealed a brutal truth to me: people will pay as little as possible to get what they want. Personally, I’m now grateful that the situation taught me some lessons, albeit some scary ones. A follow up is that I’ve also found that talking about money too soon can scare clients away. Ultimately I want opportunities to be paid what I deserve as well as make a client happy.I now really believe the romantic notion of a 'starving artist' should be nipped in the bud! Artists don’t just need to eat; they need a place to sleep, clothes, healthcare, materials and a place to work. The opportunity to create art is not compensation enough. Because selling, and getting paid for, art can be an ongoing struggle, we learn to hustle and make any additional money where we can – in odd or regular (ie: money making) jobs – so that we can hold on to and ultimately work towards the dream of making art for a living. All the while we must also find the extra time to create that work that we hope to sell (and live on!). To people who are not artists, our art making may be perceived as a side gig, or hobby, to our money–making jobs. Some think we are dying to give away (or donate) our art just so that we can have the opportunity for recognition, when really we are trying to figure out a way to transition, to thrive on that 'side gig'.<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418020/an89ibbs1b0yrup9so5b.gif"><figcaption>Megan Bonke, Vuvuzela Boy, 42 x 30 in, oil on canvas, 2017, photo credit Tom Van Eynde&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;So with all the real challenges, how do we do it and become professional? Can we start talking about money as artists? What are art schools today teaching students about success after graduation?&nbsp;As was the case when I wrote the first piece for CGN, I talked to other artists to get their perspectives.&nbsp;My first interview this time (linked below as Part I) is with a French artist, David Twose, about taking his own scary leap from a comfortable (lucrative, non-art) job to becoming a full-time, professional artist. My second interview (linked below as Part II) is with a current art student, Wendolyn Sterkel, who has also taken a leap, switching from a traditional, public university to attending art school.&nbsp;For both of these interviews, I’ve tried my best not to shy away from questions about financial challenges. I also hope my own story helps others move closer to an understanding of life as a professional artist.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Related:Read <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2014/5/life-after-art-school-disappointments-and-future-plans">Life After Art School: Disappointments and Future Plans</a> (from 2014)Read <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/2/life-after-art-school-making-transitions-and-transactions">PART I</a> of Life After Art School, Transitions and Transactions (2019)Read <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/2/life-after-art-school-making-transitions-and-transactions-part-ii">PART II</a> of Life After Art School, Transitions and Transactions (2019)&nbsp;Top image: Megan Bonke, BP, 12 x 30in (diptych detail), oil on linen, 2017, Collection of Jacob Gerber, photo credit Tom Van Eynde</body></html>

Life After Art School: Five Years Later

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418065/iodpunzeg9s6ruxnymmu.gif"></figure>&nbsp;Life After Art School is an interview series by a former CGN Intern. The first part was written in 2014.&nbsp;This five-year follow-up is broken up into three parts:&nbsp;• <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/2/life-after-art-school-five-years-later">Life After Art School: Five Years Later</a>• Life After Art School: Making Transitions and Transactions – Part I (below)<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/2/life-after-art-school-making-transitions-and-transactions-part-ii">• Life After Art School: Making Transitions and Transactions – Part II</a>&nbsp;By MEGAN BONKEAs was the case when I wrote the first Life After Art School article for CGN in 2014, I talked to other artists to get their perspectives.&nbsp;I tried my best not to shy away from questions about financial challenges, and I hope my own story as well as the thoughts and answers from another artist helps others move closer to an understanding of life as a professional artist.&nbsp;My first follow-up interview was with French artist David Twose, who is currently doing an artist residency in his native France, but he is also planning for a spring 2019 show in suburban Lake Forest, Illinois.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418067/wtptjvtae6swlzpbx5fe.gif"><figcaption>David Twose</figcaption></figure>David Twose, 41, Painter&nbsp;Megan Bonke: When did you decide you wanted to be an artist?David Twose: It’s a tricky question. As a professional, it’s when I quit my previous job. As an artist, I've always wanted to be one – I’ve been drawing since I was a kid. When I worked in a professional corporation, I was taking drawing and painting lessons after work for almost eleven hours per week, in addition to my full time job.MB: What did you do for work before you were a full time artist?DT: I had been working for 16 years at a car company called Peugeot S.A (PSA Group) of which there are several brands: Peugeot, Citroën, DS, Opel, and Vauxhal. I was mainly doing marketing and communication there for the international&nbsp;markets.MB: What was the catalyst for making the switch from art as a hobby to art as a career?DT: Art was always deeper than a hobby, a lot more than that. The big shift occurred when I realized I was very comfortable for 16 years in the same company. I felt that it was so easy to continue working there until retirement. I imagined myself 20 years later, at the age of 60. I projected myself at this age and saw myself looking back and trying to see what I had achieved. That freaked me out. I was not at the right place. The right place for me was making art.MB: Where have you studied, what did you study, and how far does your education extend?DT: I went to business school. I was quite good at school, so I went to what’s called “preparation for business school” in Lyon, France and was able to succeed to the renowned Graduated School of Business in Nancy, France. I finished my Business studies in&nbsp;Montreal, Canada at McGill University, as well. I was in preparation school for two years and business for three years; that’s five years.MB: Where have you studied art, and did you take any art classes at university?DT: From ages 16 to 18, I took art classes in school. After that, I took a lot of night classes and during the weekend as well.MB: Did anything in your studies (business marketing or fine art) prepare you for running your own business as an artist?DT: My communications and marketing experience has helped me a lot. Part of my job at the time was to build communication strategies and help our companies, located in other countries, apply them locally. Having said that, when I do communications for my paintings, I try to apply the basic rules that I used to apply when I was advising others. I try to be consistent in the message that I deliver for the product, which is my painting. Sometimes it’s hard. And the funny thing is that looking back at when I used to oversee and evaluate the communications, I notice that I make the same mistakes. For the same thing I would criticize, I find it difficult to be my own judge.What helped me was to first build my website immediately after I quit my job. I also created business cards and advertisements, such as on Instagram and Facebook. From what I’ve seen, not many artists prioritize that. I also have a portfolio that I take with me on my exhibitions. Not all artists have this communication kit that I have. Artists have told me they don’t want to do it because either they feel that they are only artists and they are not yet in a position to market their art, or they don’t think they have the skill set. Many don’t even consider how to market their art, because it is totally out of their range of thoughts.Just last December I created a company to make the process of selling easier, for which I had to hire an accountant to help me set it up. When I created the company, I opened the range of activities to be available for other artists as well. With this company I can also give advice to other artists regarding their communication strategies.MB: Can you elaborate on these rules for marketing?DT: I should be able to do it; it’s nice to talk with you about it because it reminds me to focus more. The communication strategies I apply are about the process of how I create and why I want to create, and it’s all based on one important word I call abstractivation. When I paint landscapes, I try to see the abstract things that exist in reality—the shapes of a tree, a building, a shadow, etc. I want to expose and amplify these abstracted things that I see in reality. For instance sometimes when I paint, I turn the canvas 180 degrees to forget that it’s a landscape, and instead, I try to see it as an abstract painting. In terms of communication, I’m trying to focus on that word, abstractivation, as my credo—what I believe. I believe there are abstract things in reality, and these are very strong and can bring us to another dimension—something spiritual. My communication is based on this pillar of my work. It’s the way I work, and the way I see art.MB: How long have you been a full time artist?DT: I quit my job in June 2017 and have been pursuing art professionally ever since.MB: Can you describe the first year of working as an artist full time?DT: The first month was a bit weird, because I went on holiday to Canada just after I quit. While I still felt like I was on holiday, at the same time I knew that I left my secure zone. That was very frightening. I was scared. Before, when I was part of a company, it was like I was on a big boat, and when I quit, I was in deep water. Then I had moments where I would remember myself painting outside, and I would have otherwise been in the office; that was a real pleasure.I have never worked so hard since I stopped working. As a professional artist, you have to do everything. Of course you have to paint. You also have to do the communication. You have to make all the decisions. When you work for a company, you have to make some, but others take many responsibilities. My day is usually made of painting and entrepreneurial decisions: a budget to work within, timing management, and meeting with people. At the same, you have to not try to manage everything, and go with the flow. Because that’s when things happen, when you don’t schedule everything and you follow the good vibrations around you. The best things happened to me when I wasn’t searching for them. Helping others is one of these things. When I help others, I feel pure pleasure and good things happen for me also. I did not experience this when I was working in a private company.MB: How has your artwork changed since making art your career?DT: Because I have more time to paint,&nbsp;I can do more research and exploration in order to produce more intimate works. I want to be more in the concept and because I have more time, I can dig in. I also have the motivation to produce because of things like my upcoming show for example show in Lake Forest that is coming in May. I actually I have to produce for this show. Before I painted what I wanted and when I wanted. Now, I have the parameter of an upcoming show date dictating my production. I also have some commissions to complete. I have to manage myself in order to complete the work.MB: What kind of subsidies/benefits have you been getting from the [French] government since becoming an artist and how long do those last?DT: Depending on how you quit your company in France, you can acquire some pensions from the state. And that was my case. I had this chance to receive money from the government, which is not at the level of my previous salary. Nevertheless, it helped me to live in a proper way and give a lot to my business as an artist. I will have this help until mid 2020. I have this time to become autonomous financially.MB: What does applying for these subsidies/benefits involve?DT: It’s not like these benefits don’t come from somewhere - they are essentially the unemployment tax withheld from my paycheck over the last sixteen years. Usually receiving these benefits means you have to look for a job, but because I created a company they should not ask me to look for a job.MB: What kind of financial burdens have you been experiencing since becoming an artist full time?DT: Not much because my level of finances are okay. I’m still live in the same apartment. I try to spend less. The funny thing is that when I was working and I’d leave the office, I wanted to buy things. I wanted to go to the shops with high tech things. So I spent the money that I earned on the things that I bought. And now I don’t need any of these things anymore. And I think it’s because I like what I do. I don’t need anything other than what I’m doing. At the end of the day, I have less money and spend less money without much effort.MB: Have you noticed any major differences in the way you approach art versus your artist peers in the states?DT: Not really. I meet a lot of French artists because I am in an art residency here in France. There are&nbsp;many types of artists, even in the small place that I work. Many of them&nbsp;are French, but they&nbsp;all do different things. I do see a difference between French and American buyers. Most of the buyers that I’ve had so far that come to my residency have been American. Actually, I think it’s a difference between French people and American; American people are more straightforward. If they like it, they take it. French they go and see once and go back and go again and ask for more info. The big difference is this buying factor for Americans is that they liked what they saw. French people are trying to see what artistic approach you are in comparison to big famous artists. They want you to be part of one of the artistic currents—more conceptual. Americans are more pragmatic and straightforward. French are pickier.MB: How long are you in this residency for?DT: I arrived in September of 2018. Their standard residency is six months. I should leave in March. But because I helped them build their&nbsp;accounting management, they allowed me to&nbsp;stay one month more. There are 30 artists in the residency and 15 are like me; they have to leave after six months. But sometimes one of the permanent residents wants to go on holiday or they have an exhibition far away, and their studio is empty. It’s possible to be occupying an open studio when they are not there for a certain time.MB: Does it cost anything to be a part of this residency?DT: You have to pay, but not much. It is in the center of Paris on a main street that goes by the Louvre. There are several very famous, high-end shops, and there are a lot of people. We are open to public on afternoons, which brings a lot of people. I’ve got quite a lot a space and pay €150 a month – a really good price for the space and location. We do have communal obligations to keep up the space. We each help with cleaning, and I have to work the door once a week. Because it’s a collective, we live in an autonomous way with lots of privileges.<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418068/qm9ja60hpyky5abkizpn.gif"><figcaption>David Twose, Lake Bluff Gazebo</figcaption></figure>MB: What are you currently working on?DT: My focus is the show [in Lake Forest] in May, but I also have three exhibitions right now: a solo show in a city&nbsp;called Bois-Colombes in a nice suburb of Paris. I am honored to be part of this show because the&nbsp;exhibition was juried by the city. The other is a group show that opened February&nbsp;6th. I will also have a show in Deauville in an art&nbsp;fair in April. Then I have solo show, From Paris to Chicago, at The Gallery of Lake Forest (202 E Wisconsin Ave,&nbsp;Lake Forest, IL 60045).&nbsp;The opening is May 9th, and I will be exhibiting paintings of Paris and Chicago as well as Lake Forest and Lake Bluff.&nbsp;MB: Have you achieved the goals that you've set for yourself when making this career shift?DT: I think so, yes. Now there is bigger stuff to achieve. I want to be financially autonomous with my art. My first goal was simply to sell work. I did this during my first show. My friend and fellow artist, René Romero Schuler, actually bought my first piece. I sold to my close circle of friends and family first, then friends of family and friends of friends, and in June last year, I sold a painting to an American guy I’d never met before. My work was still at a hotel from a previous show, and he bought one of my paintings when I wasn’t even around. I was big step for me because he wanted to buy it for the work and not only to support me. Perhaps my friends loved my work, but perhaps they would have not bought if it were not mine. Since then I have sold more paintings to people that did not know, and that is really exciting!MB: What are your plans for your future in the arts?DT: I would love to be in a gallery. I want to find a way to live off my paintings, so I’m trying to find the way that I can do this. One of the options is to be represented in a gallery,&nbsp;perhaps in the USA since I feel connected to the energy and people there. Perhaps there are other options that I have to work on. So that will be the next step, and I think I will do it shortly. First I have visit and engage with different kinds of galleries to see if they are right for me. It’s all about meeting people.<a href="www.davidtwose.com">www.davidtwose.com</a></body></html>

