<h1><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1790195423/u89vlyh0okmzhdeznsvb.jpg"></h1>Jeffreen M.H. Ash, Ph.D.&nbsp;Photo by Shané K Gooding <h3><a href="https://three-walls.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Jeffreen M.H. Ash to Depart Threewalls After 11 Years</a></h3> Jeffreen M.H. Ash, Ph.D. Photo by Shané K Gooding. Threewalls Executive Director Jeffreen M.H. Ash will leave the organization September 30 after 11 years. Under her leadership, Threewalls moved beyond a traditional gallery model to focus on artist support rooted in Black feminist practice, including unrestricted grants and wellness resources. Jamie J. Brunson, formerly executive director of Philadelphia’s First Person Arts, will serve as interim director while the board conducts a search for Ash’s successor. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1790195424/bmiilkqrulqqkdqfoabg.jpg">Sandra Leonard, Bowerbird, 2025 <h3><a href="https://www.hanapietri.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Hana Pietri Opens The Living Room in West Town</a></h3> Hana Pietri marks its 14th year with the opening of The Living Room, a new space at 350 N. Ogden Avenue, second floor. Founded by artist Tiphanie Spencer, the organization will inaugurate the space with Marvin Tate’s exhibition,&nbsp;The Golden Hour, opening Friday, October 2, with a public reception from 6–9 p.m. The intimate setting will host exhibitions, multimedia projects and artistic collaborations. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1790195425/av6rjtf7a1uoibgmsnuy.jpg">Elizabeth Catlett in her studio, 1942. Courtesy of The Charles White Archives. <h3><a href="https://marianeibrahim.com/artists/241-elizabeth-catlett/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Mariane Ibrahim to Represent Elizabeth Catlett</a></h3> Mariane Ibrahim is honored to announce the representation of Elizabeth Catlett (American and Mexican, 1915–2012), one of the most influential artists of the twentieth century, whose extraordinary seven-decade practice transformed modern sculpture and printmaking. The gallery will unveil a solo exhibition of Elizabeth Catlett in November 2027 in Chicago to inaugurate the new representation. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1790195425/rtzjo3g1zoa7yrzkhdil.jpg">Jean Metzinger, Woman with a Fan, 1913. Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Sigmund Kunstadter. © 2026 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris. Image: Art Institute of Chicago. <h3><a href="https://news.wttw.com/2026/09/22/art-institute-return-painting-forcibly-sold-during-world-war-ii-heirs-jewish-collector" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Art Institute to Return Metzinger Painting to Jewish Collector’s Heirs</a></h3> The Art Institute of Chicago will return Jean Metzinger’s&nbsp;Woman with a Fan&nbsp;(1913) to the heirs of Jewish collector Emanuel Lewenstein, WTTW reports. Research conducted with Mondex Corporation established that the painting was part of Lewenstein’s collection and was forcibly sold in Amsterdam following the German invasion of the Netherlands. The work entered the museum’s collection in 1959.