Life After Art School: Making Transitions and Transactions – Part I

<html><head></head><body>Life After Art School is an interview series by a former CGN Intern. The first part was written in 2014.&nbsp;This five-year follow-up is broken up into three parts:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/2/life-after-art-school-five-years-later">• Life After Art School: Five Years Later</a><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/2/life-after-art-school-making-transitions-and-transactions">• Life After Art School: Making Transitions and Transactions – Part I</a>• Life After Art School: Making Transitions and Transactions – Part II (included below)&nbsp;By MEGAN BONKEAs was the case when I wrote the first Life After Art School article for CGN in 2014, I talked to other artists to get their perspectives.&nbsp;My first follow-up interview was with French artist David Twose (read <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/2/life-after-art-school-making-transitions-and-transactions">here</a>).I tried my best not to shy away from questions about financial challenges, and I hope my own story as well as the thoughts and answers from another artist helps others move closer to an understanding of life as a professional artist.&nbsp;My second interview is with a current art student, Wendolyn Sterkel, who has also taken a leap, switching from a traditional, public university to attending art school. Sterkel, originally from Omaha, Nebraska, is the first in her family to go to college. She is currently a student at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC).&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418018/d9lah8kxzysk6c79jjr2.gif"><figcaption>Wendolyn Sterkel</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Wendolyn Sterkel, 22, current student at SAIC&nbsp;Megan Bonke: When did you decide you wanted to be an artist?Wendolyn Sterkel: About three years ago I was at community college. I was just about to transfer over the University of Nebraska Lincoln, and I had switched my major from journalism my first year to business my second year, and finally my advisor came up to me and said, “You need to pick a major before you get into the university.” At the time I had taken maybe two art classes — just very basic curriculum kind of stuff — and I said to him, “You know, I’m going to do art.” He responded, “Wendy you’ve only taken two art classes and those were the basic ones.” I said, “Yeah I think I’m just going to do art.” He said, “Are you sure? This is a really big commitment here.” And I said, “Just put down art. We’ll figure it out.”&nbsp;And from there I’ve stuck with it. Choosing my major was really spontaneous for me.MB: Were you interested in art when you were younger?WS: I was on and off, and my mom always told me that it seemed like a hobby. She encouraged me to get more into writing. My mom said, “Look you can be a journalist and actually make money and have a career.” I tried it, and I think after doing it for so long, I got tired of it. But I’ve always had an interest in art.MB: What are you currently studying?WS: I’m getting my Bachelor in Fine Art at SAIC, focusing primarily in sculpture, such as ceramics. I love to work with clay.MB: How many years have to been in college?WS: Five.MB: How many years do you have left?WS: Hopefully one, maybe one and a half, but at least one.MB: When did you switch to SAIC? How many years did you have under your belt?WS: I had four. So this is my first year, and currently my second semester, at SAIC. I spent two years at community college, followed by two years at the University of Nebraska Lincoln, and I should have two total at SAIC.MB: What has been the greatest lesson learned from school/art school?WS: I don’t know if I’ve learned anything so far...MB: That’s a lesson too.WS: It really is about real world knowledge. You can go to school, ace all of your classes, but in the end if you don’t have the experience, it’s not going to get your anywhere. You may have a degree, but if you don’t have jobs, it’s not going to work.MB: Do you think anything critical is missing from your curriculum?WS: Oh yeah. I wish there was a class on how to be an artist out in the real world, for instance, how do I figure out how to write cover letters and artist descriptions. At least to my knowledge there is no class that teaches you solely how to sell your art or how to be a successful artist out in the real world. That’s the big one. They do teach you how to work, conceptually, but in the end that may not sell your art all the time.MB: But you are going to art school. What do you hope to learn while you’re there?WS: I just really hope I can learn how to actually make it out in the real world. I guess I want to learn how I could do what I want to do and make a living out of it. That would be amazing. I hope school will teach me that. I’ve had to hustle so far, and it seems like my jobs outside of school have taught me that better.MB: What kinds of subsidies/benefits/scholarships have you received for school?WS: I have received multiple grants that I’ve had to apply for through university, SAIC, and community college. I have FAFSA. I also have smaller scholarships through the school or third parties and a bunch of loans: a lot of the subsidized and unsubsidized loans.MB: So what percentage is covered by scholarships and grants and how much is covered by loans?WS: I’d say about 15-20% are scholarships and grants that I don’t have to pay back. Then I’d say FAFSA and the loans pay for 70%.MB: So what has been involved in applying for these subsidies/benefits/scholarships?WS: Every year I have to apply for the FASFA. That’s means gathering my mother’s taxes and my taxes and filling out this these very extensive forms to ultimately show, 'Hey we’re still not making any money. I still need to borrow money from you guys.' That’s been a hassle, because my mom doesn’t know how to do it. I’m the first generation (first person) to go to college in family. My mom had no idea how to deal with this. So going into my freshman year of college, I had to figure that all out. Now it’s become more routine. I still have to make sure I meet regular deadlines, which is very stressful when I have to get all her tax stuff and all my stuff kind of synchronized. It’s a lot.MB: Specifically what kind of financial burdens have you noticed since becoming an art student?WS: Supplies. I understand they can’t always supply us. When it comes down to it and you’re trying to make a project and use good material, so it will look decent, you’re going to have to spend the money. I think the most I’ve ever spent in one class was about $300-$400. And unfortunately those were supplies I never had to use again. I &nbsp;spent $200 on paint, which did not include the canvas or the stretchers or brushes or the paint thinner. Then you run out, and they expect you to have more and more and more money for more materials. I’ve spend $300-$400 on a class easily. It can be a big waste. It sucks because I’ve tried to sell it back to other students, and I end up kind of giving it away.MB: What about living in the city of Chicago?WS: In Nebraska, I was able to have a part time job, go to school, have a social life, and still be able to pay my bills on time. That was easy. As you continue with any school, you have to put in more hours, you get a lot more schoolwork, and you have less time to work a job outside of school. I’m currently in the dorms. I had to take out more loans to afford that so I wouldn’t have to be stressed my first year of Chicago and fail out. Looking at next year, my friends want to move in together. Luckily my roommate, who I’m actually going to move in with next year, her mother is a real estate agent. She is going to buy a condo and rent it out to us. Still rent is going to be $800 to $1000 a month. It’s going to be really hard, and I’m stressed out. I’ve been trying to figure out a job that will correlate with school and still leave me time for projects, which are going to become way more intense. I told my roommates if we could pay $600, I would be the happiest person ever. My roommates are able to work full time jobs, and I’m the only student. Luckily they are able to work with me, and I think that we’ll be able to come to a middle ground.MB: What do you do to currently manage your finances?WS: I do promo modeling during the summer. Essentially, I get booked for a gig, they train me for 15 minutes, and I have to be on my feet eight to ten hours at a time; but I get paid $30-40 an hour which is amazing. I love it. I did it in Nebraska, and that’s how I would make my money in the summer. Currently, I have two jobs. I work for Color Cocktail Factory and I work for community center in Homan Square, which is only once a week. I’m hoping I can either I can pick up more shifts during the summer, or worse comes to worst, I will apply for a bar job somewhere. I usually will work about two to three jobs during the summer to save up so I won't be as stressed when school starts.MB: How many hours do you work during the school year?WS: During the school year, 15–20, and that’s really pushing it. I like to keep it fewer than 15 if that is physically possible. Not having to pay bills or rent right now is really easy. Once I get into an apartment, I’m worried about how I’m going to manage those hours and pay bills and find time to work on projects.MB: Do think it’s more challenging for you than other students?WS: Some students are able to take their schoolwork with them to work. There was a time I was the assistant manager at a bar, and when it was slow I would allow the servers to work on their homework. They would write their papers and do their homework on their computers. I can’t take my stuff anywhere. I can’t come in with a bag of clay and start molding any of my projects on the bar counter or lug around my welding stuff. It really does depend on your medium.&nbsp;MB: Do you think your workload is fair?WS: Back in Nebraska, I was the only art student amongst all my friends. They were communications, marketing, and psych majors and during finals week they maybe studied three or four hours and call it good. I would be in my room all night working on a project. Because I had projects due or critiques, I would stay in the studio until three in the morning for four nights straight. You have to put the time in because you can physically see what you did. You need 30 maybe 40 hours for a really solid project. It seems unfair, but it’s the life I chose.MB: So what are you currently working on?WS: Artistically — like nothing at all. The only studio class I’m taking right now is designed objects. At the moment, I’m trying to get my art history out of the way. I was also missing a science credit because they didn’t accept my science credit from my community college. I am taking a 400 level sculpture class “Just for Justice”, but it’s a conceptual, activist class. At the end of the year we have to have ten pictures of a project that we would do. We’re not actually making anything. We have to plan a community project to address a controversial issue, which I am very interested in doing, but I am more of a physical person. I got into the class thinking it would be more physical, and I was a bit disappointed to see that it wasn’t. But I’ll learn something, and maybe I can bring it into my own work and create a piece from it.MB: So what are some of your biggest fears and concerns after you graduate?WS: Oh God. Here is the panic attack coming.I would love to teach for a while. I don’t want to get stuck. I know teachers right now are getting paid very little and they are mistreated horribly. They are the starting point of everything for kids…our future.I would love to be able to actually sell my art. I would to like to see if I could sell it and make a living off of it, but at the same time the art community seems is very exclusive and you really need to know the right people. That’s my biggest fear, that I won’t actually be able to do that. But I love teaching; I really do. I love working with children so much. In the end if that’s my fall back, I think I’ll be content.MB: What do you plan to do for your first year after school?WS: I’d like to teach a little bit and then go back to grad school. That opens up a lot, and I could teach college classes. Grad school is definitely on my list, but I think that I need a break from six years of school and only having a Bachelors Degree. I need a break before people are asking me if I am doctor or something.MB: Do you have any bigger future plans?WS: No, actually. I’ve never had a future plan on what I even wanted to do. I changed my major three times. I’m not even sure what I’m going to do with this. It makes me horribly stressed, but it also makes me very happy. I know I haven’t hated my life since doing it. In the end, money is money. It comes and it goes, but I’m doing something I like, and I’m paying for all of this out of my own pocket. I’m not putting any strain on my family, which is really a nice feeling. I’m just going to keep going and see what happens.</body></html>