CGN Art World Recap: September 23, 2026

<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789751632/yg2skdzwayfhuk5ibsr5.jpg">A series of 24 individual works by R. Justin Stewart hangs near a brightly-hued sofa.&nbsp;Images courtesy of the artist &amp; VSG Contemporary. By JEFFERSON GODARD R. Justin Stewart creates intersecting compositions made of felt with systematically ordered patterns that trick the eye into thinking that only a machine would be able to produce such works on their own. Yet behind it is the skilled hand of the artist, exacting these dizzying, brightly colored patterns and elaborate networks. Felt forms float within acrylic apertures mimicking ferrofluids, spores, or landscapes where they undulate and overlap one another.&nbsp; Stewart, a New York-based artist, will present a new series of soft and tactile works at his inaugural Chicago solo exhibition, Between Layers, this October at VSG Contemporary. For Stewart, the unconventionality of felt is especially intriguing and pays homage to both his love of material and his ceramics background.&nbsp; <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789751633/tbctxj9keaoxnviy1dbn.jpg"> Hailing from Wisconsin, this multi-disciplinary artist started out as a ceramicist. And while he may not currently be firing anything, he is still deeply material-driven. The artist explains that he is “drawn to materials that aren’t immediately recognizable and encourage viewers to slow down and question what they’re seeing.” His renderings often leave the viewer to question what they are made of and their own materiality. Much like clay, felt can be easily manipulated and provides a contradictory relationship. Here the artist explains that he likes “working with felt because it’s full of those contradictions. It feels soft and familiar, yet in these pieces it can appear solid, and almost architectural.”&nbsp; The work begins in a digital format and is machined into layers, but this is where the machine and the human have their final connection. From this stage forward, it is the patient hand of the artist who meticulously ensures that each layer finds a connection. As VSG owner Allan Weinberger shares, “Justin’s practice exists at the intersection of digital technology and human labor, yet it remains deeply handmade, even though a first glance might suggest otherwise.”&nbsp; <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789751633/nibi6c7c4vwbhw8opel0.jpg"> Art and technology are often at odds with one another, and Stewart enjoys playing with this perceived adversarial relationship. In an ode to this opposition, referencing material, technology, and art, Czech philosopher and media theorist Vilém Flusser hearkens back to fellow philosopher Plato in “On the Word Design: An Etymological Essay”* and states that “(t)he Greek techne means ‘art’ and is related to tekton, a ‘carpenter.’” Flusser further delved into early conceptions of how the artist portrays material, “Plato’s basic objection to art and technology was that they betray and distort theoretically intelligible forms (“Ideas”) when they transfer these into the material world.” In a similar fashion, Stewart is giving form to felt, or in the artist’s words, “enjoys creating (this) shift in perception.”&nbsp; With this shifting perception of spaces as well as a confluence of evolving geometrical systems, we can see the merging of architectural elements and sculpted surfaces. These delicate maneuvers help to solidify the work but also create even more tension.&nbsp; # Between Layers opens October 17, 2026&nbsp;<a href="https://vsgcontemporary.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">VSG Contemporary</a>673 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago, IL *Flusser, Vilém, and John Cullars. “On the Word Design: An Etymological Essay.”&nbsp;Design Issues, vol. 11, no. 3, 1995, pp. 50–53.

Trick of the Eye: R. Justin Stewart’s Creative Techniques

This is a very busy week in the art world during a very busy month in everyone's world.Here is Part II of our summary of some of what's happening this week. We will be updating CGN's calendar daily, so check back for updates!Happy September and happy Chicago Exhibition Week!– CGN <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/concerts-of-dance-xenia-mansour" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789677963/wqjvqsnjzgd0v6fq0nmi.jpg" alt="Concerts of Dance: Xenia Mansour" height="600" width="600"></a><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/concerts-of-dance-xenia-mansour" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Concerts of Dance: Xenia Mansour</a></h3> Sep 16 – Sep 19Open rehearsal: Friday, Sep 18, 11:00 AM – 3:00 PMOpen dress rehearsal and artist talkback: Friday, Sep 18, 3:15 PM – 4:30 PMPerformance: Saturday, Sep 19, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/the-driehaus-museum" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Driehaus Museum</a>The Driehaus Museum’s dance program continues with an open rehearsal and a dress rehearsal followed by an artist conversation moderated by Brendan Fernandes. On Saturday, Xenia Mansour and Faith Balderrama present&nbsp;was, still is, adapted for Murphy Auditorium, where audiences can move through the space and experience the performance from different viewpoints.Also on Saturday: an after-hours house dance party with Brendan Fernandes begins