Life After Art School: Making Transitions and Transactions – Part II

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418048/lps7fusrlqtpaprqf5v7.gif"><figcaption>Hearth Pendant, Gold, enamel, glass, Spain or Italy, c. 1600, $65,000. Courtesy Les Enluminures</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By CGN StaffThe warmest part of February must be Valentine's Day! Inspired by the cheerful holiday coming up next week, we browsed our CGN listings for romantic works of art, artistic expressions of love, and OK, some art that's just red.&nbsp;In case you actually need a reason to visit the galleries, we found a few Valentine's Day events, plus very clever and unique gallery and museum-store items you might want to consider for anyone special on your gift list.&nbsp;Happy Valentine's Day, and stay warm!&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418049/me6mttywog59w8nql5m8.gif"><figcaption>LH Selman</figcaption></figure>If glass is your thing, stop into <a href="https://www.theglassgallery.com">LH Selman</a> in the Fine Arts Building to admire these always-in-bloom floral preservations. They're as giftable as they are collectible.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://gallery.mailchimp.com/7f1613da24f43c79480112f36/images/528f575c-64f3-401e-8a7e-e11c67931635.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>Janis Kanter, Don't be sad, WE AREN'T SO GREAT,&nbsp;2018, pieced, stitched and collaged fabric, 57 x 44"</figcaption></figure><a href="http://www.thomasmccormick.com">McCormick Gallery</a> is hosting a very special opening on Valentine's Day, February 14, 5:30–8:30pm. Chicago based artist Janis Kanter hasn't had a show in nearly 20 years. Now, she is back&nbsp;and has completed two bodies of work — Barbie Series: Even the Brunettes Were Offended (already sold out) and MY WORLD – My WALL, a new series of nine works, which will debut at this showing. The exhibition continues for just 10 days until February 23&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418051/oubx54ksl2xdxqildq9w.gif"><figcaption>Sharon Gilmore, Between Pauses, wood, sinew, 48" x 47" x 8"&nbsp;</figcaption></figure><a href="https://cultivateurbanrainforest.weebly.com/#/">Cultivate Urban Rainforest</a> in Evanston is full of surprises. They not only have Valentine-worthy <a href="https://cultivateurbanrainforest.weebly.com/store/p24/Aglaonema_6%22_%27Red_Valentine%27.html#/">plants</a>, but they feature artwork, even modern terrariums, perfect for the creative one in your life.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418052/yl9kr9hk4d6tsxobdeux.gif"><figcaption>Kusama Love Forever Tea Towel Set, $55.00</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.mcachicagostore.org">The Museum of Contemporary Art</a> has long-boasted an award-winning gift shop, and it's a go-to source for uniquely arty gifts any time of year. For consideration this Valentine's Day: tea towels by Yayoi Kusama, running heart socks by Keith Haring, and of course, a mini Robert Indiana-inspired LOVE sculpture.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418053/binihx7r11ygpzgqdjz4.gif"><figcaption>Hot Or Not: 20th-Century Male Artists, Jessica Campbell, $10.00</figcaption></figure>A rather cheeky read by artists <a href="https://www.mcachicagostore.org/shop/hot-or-not-20thcentury-male-artists-54307">Jessica Campbell</a> is also available at the MCA (Campbell exhibition at the MCA, part of the Chicago Works series, is on view through July 7, 2019). As the MCA website says, "The history of twentieth-century art is filled with men, but one key component has always been missing: which of these men are boneable, and which are not. Jessica Campbell has created the definitive resource on the subject in this hilarious rundown of male artist hotness and notness.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418054/qbef1ccvw98el58s6bje.gif"><figcaption>Driehaus Museum Collection Pinwheel Tie. $48.50</figcaption></figure>A more conservative gift for the man in your life may be this visually vibrant tie from the <a href="https://shop.driehausmuseum.org">Driehaus Museum's</a> gift shop, inspired by the decorative interiors&nbsp;of the Nickerson Mansion. The&nbsp;Pinwheel Tie, one of four contemporary graphic designs &nbsp;created for the museum's custom tie collection, is patterned with&nbsp;the intricate design found in the center of the parquet flooring of the Drawing Room where the symbol evokes innocence, creativity, and the ability to transform obstacles into opportunities.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418055/ofeubhjmdmzrv0zbr3ui.png"><figcaption>Renaissance Enameled Ring set with emeralds and rubies held by Stags, Gold, Western Europe (France?), c. 1550-1600, $210,000.00&nbsp;</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.lesenluminures.com/artworks/categories/1-jewelry/">Les Enluminures</a> is a rare source for unusual historic jewelry, manuscripts and miniatures. If your love is unlike any other, perhaps they are worthy of a truly unique adornment! &nbsp;This truly remarkable Renaissance ring displays all the characteristics of opulent goldsmith work of the period. As the emblem of Diane de Poitiers, mistress of King Henry II, the stag is in keeping with the spirit of the Fontainebleau court. And if this breaks your budget, at least pop over for a new view of history!&nbsp;*Note: image at top of this post is also from Les Enluminures.&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

Art for Your Valentine

<html><head></head><body>So, we're in it now. Chicago seems to have set a new standard for freezing, according to every major news outlet out there. Any heat we feel is likely steaming from a clanky radiator rather than beachside rays of sunlight.&nbsp;The collective freakout about the low temps may seem a tad extreme, but bundled in layers of wool and tired of slipping and sliding on our way anywhere, it seems easier to just stay home for now. Someday, spring and summer will come, but until then, we all take the day off.Our previous post shared some art for the cold.&nbsp;Now we tap our inner voyeur and escape thorough images of better (warmer) times.&nbsp;– CGN Staff&nbsp;Henry George Brandt at <a href="http://www.richardnortongallery.com/artists/henry-george-brandt/artworks/7725-untitled-beach">Richard Norton</a><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418172/eae72cfcknrbqklvmvxc.gif"><figcaption>Henry George Brandt, Untitled (Beach Scene, Chicago), ca. 1930s, Oil on board, &nbsp;12 1/2 x 15 1/4 inches</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Julia Katz at <a href="http://danaddington.com/addingtongallery/katz/katz.html">Addington Gallery</a><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418173/xab6qonjsylt9xoyq8za.gif"><figcaption>Julia Katz, Rock Solid, oil on panel, 36 x 48"</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Dan Attoe at <a href="http://westernexhibitions.com/artist/dan-attoe/">Western Exhibitions</a><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418174/hofrrxdzhlji7kcutwt2.gif"><figcaption>Dan Attoe, Summers At Waterfall 2, 2014, oil on gesso on canvas, stretched over panel</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;David Hockney at <a href="http://www.richardgraygallery.com/artists/david-hockney?view=slider#2">Richard Gray Gallery</a><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418175/hji8pajgs80yvpzmre4b.gif"><figcaption>David Hockney, Portrait of Nick Wilder, 1966, Acrylic on canvas, 72 x 72 inches</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Botanical art at <a href="https://www.audubonart.com/shop/product/cam-043-berlese-pl-43-camellia-eximia-10276?category=87">Joel Oppenheimer</a><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418176/icrojf3b56njzwqpo47v.gif"><figcaption>Berlese Pl. 43, Camellia Eximia, Original Antique Print, 13 1/2" x 10 3/8" (approximate), 1839—1843, Hand-colored stipple engraving, Iconographie du Genre Camellia, Produced from 1839—1843 by Lorenzo Berlèse</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;&nbsp;Top image: David Yarrow, ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE, at <a href="http://www.hilton-asmus.com/david-yarrow-all-you-need-is-love.html">Hilton Asmus Contemporary&nbsp;</a></body></html>

Art for the Warm Up (Some Day)

<html><head></head><body>The world is ending!&nbsp;No, it's just really cold in Chicago, and pretty much everywhere.&nbsp;So, since many of us will be working from home for the next day or two (aka binge watching TV and checking emails with closure notices) it's a good chance to view art virtually if you can't make it into the galleries and museums. Check out what's new from gallery artists and be inspired for your next physical visit – when the temperature is back up over 0° soon.Here for you are some art picks for the cold snap.&nbsp;Part II this week will be Art to Warm You Up!&nbsp;And remember, in case you're bold enough to consider venturing outside, many area galleries and museums are closed January 30 (and maybe Jan 31) so please check with each space in advance before visiting.– CGN Staff&nbsp;Terry Evans at <a href="http://www.edelmangallery.com/artists/artists/a-f/terry-evans.html#?id=3428">Catherine Edelman&nbsp;</a><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418105/ftupisv2g1mcrooehsil.jpg"><figcaption>Terry Evans, Ice Jetty, Lakefront Near Downtown Chicago, Cook County, January 29, 2004From the Revealing Chicago series19 x 19", 30 x 30", 40 x 40" pigment print</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Andrew Homquist at <a href="http://www.secristgallery.com/artists/andrew-holmquist/">Carrie Secrist</a><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418106/bmt5pifvroatqtaxpal7.jpg"><figcaption>Andrew Holmquist, Lock Step, 2016, Oil and acrylic on canvas, 20 x 16.5"</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Nancie King Mertz, <a href="http://nanciekingmertz.com/works">Art de Triumph</a><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418107/rjy2ljvno4nls0zboqpu.gif"><figcaption>Nancie King Mertz, Blanket of Snow</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Luciana Abait at <a href="http://jeanalbanogallery.com/artists-a-m/luciana-abait/">Jean Albano Gallery</a><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418108/gr6o2yxqkyouxkdxoz3k.gif"><figcaption>Luciana Abait, Bridge, 2018, mixed media on paper, 40 x 60 in.</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Come Wind, Come Weather at <a href="https://www.eiu.edu/tarble/currentevents.php">Tarble Arts Center</a><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418109/tjeqzvl41qswjjz0pnrx.gif"><figcaption>Sue de Beer,&nbsp;The White Wolf&nbsp;(still), 2018&nbsp;Two-channel HD video © Sue de BeerImage Courtesy of the Artist &amp; Marianne Boesky Gallery, New York and Aspen, part of Come Wind, Come Weather at Tarble Art Center</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Top image: David Yarrow, ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE, at <a href="http://www.hilton-asmus.com/david-yarrow-all-you-need-is-love.html">Hilton Asmus Contemporary&nbsp;</a></body></html>

Art for the Deep Freeze

<html><head></head><body>By GINNY VAN ALYEAThis fall when I made a weekend trip to Rockford to visit family, I made sure to stop, as always, into the Rockford Art Museum to see the latest exhibition, Dwellings,&nbsp;a group show featuring paintings, photography, sculptures and installations by&nbsp;artists Jacqueline Moses,&nbsp;Juan Fernandez,&nbsp;Joe Cassan, and&nbsp;Shana McCaw and Brent Budsberg.&nbsp;The museum's humble exterior doesn't immediately signal the contemporary art housed within. RAM is located inside Riverfront Museum Park for the Arts &amp; Sciences – a multipurpose space close to downtown Rockford – which also happens to house a fabulous children's center (handy when your kids are with you and you don't want them to knock over a sculpture).Each artist in the show has created work that depicts a house or structure, using the concept as well as physical place of the base most of us take for granted as a means to address various issues about stability vs change, comfort vs disruption, a sense of place that contrasts with feelings of displacement. 'Home' is inextricably linked to issues both local and global, personal as well as political.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418042/aiyyoqzuoy86xhq8nhj4.gif"><figcaption>Jacqueline Moses, Small Village, 2018</figcaption></figure>Jackie Moses's vibrant paintings in the show focus on homes that often have been left for good, perhaps due to uncontrollable global or political forces. Moses explains in her statement, "Recent world and personal events have strongly influenced the content in my work. Though the color still remains vibrant, turmoil, separation and flight have become central themes."&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418043/jrv8iycpizgjbkgzjr1f.gif"><figcaption>Juan Fernandez, Concrete, 2011</figcaption></figure>Juan Fernandez's photographs focus on the deceptive banality of structures that some of us spend enough time in that they may be considered an extension of home. In order to distill his architectural images down to a visual purity that we can understand more clearly, Fernandez explains the process of 'cleansing' his photographs, "Each image is 'cleansed' of visual distractions. The compositions are created by only photographing in overcast skies or including small signs of reality, such as a piece of trash, dead leaves, cracks in the cement, or rust stains."<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418045/q9p1wfuvup59dfiv3lf1.gif"><figcaption>Joe Cassan</figcaption></figure>The mix of two and three dimensional work installed throughout the main upper floor of the museum allowed for a sort of wandering typical of exploring various spaces within a home. My children, who are just 3 and 5, were also very engaged with the work that depicted things at once familiar and odd to them, for instance an upside down, double sided house. The experience also raised, for me, a fresh awareness of what my own home means for me and for my family and how grateful I am to have a place to dwell and call home.<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418046/tljdlomrbwcbscmkxdp9.gif"><figcaption>Shana McCaw &amp; Brent Budsberg, Reaction, 2009</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;The exhibition runs through January 27; if you happen to be near Rockford this weekend, you can still catch this show before it ends.&nbsp;More info about the Rockford Art Museum is <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/rockford-art-museum">here</a>.Top Image: Jacqueline Moses</body></html>

Dwellings: Reconsidering 'Home' at Rockford Art Museum

<html><head></head><body>By SARAH ADLERWhen I hear the term “art world,” I imagine several people – unusually tall and good-looking – gathered together sipping champagne while discussing some sparkling Warhol. Or I hear the incessant clicking of impossibly tall stilettos, going one-two-three-pause-for-reflection-one-two-three across a stone-cold floor in a space adorned by “masterpieces.” Neither of these scenarios is particularly inviting. Furthermore, they are not what I actually have found art, and its related spaces, to have the potential to be: radical, engaging, and provocative. Despite loving art my entire life, I too grow hesitant upon hearing someone invoke the words “art world.”There are numerous spaces around the city that are dedicated to offering beautiful, even transcendental art experiences. In order to encourage anyone who is a bit hesitant about where to start, I have compiled a list of events that may serve as a healthy first course. This is not to say that any of these events don’t appeal to those who frequent these spaces more regularly, but rather that these events present excellent appetizers for anyone who's not yet sure if they want to stay for dinner and dessert.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417790/dvh2dcblf2lmoenxszws.gif"></figure>1. Holiday Photo Book Bazaar, Columbia College of Chicago, December 6, 5-7 PMPhotography was once deemed a “lower” art form than the great likes of painting and sculpture. However, the past century has given way to the likes of both brilliant photographers and massively influential Instagram stars alike. Since photography has become such a mainstay in our everyday technology, it could serve as an easy entranceway into the art world. Yes, the images are probably a bit more edgy than what is on your feed, but several of the artists featured in the bazaar, including Cecil McDonald Jr. and Melissa Ann Pinney, often utilize everyday subject matter. Having their book on your coffee table might be a good tasting before going to a gallery or show.<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/holiday-photo-book-bazaar-3ffaad0b-2f21-468e-ae4c-24517ba728e3">Details</a>600 S. Michigan Avenue&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417791/kn2kfnfiqmag2es0ffa3.gif"><figcaption>Color Memory and Time, Nicole Mauser and Colleen Keihm</figcaption></figure>2. Colleen Keihm and Nicole Mauser: Break Here at Filter Photo, December 7, 2018 - January 5, 2019Both Keihm and Mauser make works that are, undeniably, aesthetically appealing. Working in collaboration for this exhibition, Keihm and Mauser created work that is bold, vibrant, and filled with fun geometric shapes. The cover photo for the event in itself is enchanting: an abstract black-and-white construction stands out against a spectrum of neon color. If you find yourself still interested after a visual perusal, a quick dive into their theoretical practice will uncover some pretty relatable truths about our present moment, particularly the speed at which our technological advances are reshaping our reality.<a href="http://filterphoto.org/portfolio/colleen-keihm-nicole-mauser-break-here/">Details</a>1821 W. Hubbard St. Suite #207&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417793/rp15lwpeamiybwnwyofq.gif"><figcaption>Whitney Bradshaw, Cecily, 2018, &nbsp;courtesy of the artist&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>3. &nbsp;Whitney Bradshaw: Outcry, DePaul Art Museum, through December 16Nothing is as relatable in our current political climate as someone tilting back their head and just letting out their emotions in one great, loud, outcry. This exhibition consists of portraits of women, of all races and ethnicities, screaming at the issues they face everyday. The artist, Whitney Bradshaw, has been bringing together groups of women who don’t know each other since the Women’s March in 2018. There, the women engage in conversations surrounding all kinds of topics, such as racism, sexism, and sexual assault. The resulting images are not posed, but rather the true expressions of these women as they discuss the issues that many of us are also working through everyday.<a href="https://resources.depaul.edu/art-museum/exhibitions/Pages/whitney-bradshaw-outcry.aspx">Details</a>935 W. Fullerton Avenue&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417794/mrzt3qiokrtifxr2oeh3.gif"></figure>4. Revolution Craft Show, December 16, 12 PM- 6 PMThere are so many opportunities, especially in a city like Chicago, to support local artists in small, meaningful ways. This craft show gives you access to over forty local artists working in a variety of mediums: from pins to prints to soap. While it isn’t fine art per say, you will be able to stock up on high quality work - all the while sipping on some beer and meeting those same artists whose work you are supporting. Who needs champagne anyways?<a href="https://www.revolutioncraftshowchicago.com">Details</a>3340 North Kedzie Avenue&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417795/b08jd50aqepp9goilhyt.gif"></figure>5. James Webb: Prayer, Art Institute of Chicago, through December 31As the streets of Chicago become inundated with dirt-colored snow and the temperature drops to unbearably small degrees, it can be nice to just take off your shoes, take some deep breaths, and listen. This could happen in your house, maybe, or it could happen at the stately Art Institute of Chicago. Although most of the floors are dedicated to some of the greatest masters in the world – think all the names that you probably associate with art – an exhibition called Prayer invites its listeners to remove their shoes, walk along soft carpet, and listen to a symphony of different voices – all from Chicago – recite prayers in their respective religions and beliefs. It is a truly lovely way to enjoy the Holiday season.<a href="https://www.artic.edu/exhibitions/9015/james-webb-prayer">Details</a>111 S. Michigan Avenue&nbsp;Sarah Adler is a freelance writer. She recently graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, and serves as both the gallery assistant at Monique Meloche Gallery, as well as an intern in the interpretation department at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago.</body></html>

New to the 'Art World'? Here Are Starting Points to Experience

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417811/wcitasrr6riy9wrynit9.png"></figure><h2>Google is building digital art galleries you can step into</h2>Google wants to help you take a closer look at the art world. The company’s Arts &amp; Culture app has long been one of the company’s cooler niche apps and one that I often feel guilty about overlooking every time I rediscover it. Today, the company has added another experience into the mix focused on collecting the known works of Dutch master artist Johannes Vermeer and curating them in a single place.By Lucas Matney, Tech Crunch<a href="https://techcrunch.com/2018/12/03/google-is-building-digital-art-galleries-you-can-step-into/">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417812/z9vz1mbba5snx8yyxqds.png"></figure><h2>Meet The Chicago Woman Taking Balloon Art To Incredible New Heights</h2>When people ask Elaine Frei what she does for a living, the 39-year-old tends to answer, sheepishly, “I have this balloon business.” Which is technically true — Frei is the founder/owner of <a href="https://www.luftballoonstore.com/">Luft Balloons</a>, based in Logan Square — but her response is also a bit like Coco Chanel saying, “I sell clothes.” What Frei actually does is take the humble balloon and elevate it into a medium for sophisticated works of art.By Patti Wetli, Block Club Chicago<a href="https://blockclubchicago.org/2018/11/30/meet-the-chicago-woman-taking-balloon-art-to-incredible-new-heights/">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417813/u4wjxraa3xeoywxlxqco.jpg"></figure><h2>Chicago’s Framing Master Celebrates 40 Years</h2>When Jay Goltz decided to start a picture framing business right out of college, his family and friends thought he was wasting his degree. “In 1978, if you called someone an entrepreneur, it was an insult, like a hustler,” Goltz says. In hindsight, he thinks the disdain prepared him for the challenges that lay ahead.Forty years later, Artists Frame Service is the largest framing store in the country and one of a few keeping the art of framing alive. Clybourn Avenue, where Artists Frame Service is headquartered, has even been named Honorary Jay Goltz Way by the city of Chicago.By Amber Gibson, Architectural Digest<a href="https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/artists-frame-services-jay-goltz-chicago-40-years">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417814/rdmttlw4zhsltxadnbzz.jpg"></figure><h2>How Far Would You Go to Get the Perfect Artwork? We Asked Young Art Collectors How They Landed Their Most Elusive Trophies</h2>As any art collector will tell you, once you catch the collecting bug, it doesn’t leave you. But a new generation of collectors is taking a variety of novel approaches to track down the works they want, often going to wildly impractical or time-consuming lengths to land elusive trophies.By Henri Neuendorf, artnet news<a href="https://news.artnet.com/art-world/young-collectors-1385380">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

News From Around the Art World: December 4, 2018

Recently the West Town-based Conservation Center shared a story with its clients and CGN about some recent restoration efforts, one of which involved an unusual and much-loved family "friend" who needed a bit of spit and polish, so to speak, to join shine in the modern age.&nbsp;Following is the post from the <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/the-conservation-center--2">Conservation Center.</a>&nbsp;By THE CONSERVATION CENTEROver these last few months, we’ve spent a lot of quality time in our Conservation Lab with a new friend and have made a lot of great memories. We are talking, of course, about our friend Carlos, a suit of armor and mannequin that we had the joy of conserving.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bedabba88251bb3c92debf4/1542302654224/32021996838_75f3d91b9d_z.jpg?format=500w" alt=" Before Treatment "><figcaption>Before Treatment</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bedabc4898583b5bbd590da/1542302670949/32021995588_6471cc3afa_z.jpg?format=500w" alt=" Verso Before Treatment "><figcaption>Verso Before Treatment</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5c000f48b8a0450af5364e19/1543507786546/?format=500w" alt=" After Treatment "><figcaption>After Treatment</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5c00105121c67ca694cbb194/1543508053090/45379584584_f024914a99_z.jpg?format=500w" alt=" After Treatment "><figcaption>After Treatment</figcaption></figure>Carlos is a Spanish-made suit of armor that has been an heirloom in the same family since 1967. Our client remembers, “My parents brought him back from their trip to Toledo, but hadn’t told us anything. I just came home from school one day and he was there!”Over the years, Carlos became part of the family. The kids dressed him up in different wigs and beads for the holidays, including a flute of champagne to celebrate the New Year. “Carlos was certainly always a conversation starter,” our client told us, laughing. “Not everyone has a suit of armor in their house!”<figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5c000ef30ebbe8ea333184ae/1543507711284/45191818825_a80ba10a48_z.jpg?format=500w" alt=" After Treatment "><figcaption>After Treatment</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;The family knew it was time for Carlos to get some work done when he started leaning from various location changes. Before moving him to his next destination- the family beach house- they decided to send Carlos to us.Carlos came to The Center in generally good condition, though his armor exhibited minor surface oxidation and subtle corrosion throughout, especially on the backs of the plates which exhibited moderate corrosion. The armor was also covered in a light layer of surface particulates, typical of his age.<figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bedac55f950b790807312f4/1543507932618/45168943224_bc94a1a721_z.jpg?format=500w" alt=" Before Treatment "><figcaption>Before Treatment</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5c000f8a4d7a9ce14fa147f6/1543507949686/?format=500w" alt=" After Treatment "><figcaption>After Treatment</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bedad0d6d2a730d95170f4e/1543508128793/45893035791_a52ba9d044_z.jpg?format=500w" alt=" Verso Before Treatment "><figcaption>Verso Before Treatment</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5c000de4562fa7bb7de1e006/1543507430741/?format=500w" alt=" After Treatment "><figcaption>After Treatment</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5c000f5a40ec9a39d62992f4/1543507981537/45191836235_f36c26951d_z.jpg?format=500w" alt=" After Treatment "><figcaption>After Treatment</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Carlos’ armor came with a few leather pieces, which mainly served the purpose of joining different parts of the armor together, such as the escarcela to the peto, or the thigh and the breastplate, respectively. These leather pieces were extremely dry and cracked. The leather joining the hombrera and the espaldar, or shoulder and back plate, were rotted, not functioning properly, and were possibly not even original to the armor. The leather straps on the legs, however, appeared to be in good condition.<figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bedaca7898583b5bbd59d1f/1543508893496/44980021805_fd8dd9eec1_z.jpg?format=300w" alt=" Before Treatment "><figcaption>Before Treatment</figcaption></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bedac9721c67c5e47fbd16f/1543508976757/44076589670_64ab7b34dc_z.jpg?format=300w" alt=" Before Treatment "><figcaption>Before Treatment</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5c000eb4b8a0450af53645b8/1543509066269/45191808365_76b81bec1f_z.jpg?format=300w" alt=" After Treatment "><figcaption>After Treatment</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;The sword that came to The Center with Carlos was covered in shellac from a previous restoration campaign that was failing and causing discoloration. His skirt, made of red velvet, was in a soiled condition. The color of the velvet was also considerably faded, particularly on the back side.<figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bec952e032be40cb0ddd51b/1542231348373/45157231164_c197f83d0b_z.jpg?format=500w" alt=" During Treatment "><figcaption>During Treatment</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bec9553352f530eec8d9361/1542231404696/30942240987_a39bbf4369_z.jpg?format=500w" alt=" During Treatment "><figcaption>During Treatment</figcaption></figure>Carlos engaged in a photo shoot when he arrived to document his appearance before and after treatment. Next, the armor was carefully removed from the wooden mannequin and surface cleaned using the appropriate conservation methods and materials. All of the pieces were coated with wax to protect the metal and preserve the patina, including Carlos’ sword, which was surface cleaned after the shellac was removed.<figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bec95ed03ce64f3bcd64ea6/1542231536280/44064708700_4ae50b88c8_z.jpg?format=500w" alt="44064708700_4ae50b88c8_z.jpg"></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bec95cd4d7a9cfc93ac4d00/1542231511619/?format=500w"></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bec95fff950b725c708375b/1542231554886/44064716560_890df01f86_z.jpg?format=500w" alt="44064716560_890df01f86_z.jpg"></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bec96104ae237283252bc2e/1542231576694/44968148705_a4ed5e0d11_z.jpg?format=500w" alt="44968148705_a4ed5e0d11_z.jpg"></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bec96482b6a28c72ef458e8/1542231630375/?format=500w"></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bec95bc6d2a736b0f038ae9/1542231487799/32010059308_39120e11c9_z.jpg?format=500w" alt="32010059308_39120e11c9_z.jpg"></figure>The leather pieces of the armor were replaced as needed on the torso and shoulders, and the lower leather pieces were conditioned to preserve their longevity. The red velvet skirt was also surface cleaned using the appropriate conservation methods and materials.<figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bedadb71ae6cfd30330fa6b/1542303163825/44980026295_7966c2e622_z.jpg?format=750w" alt=" Before Treatment "><figcaption>Before Treatment</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5c000d6970a6ad71683cd301/1543507308856/46103571141_73040ab5a8_z.jpg?format=750w" alt=" After Treatment "><figcaption>After Treatment</figcaption></figure>Andrew Rigsby, The Center’s Assistant Conservator of Furniture, worked on the suit of armor and spent the most time with Carlos.“We don’t see many sets of armor anymore, so it has been a lot of fun treating Carlos,” Andrew said. “The steel is of good quality and cleaned up really well with a weak tannic acid solution. Carlos is definitely ready to hang around a bit longer!”&nbsp;After Treatment<figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5c000e9f575d1f70b7c498d6/1543507623359/?format=500w" alt=" After Treatment Detail "><figcaption>After Treatment Detail</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5c000ed90e2e722b5d7f8bd1/1543507683191/45191813615_b7c1e7a544_z.jpg?format=750w" alt=" After Treatment "><figcaption>After Treatment</figcaption></figure>After a lot of fun with Carlos here at The Center, it will be hard to say goodbye. But soon he will be off on a new adventure in his family’s beach house, where he will bring more joy and memories for years to come.Check out Carlos’ Social Media Takeover!<figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bf2cda640ec9acef3fd71ae/1542639031869/?format=500w"></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bedad7270a6adb0fa4735fc/1542303094089/44969181895_e97d127766_z.jpg?format=500w" alt="44969181895_e97d127766_z.jpg"></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bedfcca032be4e68dc31cfe/1542323421484/?format=500w"></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bec96ca70a6ad427ecfb342/1542232077050/IMG_9535.JPG?format=500w" alt="IMG_9535.JPG"></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bec974f4d7a9cfc93ac7317/1542232088182/5.jpg?format=500w" alt="5.jpg"></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bec96db4ae237283252cecb/1542232102009/?format=500w"></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bec96f9562fa7a7dbf6361b/1542232113208/?format=500w"></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5506f408e4b0619cc3aeac05/t/5bec9717b8a045ec7306a6e5/1542232123024/IMG-9456.JPG?format=500w" alt="IMG-9456.JPG"></figure>&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="http://www.theconservationcenter.com/s/arrow-top.svg"></figure>

Shining the Knight: A Conservation Case Study

<html><head></head><body>By GINNY VAN ALYEAWhy are there so many emails and so many earnest requests to give today on #GivingTuesday? After being inundated with notices for Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales, it's easy to delete all the messages and requests, but so many vital area nonprofits are making the push for your support today because your donations truly help them do so much for their communities throughout the year. This kind of spending really counts.&nbsp;Here is our list of a few area arts groups that could use your financial support today (and beyond!) Most of them are able to take donations via Facebook too (since Facebook and PayPal are matching donations for a total of up to $7 million today).The best way to give lasting support to these groups is by staying interested in and engaged with their programming all year long.Happy giving!&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417796/njmt1lpkmdpr9egq025u.jpg"></figure>Elmhurst Art Museum – "Art is for Everyone"Help make art more accessible through EAM's "Art is for Everyone" program and sponsor the EAM's tours for underserved schools.$50 provides art supplies for a group of 10 low-income children $100 supports a visit for 3 students and the opportunity to return with annual memberships for their families $250 funds bus transportation for a school group from the greater Chicagoland area $500 sponsors a full docent-led tour and hands-on activities for an underserved school group<a href="https://www.facebook.com/donate/282512845802890/10156885520633841/">Elmhurst Art Museum</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417797/oywd9ijtmhl9qsawfwwz.jpg"></figure>Smart Museum of Art &nbsp;– Family DaysEach Family Day begins with an intimate family-centric tour led by our engaging docents. These tours highlight key issues and ideas related to the art on view. The inspiration found in the galleries spills out into our lobby after the tour, where families draw, build, sew, paint, or carve a project that reinforces what they’ve learned in the gallery. Donors provide the funds to pay our docents, guest artists, and performers. Their support buys the materials and supplies for hands-on art-making. Your help ensures that Family Day at the Smart remains free and open to all.<a href="https://giving.uchicago.edu/site/Donation2;jsessionid=00000000.app268b?1837.donation=form1&amp;df_id=1837&amp;mfc_pref=T&amp;NONCE_TOKEN=B6645D15ECFF37693486136A173D900A&amp;mc_cid=e23dcc561c&amp;mc_eid=a6ad3ea4a5">Smart Museum of Art</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417798/g7pfmbgxwjtmt6a8bdau.jpg"></figure>Hyde Park Art Center – Artist InvestmentThe Hyde Park Art Center invests in artists at all levels in Chicago. Your gift will enable creativity for all -- from toddlers learning art for the first time, to teens finding their creative voices, to emerging and mid-career artists pushing their careers to the next level. Any amount makes a difference."I 100% attribute the complete transformation of my practice to my experience at the Art Center." – Amanda Williams, Artist&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hydeparkart.org/donate/">Hyde Park Art Center</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417799/ajkf4ckddfsr5bhcltdj.jpg"></figure>Chicago Artists Coalition - Chicago Artists Resource (CAR)Each month, over 50,000 people utilize Chicago Artists Resource (CAR) to advance their practice and support Chicago’s creative community. Please join CAC in our work of assisting ambitious and innovative thinkers who are critical to the vitality of Chicago. Your support is what has helped Chicago Artists Resource grow and continue serving the arts community in Chicago.<a href="https://app.etapestry.com/onlineforms/ChicagoArtists/donation-1.html">Chicago Artists Resource</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417799/vjlr59oe8zgscbioadpw.jpg"><figcaption>Ms. Jackson-Ivy, Henderson Elementary School, 2018. Photo by Suzette Bross for CPS Lives Principal Project.</figcaption></figure>CPS Lives – Artists in Chicago Public SchoolsCPS Lives is an arts organization that pairs Chicago artists, designers, creatives, thinkers, makers, and educators with a Chicago Public School during the academic year to collaborate on a project, sharing the unique and individual story of each Chicago Public School.&nbsp; Each story will be celebrated and exhibited through local Chicago Public Library branches, as well as existing on the <a href="https://cpslives.us19.list-manage.com/track/click?u=3f6a10c14ffc74d748c865296&amp;id=fde75f7988&amp;e=4fef97222b">CPS Lives</a> website as an accessible digital archive of history for students, families, community members, educators, administrators, policymakers, &amp; the general public.&nbsp;CPS Lives recently gained nonprofit status, and they also have a donor who very&nbsp;generously&nbsp;offered to match donations up to $10,000&nbsp;given during the holiday season.<a href="https://www.facebook.com/donate/360180911406111/360180918072777/">CPS Lives Facebook page</a>Read CGN's story about CPS Lives <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2018/7/cpslives-puts-artists-in-chicago-public-schools?utm_source=Art+Headlines%3A+July+17%2C+2018&amp;utm_campaign=July+17%2C+2018&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;fbclid=IwAR1pLFbxQZETJm7jZgvWpNfQSnJDu3NNYi-KWey-G_rwARTrYSwad8GCIFQ">here</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417800/ytg70yoeokkdyb6moulk.gif"></figure>Spudnik Press – Keep the Presses RollingToday, we kick off our End of Year Campaign to raise $5000 for Spudnik Press programming and equipment. Every dollar you&nbsp;donate&nbsp;to Spudnik Press is critical&nbsp;and will fund programs for emerging artists, youth education, and the equipment and professional resources our community relies on. Your support&nbsp;allows us to be a lifeline for so many Chicago artists.Giving to Spudnik means a win for everyone. Today only: Donate $10+ on #GivingTuesday and get&nbsp;entered in a drawing for Dinner &amp; Drinks&nbsp;for 4 at Enoteca Roma in Wicker Park.&nbsp;“Not only did I learn how to use letterpress technology. I felt empowered.” – Spudnik Press Student<a href="https://www.spudnikpress.org/support/donate/?fbclid=IwAR2tg_wdkKAMDcFsJ8piTo6ZJmB4Yy7YfApKzGYIE7O715kA2I6MSxVX1jY">Spudnik Press Cooperative</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

A summary of several Chicago area arts groups to support on #GivingTuesday

Support Chicago Arts Groups on #GivingTuesday

<html><head></head><body>By GINNY VAN ALYEA &nbsp;With the holiday season in full swing, we came up with an artistic round-up of under-the-radar things to experience as well as share with loved ones in the next few weeks. Beyond just taking selfies with the Art Institute's wreathed lions (though we love them), or, more likely, frantically attempting to cross off your growing list of to-dos, there is a lot of art to see (and of course buy!) which adds creativity and a unique spirit to your holidays.&nbsp;Seeking out and appreciating art, and the artists who make it, can give you a special chance to enjoy culture and art this time of year. In this age of shop-from-your-couch from the world's mega companies, buying tickets to area museums and visiting local galleries and studios is an important way to support our vital, creative neighbors who do something independent every day of the year.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417729/xlgbeolz1aeiynudrxav.png"><figcaption>Art and Faith of the Creche at LUMA</figcaption></figure>Seasonal Art for the HolidaysThis winter, the Loyola University Museum of Art will showcase two exhibitions that are festive reasons to visit this small museum in the heart of downtown.&nbsp;Art and Faith of the Crèche: The Collection of James and Emilia Govan is a perennial favorite. Each year LUMA shares how artists across the globe depict the nativity with clothes, architecture, and figures from their native lands.Chicago artist David Lee Csicsko will be featured in The Art of the Season: David Lee Csicsko. In addition to showcasing 20 new color prints, a selection of Csicsko’s black and white series&nbsp;Saints in the Garden&nbsp;(1990- 1997) will be on view.On Friday, November 30 there is a free, public reception for both shows, 5:30-7:30pm. On Tuesday, December 4 Csicsko will give a talk from 6-7pm at the museum where he will discuss the inspiration, motivation, and process for creating his prints. On December 8, you can work with the artist to make your own greeting cards to send to friends and family (1–3pm at LUMA)<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/loyola-university-museum-of-art-luma--2">Loyola University Museum of Art (LUMA)</a>820 N. Michigan Ave. Chicago, IL 60611&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417730/nrjoigmww3klxt7t7o8j.jpg"><figcaption>Mrs. James Ward Thorne.&nbsp;E-14: English Drawing Room of the Victorian Period, 1840–70&nbsp;(detail), about 1937. Gift of Mrs. James Ward Thorne.</figcaption></figure>Stunning Details in MiniatureThere is no shortage of festivity at the Art Institute of Chicago, but make sure to visit the Thorne Rooms this season, as they are once again getting their seasonal trimmings. Among the most elaborate is the English Drawing Room of the Victorian Period, the only room with a Christmas tree. Now a ubiquitous feature of the season, the Christmas tree, or&nbsp;tannenbaum, was only brought to England from Germany in 1840 with the marriage of Prince Albert to Queen Victoria. The Thorne Room tree and accoutrements are based on a famous engraving of the royal couple and their children surrounding a trimmed and toy-bedecked tree, an image that would forever popularize this holiday fixture.&nbsp;Other ornamented rooms include:&nbsp;<ul><li>The Virginia Entrance Hall with mistletoe, wreath, and garland</li><li>The French Provincial Bedroom with shoes, or sabots, lined up before the fireplace, a crèche, and puzzle</li><li>The modern-era California Hallway with an Otto Natzler mid-century menorah and box with a dreidel</li><li>The English Great Hall of the Tudor period with a wassailing bowl, yule log, and an essential part of the costuming for that period’s singing and dancing revelers—a mummer’s mask</li></ul><a href="https://www.artic.edu/exhibitions/9128/holiday-thorne-rooms">The Art Institute of Chicago</a>111 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL 60603&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417731/zzc4wqxfqxhfuz2jeyte.jpg"><figcaption>Mies van der Rohe's McCormick House</figcaption></figure>Mies for the HolidaysThe Elmhurst Art Museum's exhibit, McCormick House 1952-59, showcases the recent restoration of Mies van der Rohe’s McCormick House at the museum. Captivating visitors are a series of rooms with classic 1950s furniture inspired by historical photographs of the residence of Robert Hall McCormick III and Isabella Gardner (1952-59), as a means of honoring the original architect and his clients.&nbsp;The exhibition's architects have added more warmth to the historic home through seasonal holiday decor with a minimal, Mid-century focus. &nbsp;A family Holiday Party takes place December 8 from 1-4pm for this month's family day. Enjoy hot cocoa, cookies and hands-on art activities along with a surprise visit from Santa at 2 pm.<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/elmhurst-art-museum">Elmhurst Art Museum</a>150 Cottage Hill Rd., Elmhurst, IL 60126&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417732/sdvfnyshnlfteb9lglgo.jpg"><figcaption>Cornelia Arts Building features more than 40 resident artists.</figcaption></figure>Meet Your (Gift) MakerThe Cornelia Arts Building hosts open studios throughout the year, but their December event (on November 30 from 6-10pm) is a great chance to meet over 40 resident artists in their studios, view hallway guest artist exhibitions, enjoy local food trucks, and of course consider purchasing a work of art directly from the maker. If you need a new year's resolution, make a commitment to bring a friend along to an open studio or gallery night in 2019.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/cornelia-arts-building-december-open-studios">Cornelia Arts Building</a>1800 W. Cornelia, Chicago, IL 60657 &nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417732/wjngtabzppmoawekxfdg.jpg"><figcaption>WMG artists Sandra Bridges, Pamela Callahan and Fran Bull</figcaption></figure>The Smaller the BetterWoman Made Gallery marked its 26th Anniversary this year, and in celebration they are hosting a Small Works Exhibition, with an open house taking place Saturday, December 8, from 12-4pm. WMG's goal is to cultivate, promote, and support the work of female-identified artists by providing exhibition opportunities, professional development, and public programs that invite discussion about what feminism means today. A visit to their relatively new Pilsen space offers a chance to connect with member artists and also purchase their work.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/small-works-members-show-2018">Woman Made Gallery</a>2150 S Canalport #4A-3, Chicago, IL 60608&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417733/kmag4euaskhoiddfrucl.gif"><figcaption>Balloon Dog Salt and Pepper Shakers ($24.95); Andy Warhol sock set ($56.00); Art in Chicago ($65.00)</figcaption></figure>If It's Art Can We Just Buy More?We love shopping at the Museum of Contemporary Art Store all year long, but we feel like we can spend more freely when we're buying things for someone else. I know I don't need a Jeff Koons-inspired set of salt and pepper shakers, or a box of Andy Warhol socks, but someone else does and I bet they will be surprised when they receive them! And of course if you're a member you get a discount.&nbsp;Also, 2018 has been a remarkable year for art in Chicago, largely in part because of Art Design Chicago, the expansive cultural collaboration that took place at hundreds of spaces and institutions throughout the area all year. The book about ADC is for sale at the MCA. Picture your gift recipient reading it in their Andy Warhol (or Keith Haring!) socks... &nbsp;While sprinkling salt and pepper on something.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.mcachicagostore.org">Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago (MCA) Store</a>220 E. Chicago Ave., Chicago, IL 60611&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417734/xtktcnl5wuge4mfy3a1k.jpg"><figcaption>CPC's 29th annual small print exhibition and holiday sale&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>Go Crazy for PrintsThe Chicago Printmakers Collaborative's 29th Annual International Small Print Exhibition and Holiday Sale is always popular because it's just such a fun and lively event and a chance to see artists actually at work on the presses. It's also a very well-timed occasion to buy art for everyone you know. Kicking off this weekend on December 1 and 2, more than 80 artists will have work for sale covering the walls until it's sold. &nbsp;Enjoy some hot spiced cider, artist-made snacks and start collecting affordable prints from the walls while artists attempt to keep up with the mass buying frenzy. Also featuring an artist-made selection of gifts including hand-printed textiles, greeting cards, books, broadsides, pendants and t-shirts.<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/29th-annual-international-small-print-exhibition-and-holiday-sale">Chicago Printmakers Collaborative</a>4912 N. Western, Chicago, IL 60625&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417735/s6zn7lanyc0pjqub6umi.jpg"><figcaption>Holidays from another era are recalled at the Driehaus Museum</figcaption></figure>Give An Art History Time CapsuleA membership to a museum is always a fantastic idea, and this season The Driehaus Museum is enticing gift-givers and new members to share one of Chicago's most unique museums as a gift all year long, since they are offering a 20% discount (with code HOLIDAY). The museum offers an immersive historical and architectural experience to everyone who visits, since the building itself is a restored Gilded Age home that features a permanent collection of period objects and design. In 2019 the museum will be offering a new focus on contemporary art that will tie to the museum's place in history.&nbsp;Several festive events for the season are taking place at the museum through mid-December, such as tours of the museum and neighboring historical sites as well as a tea at the Drake Hotel. Santa will make an appearance some time as well. And of course the gift shop offers unique ideas too.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/richard-h-driehaus-museum">The Driehaus Museum</a>Nickerson Mansion, 40 E. Erie, Chicago, IL 60611&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417736/xjmdmktovjnwdve45sug.jpg"><figcaption>MoCP's Book Bazaar</figcaption></figure>If You Don't Give Art, Give a BookWhen I particularly covet an artist's work but there is no way in the universe I could ever afford to own a piece, the next best thing is first to meet the artist and then to own a beautiful book about the artist's work. On Thursday, December 6, from 5–7&nbsp;pm the Museum of Contemporary Photography (MoCP) will host a special celebration of photography books. Photographers of note, including Barbara Diener, Jess T. Dugan, Dave Jordano, Laura Letinsky, Cecil McDonald, Jr., Melissa Pinney, and Michael Schmelling, will be at the MoCP to discuss and sign their newly released books.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/holiday-photo-book-bazaar-3ffaad0b-2f21-468e-ae4c-24517ba728e3">MoCP</a>Columbia College Chicago 600 S. Michigan, Chicago, IL 60605&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417737/i4lrzsnz5sflbrpsdg6y.jpg"><figcaption>Gene Skala, Shadows and Tall Trees</figcaption></figure>Everything I Need to Know, I Learned in KindergartenIf you can't buy it, make it! On Saturday, December 8 (You're not frantic yet! You can still be organized!) Hofheimer Gallery in Ravenswood is hosting a Holiday Gouache Workshop. The gallery is offering the public the chance to make a holiday picture using gouache. No previous experience required. Learn basic techniques from exhibiting artists. Paint, materials, and refreshments provided. The event is free and all are welcome.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/holiday-gouache-workshop">Hofheimer Gallery</a>4823 N. Damen, Chicago, IL 60625&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417738/c1tmyfi6wrduovb2iihi.jpg"></figure>Inspire Someone to Become an Art CollectorChicago Artists Coalition's Chartwell Collectors Circle, Chartwell Insurance Services and Chubb Personal Insurance, is a dynamic group of both emerging and established collectors who share a strong interest in art and supporting Chicago’s role as an arts capital. As a special CAC membership level, Collectors Circle offers an exclusive calendar of events that broadens members’ knowledge about contemporary arts and culture. The group is regularly invited to exclusive members-only events throughout the year, primarily private collection tours and artist studio tours. Members also receive invitations to VIP events at the Chicago Artists Coalition, including the Benefit Auction Preview at Christie's (held in the spring) and THE ANNUAL Preview Reception (in the fall), amongst other programs. They also receive special access passes to EXPO Chicago, and other Chicago art events throughout the year. $175 per year for individual or $250 per year for household.&nbsp;<a href="http://chicagoartistscoalition.org/programs/chartwell-collectors-circle-0?utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=CAC%20December%202018%20Newsletter&amp;utm_content=CAC%20December%202018%20Newsletter+CID_98e053997d760d8c34849a92b926c439&amp;utm_source=campaign%20monitor&amp;utm_term=Read%20more%20about%20Collectors%20Circle%20Membership">CAC Chartwell Collectors Circle</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417739/vuh5i8hg1ik1wwwnp0hl.gif"></figure>The Gift of InformationTime to toot our own horn! Share a <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/print-subscriptions">print subscription</a> to CGN for 3 issues for $20 a year.&nbsp;If you sign up by December 10 and <a href="info@chicagogallerynews.com">get in touch</a> with us, we will mail a 2018 CGN Arts Guide or our fall magazine with a gift certificate to announce your 2019 gift subscription. The new edition will arrive in January.&nbsp;CGN has been spreading the spirt of art since the winter of 1982/83, and what began as a four page pamphlet to promote 16 galleries is now a 160 page annual arts guide, a summer as well as fall magazine featuring art news and interviews, and a comprehensive website telling you everything you need to know about art everyday in Chicago and the near-Midwest.&nbsp;Chicago Gallery News (CGN)Tel 312 649 0064&nbsp;We add new events and exhibitions to the <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events">CGN Calendar</a> every day, so check it out to discover more holiday art events as well as plan for a new year of art in 2019.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

Art to See and Give for the Holidays

<html><head></head><body>By FRANCK MERCURIOThe Chicago Cultural Center’s trio of galleries—known as the Chicago Rooms—presents a special challenge for any curator or artist. Works of art can easily&nbsp; “get lost” in these super-tall spaces with their classical proportions and stunning views of Millennium Park. But three artists—Jeff Carter, Faheem Majeed, and Susan Giles—successfully answered the call by curators Greg Lunceford and Lisa McKean to create “an exhibition whose demands exceed the sizeable ones made by the architectural space.” In this adventure Carter, Majeed, and Giles have created works that not only stand on their own inside these three galleries, but also explore different formal and social aspects of the built environment.<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417740/swtqprfratd7wkhtcuzj.gif"><figcaption>Susan Giles</figcaption></figure><h3>Susan Giles</h3>This reviewer first became acquainted with the work of Susan Giles when she was creating small-scale sculptures inspired by architectural icons, including the Arc de Triomphe, Tower Bridge, St. Peter’s Basilica, and the Blue Mosque, among others. She crafted these works from an unlikely duo of materials: paper and concrete. The contrast between the lightweight architectural models (paper) and the weighted, gray bases on which they sat (concrete) captured the “groundedness” of architecture while simultaneously expressing its vulnerability.Giles’ most recent works continue to be inspired by the built environment, but her forms are less literally architectural. The artist has been observing and videotaping people as they describe the spaces around them—as much with their hands as with their words. She then makes 3D constructions based on her subjects’ fluid arm and hand gestures.The most monumental of these gestural works is currently installed inside one of the Chicago Cultural Center’s Chicago Rooms. Titled In the Center There Were Librarians, this intricately layered cardboard construction hovers above the spot where a large, round, reference desk once stood when the Cultural Center served as the city’s main public library.Giles interviewed retired librarian Carolyn Mulac who remembered the original set-up. “[Carolyn] was telling me about this desk,” recalled Giles “and she said ‘It went around like this [using hand gestures] and in the center there were librarians.’”Giles chose cardboard to make the sculpture, a lightweight material that she and her assistants suspended from the gallery’s ceiling using fishing line. The effect is of a massive sculptural gesture floating in space.“I 3D scanned [the original model], and I wanted to blow it up,” said Giles, “so you can not only walk up to it, but also enter it.”Visitors to the exhibition enthusiastically enter and occupy the work, marveling at the intricacies of the sculpture’s construction. SurroundingIn the Center There Were Librarians, the curators include eight small-scale gestural sculptures by Giles, each 3D printed in plastic, presenting a compelling contrast between temporary gestures and permanent materials.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417741/yhjdu5nsszpk6effqige.gif"><figcaption>Faheem Majeed</figcaption></figure><h3>Faheem Majeed</h3>Faheem Majeed’s installation also plays on architectural themes with two large-scale pieces: Board-upand Lean-to.Both were created using small pieces of found-wood that Majeed and his assistants hand crafted and brightly dyed using Kool-Aid. “All the wood was actually salvaged from my own neighborhood and from previous projects,” explained Majeed. “And the funny thing is, I have an infinite amount of it. So I never run out! [laughs]”Lean-toreferences the immediate need of shelter and takes up a large area of the gallery. Similar to Giles’ In the Center There Were Librarians,visitors can walk underneath and occupy this large-scale sculpture, which references the simplest of structures: a lean-to. Considering the context of the piece—a building that once housed the city’s main library—it brings to mind (to this reviewer) the homeless citizens of Chicago who often use public libraries as their daytime homes.Yet despite Lean-to’s monumental presence—and meaning—it is Board-upthat steals the show. Covering one of the gallery’s large, arched windows, the sculpture’s thousands of multi-colored pieces reference a stained glass window—and at the same time, a boarded up abandoned building. The artist’s inspiration came from looking at board-ups on the Southside, which he considers metaphors for both neighborhoods and people.In making this piece, Majeed relied on a range of sources and inspirations, from Abstract Expressionists—such as Joan Mitchell and Jasper Johns—to the artists of the AfriCOBRA collective (African Commune of Bad Relevant Artists) founded in Chicago in 1968.“I’m thinking about AfriCOBRA. I’m having conversations with painting. And I started to think about those moments when color theory penetrated my practice,” said Majeed.Looking at the works of Mitchell and Johns and some of the original AfricCOBRA artists—such as Wadsworth Jarrell and Nelson Stevens—you can see the influence of their vibrant, energetic paintings on Majeed’s art. Yet, Majeed has taken those influences and expanded upon them, making works that are grounded in Modernist color theory, but reflective of the present moment’s concerns. The end result: an art that is relevant and highly engaging to today’s audiences.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417742/njvbgyfxmf5leff3pmct.gif"><figcaption>Jeff Carter</figcaption></figure><h3>Jeff Carter</h3>At first glance, Jeff Carter’s sculptural installations don’t read as political commentary. But his stated influences include the political barricades built by pro-democracy protestors in China.“I thought about protest barriers: wherever they’re built, they’re very localized,” explained Carter. “[The barriers are constructed with] whatever’s at hand and whatever building methods and materials can be accessed quickly; and so, they’re like a snapshot of the immediate surroundings.”The ironic thing is that Carter uses Ikea products as his raw materials to make these “barricades”—materials that can be found just about anywhere, in every household and every city where an Ikea store is located.“Ikea is the same everywhere,” says Carter, “So these sculptures are an attempt to formalize the protest barriers. They’re meant to look haphazard and rather aggressive—and take up a lot more space than they should—but they’re also really precise. There’s a layer of precision hidden inside of the chaos.”<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417743/svv5sfij0lpicns77krm.gif"><figcaption>Jeff Carter</figcaption></figure>There is something strangely familiar about Carter’s constructions. The elements of each piece evoke furniture design, yet there is no functionality in any of the works. Each piece has an absurdist quality to it. Indeed, a piece like “Occupier”—a bright orange, desk-like form punctured with umbrellas and decorated with flashing lights and siren sounds—evokes Surrealist works of the early 20th-Century.“As a sculptor, it’s kind of fun and challenging to use [Ikea products] as a raw material,” said Carter. “It’s a highly refined product, so I’m negotiating with the material a lot because of what it wants to do and what I want it to do. Often times I change my ideas and adapt things to make the best use of its characteristics.”What Carter wanted to do in Tuned Mass was create works that block the pathways of visitors as they walk through the gallery, taking up the curators’ challenge to fill the space while simultaneously exploring architectural themes. Indeed, one of Carter’s stronger pieces, “Occupier 3” not only runs through the gallery, but actually runs up one of the gallery’s walls.“The curator wanted all the artists in the show to activate the space as much as possible,” explained Carter. “These [works] are all about occupation or occupying space.”You can see Carter’s “occupying works” as well as those of Majeed and Giles at the <a href="https://www.cityofchicago.org/city/en/depts/dca/supp_info/chicago_culturalcenter.html">Chicago Cultural Center</a> through January 6, 2019, in the Center’s Chicago Rooms located on the second floor.&nbsp;</body></html>

Franck Mercurio visits the Chicago Cultural Center to see "Tuned Mass"

Tuned Mass

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417754/szqqftskebemzgdic4rd.jpg"></figure><h2>Contemporary art’s value may be on the rise, but it comes at a greater cost</h2>Chicago’s aborted effort to sell Kerry James Marshall’s public work teaches us something about the transactional nature of today’s cultureBy Michelle Grabner, The Art Newspaper<a href="https://www.theartnewspaper.com/comment/art-s-value-may-be-on-the-rise-but-it-comes-at-a-greater-cost">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417755/eiwh0n0bapn2uoobtzyl.png"></figure><h2>Kerry James Marshall named most influential contemporary artist</h2>Kerry James Marshall, the American figurative painter who set a record at auction this year for the most expensive work by a living black artist, has been judged the world’s most influential artist in an annual contemporary power list.Via The Guardian<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2018/nov/09/kerry-james-marshall-named-most-influential-contemporary-artist?fbclid=IwAR36J7_yqwoZ8JyIYqYU4DnfPNkVak2y8lIHxxcbwBPI6u5CPbntuiAdAWs">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417756/xqvwrnajmh7khooietrk.png"></figure><h2>Reimagining Norman Rockwell’s America</h2>In 2012, Hank Willis Thomas saw a poster of Norman Rockwell’s painting of a family seated around a holiday table, the matriarch presenting a turkey to her guests. For Mr. Thomas, a 42-year-old black artist raised in Manhattan, the pale complexions in Mr. Rockwell’s 1943 masterpiece did little to represent his experience of a diverse America. So he decided to create a tableau of his own.By Lauren M. Holson, The New York Times<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/08/arts/norman-rockwell-freedom.html?fbclid=IwAR3xuTMmqZDJ-zBhcn558yjIT3E3jl1dbMvk-6gJSOqpBaJTKCQ72MQsMwM">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417757/qnh72azhjw1wahqfqg6h.png"></figure><h2>What’s the Secret to Making It as an Artist? A New Study Says the First Few Years Are Key</h2>What does it take to make it as a professional artist today? The most critical thing is to show at the right places early on,&nbsp;according to a new study published in the journal Science.Data scientists looked at the careers of&nbsp;a half-million artists between 1980 and 2016 and found that early endorsement by prestigious art institutions was the best predictor of long-term success.&nbsp;The data, collected by the firm Magnus, included exhibitions at 16,002 galleries and 7,568 museums, as well as sales at 1,239 auction houses.By Sarah Cascone, Artnet News<a href="https://news.artnet.com/art-world/secret-to-making-it-artist-first-years-are-key-1392148?utm_content=from_&amp;utm_source=Sailthru&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=US+9:50+a.m.+newsletter+for+11/12/18&amp;utm_term=New+US+Newsletter+List&amp;fbclid=IwAR3VJr7iWycOsQC82AOSHyeCgFWOwmFHLEkqkp57Ioi-qJz1kRoofb8NdKI">Read More</a> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

News From Around the Art World: November 12, 2018

Art Institute of Chicago Makes Thousands of Hi-Res Images Available for Free<h2>&nbsp;</h2>The museum has reproduced thousands of high-resolution images of its art and released a substantial amount into the public domain. This means that, under the&nbsp;Creative Commons Zero (CC0)&nbsp;license, students, educators, and even everyday art lovers can&nbsp;download this digitized art for free.By&nbsp;Kelly Richman-Abdou, My Modern Met<a href="https://mymodernmet.com/art-institute-of-chicago-free-resources/">Read More</a> &nbsp; &nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/chigal/rich/rich_files/rich_files/3186/original/2-2.gif" alt=""></figure>3Arts awards 20 Chicago artists with unrestricted cash grants<h2>&nbsp;</h2>3Arts,&nbsp;the Chicago-based nonprofit grant making organization,&nbsp;is&nbsp;honored to award 20 Chicago artists with unrestricted grants at the&nbsp;11th Annual 3Arts Awards Celebration taking place&nbsp;Monday, November 5, at the Museum of Contemporary Art. The celebration will honor the 10 annual 3Arts Awards recipients along with 10 recipients of&nbsp;Make a Wave—an unprecedented artist-to-artist giving initiative.Via The Chicago Crusader<a href="https://chicagocrusader.com/3arts-awards-20-chicago-artists-with-unrestricted-cash-grants/">Read More</a> &nbsp; &nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/chigal/rich/rich_files/rich_files/3188/original/art-deco-chicago-cover-miso76.jpg" alt=""></figure>Travel to Art Deco Chicago With This Book<h2>&nbsp;</h2>In part due to Instagram, architectural tourism has never been bigger. Few cities anywhere in the world can compete with Chicago for architectural splendor and variety. It’s river architecture tour is considered a must-do—even by travel snobs.&nbsp;Wright, Burnham,&nbsp;Sullivan, Gang, van der Rohe, S.O.M, Gehry, and&nbsp;Bofill—all have iconic buildings here. But for us, the most visually alluring period of skyscrapers is Art Deco.Via The Daily Beast<a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/travel-to-art-deco-chicago?ref=scroll">Read More</a> &nbsp; &nbsp;Chicago Lays Claim to Modern Design Achievements in a New Show<h2>&nbsp;</h2>Chicago&nbsp;is well-known for innovation in design when it comes to architecture, but what about product, graphic, or interior design? Olivia Mahoney, senior curator at the Chicago History Museum, says the city was a leader in these areas, yet its contributions are often overlooked.&nbsp;By&nbsp;Rebecca&nbsp;Holland, Architectural Digest<a href="https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/modern-by-design-clicago-history-achievements-in-a-new-show">Read More</a> &nbsp; &nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/chigal/rich/rich_files/rich_files/3187/original/306-he-nf-mask.jpg" alt=""></figure>Alaskan dancer helps the Met solve riddle of the Yup’ik mask<h2>&nbsp;</h2>When Caitlin Mahony, an assistant conservator at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, first examined a wooden Yup’ik mask last spring, she was at a loss for how to proceed with its treatment. Created around 1900 at the behest of a shaman for use in a ritual dance in Alaska, it was perforated on the sides with holes into which appendages were inserted. Some of these were broken, missing or possibly in the wrong position, which made the mask difficult to understand.By&nbsp;Nancy&nbsp;Kenney, The Art Newspaper<a href="https://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/alaskan-dancer-solves-the-riddle-of-the-yup-ik-mask">Read More</a> &nbsp;

News from Around the Art World: October 30, 2018

Viceroy Chicago Hotel Uses Art To Help Fight Breast Cancer<h2>&nbsp;</h2>As part of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Chicago’s Viceroy Hotel (1118 N. State St.)&nbsp;is showcasing eight specially designed doors featuring artistic interpretations on the subject of breast cancer.&nbsp;The painted guest room doors are located on the hotel’s 5th floor and feature images inspired by each artist's interpretation of the fight against breast cancer.&nbsp;According to Don Samora,&nbsp;Director of Brand Management at Viceroy Hotel Group,“Designer Doors for Charity is the latest installation in&nbsp;Viceroy Hotel Group’s&nbsp;larger brand initiative,&nbsp;A Canvas for Discovery,&nbsp;which invites innovative artists to Viceroy Hotels and Resorts to create original, site-specific work.”&nbsp;By Julia Brenner, Forbes<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/juliabrenner/2018/10/17/the-viceroy-hotel-uses-art-to-help-fight-breast-cancer/#4b27a57b2dbd">Read More</a> &nbsp; &nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/chigal/rich/rich_files/rich_files/3167/original/art-on-the-mart-1024x0-c-default-1.jpg" alt=""></figure>Art on theMART turns Chicago’s Merchandise Mart into an architectural canvas<h2>&nbsp;</h2>Until the end of 2018, the façade of Chicago’s&nbsp;Merchandise Mart&nbsp;will become the world’s largest digital art projection, hosting the work of four artists for two hours each on Wednesday through Sunday evenings. Thirty-four projectors located across the&nbsp;Chicago River&nbsp;from The Mart, as the structure is informally called, will work in tandem to project images on the hulking façade of what was once the world’s largest building.By Elizabeth Blasius, The Architects Newspaper<a href="https://archpaper.com/2018/10/art-on-the-mart-chicago/">Read More</a> &nbsp; &nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/chigal/rich/rich_files/rich_files/3168/original/305-am-as-ai-edmond-de-belamy-high-res.jpg" alt=""></figure>Who needs artists? Rise in works made by artificial intelligence raises real questions for the art market<h2>&nbsp;</h2>This October in New York, Christie’s will become the first auction house to sell a work created by artificial intelligence (AI). The 2018 painting, a hazy portrait of what appears to be a well-fed clergyman, possibly French, hailing from an indeterminate period in history, is expected to fetch between $7,000 and $10,000. His name, according to the work’s title, is Edmond Belamy.By Anny Shaw, The Art Newspaper<a href="https://www.theartnewspaper.com/analysis/rise-in-works-made-by-artificial-intelligence-raises-real-questions">Read More</a> &nbsp;

News from Around the Art World: October 22nd, 2018

By GINNY VAN ALYEAI first met the organizers, and&nbsp;cultural cheerleaders, behind<a href="http://www.diasporalrhythms.net"> Diasporal Rhythms</a> 5 years ago,&nbsp;on the occasion of their 10th anniversary celebrating art of the African Diaspora. When I got to know collectors D.E. Simmons and Patric McCoy in 2013 they each told me about the group's mission as well as the&nbsp;changes they had&nbsp;undergone during a&nbsp;decade of finding their collective identity and outreach efforts. When Diasporal Rhythms started in 2003, there were four founding members; today they number closer to 100.&nbsp;Back in 2013 when I first learned about the group and their tours, Simmons described the&nbsp;fall home tour series&nbsp;as&nbsp;uniquely&nbsp;reflecting&nbsp;the spirit of the South Side art community and having a goal of showing off the&nbsp;talented community of&nbsp;artists doing wonderful works worthy of notoriety, and more important, of being added to other collections. Simmons said at the time, “I always talk about us as the little organization that could, and can, and does."He also warned me&nbsp;then that&nbsp;tour-goers can get a little overwhelmed at first, but ultimately the sensory overload is productive. He was absolutely right then, and now, and I decided it was time to dive right in. All the sudden the group's 15th anniversary&nbsp;arrived this fall.&nbsp;I knew it was time for me to finally&nbsp;go on this year's&nbsp;art tour of the South Side of Chicago taking place in October. I invited a friend, a Hyde Park native who knew the area well but admitted she wasn't aware of how many private collections there were throughout the South Side, and we had a fun and surprising afternoon going behind the scenes of some very special and uniquely personal art collections.&nbsp;We met at the DuSable Museum of Art and boarded a cheerful, very Chicago, trolley at the south entrance to the museum. The tours offered this year&nbsp;went in three directions: Bronzeville, South Shore, and the South Suburbs. Our particular tour was just of Bronzeville and would encompass a museum as well as four private homes. You could go on one route in the morning and then another in the afternoon, but this year for me that was not to be (it was a miracle I could go at all, but my helpful husband took our two toddlers on a whirlwind visit through lunch in Hyde Park followed by stimulation overload at the Museum of Science of Industry for 3 hours). The variety of tours held on the tour weekend each year is evidence of the depth of art to be explored on this side of the city (I say side, since it certainly is not limited to a single neighborhood or ZIP code).&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/chigal/rich/rich_files/rich_files/3164/original/sb.jpg" alt=""></figure>Our tour leader did not join us for our first stop, which worked out well since that left our group without a minder to remind us that we were on a schedule. With our first stop at the Smart Museum of Art, we were able to take in&nbsp;all the exhibitions on view right now and we definitely went over our allotted time. The exhibitions at the Smart&nbsp;fit particularly well with the DR tour, as the museum's&nbsp;newest show, The Time is Now! Art Worlds of Chicago's South Side, which opened in September, recreates a visual understanding and context of how in&nbsp;the 1960s and 1970s Chicago’s cultural landscape was shaped by the South Side’s vibrant art worlds. Focusing primarily on African American artists in and out of the Black Arts Movement, the exhibition features approximately 100 objects assembled from the Smart Museum’s collection and other public and private collections. Artists featured include several who are gaining broader appreciation as of late:&nbsp;Gertrude Abercrombie, Ralph Arnold,&nbsp;Jae Jarrell, Wadsworth Jarrell, Barbara Jones-Hogu,&nbsp;Carolyn Lawrence,&nbsp;Suellen Rocca, Gerald Willams, Karl Wirsum, and Joseph Yoakum, among many others.<figure class="image"><img src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/chigal/rich/rich_files/rich_files/3155/original/kjm.jpg" alt=""></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/chigal/rich/rich_files/rich_files/3161/original/nc.jpg" alt=""></figure>Also on view at the museum is&nbsp;Expanding Narratives: The Figure and the Ground,&nbsp;the first iteration in a three-part exhibition series.&nbsp;Expanding Narratives&nbsp;uses the formal relationship between the figure and the ground in Western art history as a conceptual springboard into discussions around visual representation, the museum space, and the role of the Smart Museum’s collection in fostering the exchange of diverse perspectives. The exhibition includes works by artists from Chicago and beyond, including&nbsp;McArthur Binion, Nick Cave, Rashid Johnson,&nbsp;Kerry James Marshall,&nbsp;Kehinde Wiley, and several&nbsp;others.<figure class="image"><img src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/chigal/rich/rich_files/rich_files/3154/original/1.jpg" alt=""></figure>Once our trolley driver herded us back on board, we were off to the home of an artist and collector, who also turned out to be my friend's former high school art teacher. Simmons' words all those years ago about art overload still didn't prepare me for the number of works hung in the collector's home. Right away she welcomed the group and began a room by room tour of the works she collected over the years, many by fellow artists and friends. Works both large and small are hung salon style on every wall, in every room,&nbsp;placed near African antiques as well as contemporary sculpture. We saw pieces by Sylvester Britton, Margaret Burroughs and Jae&nbsp;Jarrell, among others. The collector's enthusiasm was contagious – which embodies&nbsp;the point of the tours – to inspire visitors to look around their own communities to embrace creativity and make it part of day to day life. The collector said, as many do, that she buys what she loves and she loves it every day. She admits that once she got started, she couldn't stop, even when it seemed like there wasn't any more room.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/chigal/rich/rich_files/rich_files/3162/original/parker.jpg" alt=""></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/chigal/rich/rich_files/rich_files/3163/original/parker1.jpg" alt=""></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/chigal/rich/rich_files/rich_files/3156/original/burroughs.jpg" alt=""></figure>The next collection in nearby Kenwood was in a two story condo owned by an art historian, professor and lecturer&nbsp;who's even published a large book,&nbsp;African Art: The Diaspora and Beyond. His home was packed with many antiquities&nbsp;and artifacts from Africa as well as contemporary paintings and sculptures by artists working today. He grouped once such collection into a section devoted to contemporary depictions of African and African American men, who as he said, are not throwing a ball or playing a horn. Here we saw a unique framed brass sculpture by Richard Hunt as well as more works by Margaret Burroughs, Joyce Owens, Ralph Arnold, and Faith Ringgold.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/chigal/rich/rich_files/rich_files/3157/original/mccoy1.jpg" alt=""></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/chigal/rich/rich_files/rich_files/3158/original/mccoy2.jpg" alt=""></figure>I saw Patric McCoy's remarkable collection several years ago and have never forgotten it, so it was a great opportunity to see how the collection has (somehow) managed to grow, even though it's hard to believe McCoy has an inch of wall space left in his Kenwood condo. McCoy, an environmental scientist, has amassed 1,100 works by more than 300 artists&nbsp;and he displays them all. Arranged in mini collections, such as music, evil eyes, bicycles, McCoy's passion is charming as well as infectious.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/chigal/rich/rich_files/rich_files/3159/original/mccoy3.jpg" alt=""></figure>We ran out of time to enjoy the final stop on the tour, but it was in a Victorian home featuring a great deal of contemporary work, in particular work by the stained glass artist who lives there (and whose work we saw in each of the other homes on the tour!)My friend and I enjoyed a gorgeous fall day in Bronzeville and left knowing we'd like to come back to spend more time exploring and appreciating these collections built by these warm and welcoming collectors. Each collection felt unique to the neighborhood as well as to Chicago itself, and enjoying home tours such as these emphasizes the message that art collecting is fun and enjoyable and most of all doable. There are no right or wrong ways to collect art or even to display it in your home. Art makes a home come to life and that is a joy to be shared.&nbsp;Back when I visited with Simmons, he explained that getting people to interact at home is more unusual than one might think. He acknowledged&nbsp;there is some reluctance to opening up one’s home, “There’s something about not letting people into your space. Socially, I think in Chicago people tend to say, ‘Oh I’ll meet you here,’ but I’ve noticed that many people won’t invite you over. This home tour is special. It’s not only on the South Side, but it makes people open doors...so others can experience passion in a personal space. It’s a rare opportunity.” Homeowners quickly find it to be a very positive experience. They enjoy seeing guests inspired by the abundance of artwork. To Simmons, “It is a wonderful exchange - you get to talk about your passion for your collection and answer questions. We’re asking people to join the conversation and explore the possibilities. That openness has made many people want to support our organization.”&nbsp;Top image: Margaret T. Burroughs, Faces (Faces a la Picasso), printed and signed in 1993, block carved circa 1960s&nbsp;

A tour of south side art collections with Diasporal Rhythms