at 8:00 PM. See the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/brendan-fernandes-in-the-roundsept" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">full In the Round listing</a>&nbsp;for ticket updates. <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/inaugural-makers-shakers-bash" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789677964/qyhsj3xongjgbxwppfm0.jpg" alt="Inaugural Makers &amp; Shakers Bash" height="300" width="600"></a> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/inaugural-makers-shakers-bash" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Inaugural Makers &amp; Shakers Bash</a></h3> Friday, Sep 18, 6:00 PM – 9:00 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/woman-made-gallery" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Woman Made Gallery</a>Event location: Morningstar’s Headquarters, 22 W. Washington St., 7th Floor, ChicagoWoman Made Gallery launches an annual celebration of artists and activists with honorees Scheherazade Tillet and Jane Ruby. Hosted at Morningstar’s headquarters, the evening features a conversation with the honorees, an art auction, live blues, a DJ set, creative activities, cocktails, and bites. Tickets are available through Woman Made Gallery. <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/una-vuelta-a-mis-races-a-return-to-my-roots-robert-lipton" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789677965/vd9k9sksz96evqhpq308.jpg" alt="Una Vuelta a Mis Raíces (A Return to My Roots): Robert Lipton" height="468" width="600"></a><h3> </h3><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/una-vuelta-a-mis-races-a-return-to-my-roots-robert-lipton" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Una Vuelta a Mis Raíces (A Return to My Roots): Robert Lipton</a></h3> Sep 18 – Nov 6Opening: Friday, Sep 18, 7:00 PM – 10:00 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/bridgeport-art-center" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Bridgeport Art Center</a>Robert Lipton presents textured mixed-media paintings in Bridgeport Art Center’s third-floor gallery. Layered pigments and organic processes build shifting surfaces of color and form, inviting close looking. The monochromatic works draw on the material experimentation of abstract expressionism and artists including Antoni Tàpies, Anselm Kiefer, and Bosco Sodi. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789677965/rxpju7aycqerijplgpj9.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/own-who-you-are" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Jesse Bond's Own Who You Are</a></h3> Saturday, Sep 19, 6:00 PM – 9:00 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/sawhorse" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">SAWHORSE</a>Join us for a closing reception on Saturday, September 19 from 6-9pm. Maybe we will serve tea and paint our nails and smoke hookah.&nbsp; <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/eric-bladholm-voices-from-the-gray-zone" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789677966/joc1jxuhh6atmsz9dqev.jpg" alt="Eric Bladholm: Voices From the Gray Zone" height="400" width="600"></a> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/eric-bladholm-voices-from-the-gray-zone" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Eric Bladholm: Voices From the Gray Zone</a></h3> Sep 19 – Jan 9, 2027Opening: Saturday, Sep 19, 12:00 PM – 4:00 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/ukrainian-institute-of-modern-art-uima" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Ukrainian Institute of Modern Art (UIMA)</a>Photographs and video made during nine humanitarian aid trips to Ukraine from 2022 to 2026 trace the experiences of civilians living through Russia’s war. Chicago artist Eric Bladholm’s documentary exhibition records daily life, resilience, and worsening conditions in communities affected by occupation and conflict. <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/john-corbett-hamza-walker-in-conversation" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789677967/vqeutal7isqh5vl4ym27.jpg" alt="John Corbett &amp; Hamza Walker in Conversation" height="426" width="600"></a> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/john-corbett-hamza-walker-in-conversation" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">John Corbett &amp; Hamza Walker in Conversation</a></h3> Saturday, Sep 19, 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/corbett-vs-dempsey" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Corbett vs. Dempsey</a>John Corbett and Hamza Walker discuss Jon Waine at Corbett vs. Dempsey.The conversation is joined by original band members Franc Palaia on drums and Ellen La Forge on bass, performing selections from the group’s repertoire. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789677967/kuredgjzr5bbhhudcoiw.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/sarah-sipling-solo-exhibition" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Sarah Sipling | Solo Exhibition</a></h3> Sep 19 - Oct 25<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/evanston-art-center" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Evanston Art Center</a>Sarah Sipling is a mixed media artist and printmaker. Sipling received her MFA in Printmaking from Rhode Island School of Design and BFA in Printmaking from Purchase College, State University of New York. She lives and works in New York and Kansas City. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789677968/edaqrglfk8mcmvkf5ddu.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/laleh-motlagh-artist-talk-26" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Artist Talk: Laleh Motlagh</a></h3> Saturday, Sep 19, 12:15 PM – 1:30 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/sona-chicago-contemporary-art" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">SoNa Chicago Contemporary Art</a>In&nbsp;Rooted. Uprooted, Iranian-Azerbaijani American artist Laleh Motlagh presents new bodies of work exploring multicultural identity, resilience, and personal geography. Moving between the memories of her hometown of Tabriz, Iran, and her current life in Chicago, Motlagh navigates the complex realities of geopolitical displacement and belonging. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789677969/my5tv3euwbbrlnjh6aaz.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/stone-age-a-lithography-showcase" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Stone Age: A Lithography Showcase</a></h3> Sep 19 - Nov 14Opening: Saturday, Sep 19, 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/chicago-printmakers-collaborative" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Chicago Printmakers Collaborative</a>Stone Age&nbsp;at the Chicago Printmakers Collaborative will feature handmade fine art lithograph prints created by both renowned lithographers along with some of our most recent litho students at the studio. Each of these artists grain, draw, and print from a stone to create their work. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789677970/jd5lk9harzgfwpk8bydw.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/temporary-solutions-to-lifelong-problems" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Temporary Solutions to Lifelong Problems</a></h3>Sep 19 - Nov 14Opening: Saturday, Sep 19, 5:30 PM – 8:00 PM # View full CGN calendar <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events?filter=upcoming&amp;page=1" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>. <a href="mailto:ginny@chicagogallerynews.com?subject=Listing%20with%20CGN&amp;body=I'd%20like%20to%20know%20how%20to%20list%20my%20space%20and%20events%20with%20CGN.%20" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ask us</a> about being part of CGN.

New Exhibitions and Events: September 18–19

This is a very busy week in the art world during a very busy month in everyone's world. We have tried to summarize some of what's happening this weekend and we will be updating CGN's calendar daily, so check back for updates!Happy September and happy Chicago Exhibition Week! – CGN <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789678113/tavbapqs9gepjoy8e5qf.jpg"><h3><a href="https://www.chicagoexhibitionweek.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Chicago Exhibition Week</a></h3> September 14–20Chicago's galleries are the reason to get out and explore, and this year’s participants represent a broad cross-section of the city, from longtime galleries to newer and artist-run spaces. Among them are Anthony Gallery, Corbett vs. Dempsey, Devening Projects, Elise Seigenthaler Gallery, The Franklin, Good Weather, Kavi Gupta, M. LeBlanc, Mariane Ibrahim, McCormick Gallery, moniquemeloche, Regards, Rhona Hoffman Gallery (participating with the launch of a second RHG catalog rather than a gallery exhibition),&nbsp;Secrist | Beach, Volume Gallery and WesternExhibitions.<a href="https://www.chicagoexhibitionweek.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">chicagoexhibitionweek.com</a> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/popel-no-thing-skin-sets" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789678113/skpopvfpe2kaclcdpyoj.jpg" alt="Pope.L: No Thing Skin Sets" height="450" width="600"></a><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/popel-no-thing-skin-sets" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Pope.L: No Thing Skin Sets</a></h3> Sep 15 – Oct 31<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/corbett-vs-dempsey" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Corbett vs. Dempsey</a>Corbett vs. Dempsey presents its first exhibition of Pope.L’s work, bringing together installations, paintings, and works on paper. The selection includes the projector-based installation&nbsp;I Machine&nbsp;and groups of&nbsp;Skin Set&nbsp;works, reflecting the artist’s expansive practice and his probing approach to race, class, language, and perception. <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/clotilde-jimnez-eramos-silencios" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789678114/a1il8w11u4hdj7pnfyuv.jpg" alt="Clotilde Jiménez: Eramos Silencios" height="800" width="600"></a><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/clotilde-jimnez-eramos-silencios" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Clotilde Jiménez: Eramos Silencios</a></h3> Sep 16 – Oct 31<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/mariane-ibrahim" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Mariane Ibrahim</a>For his second solo exhibition in Chicago, Clotilde Jiménez explores family history, memory, and identity through a personal narrative rooted in Puerto Rico. Paintings, collages, drawings, and sculptures use the orange as a recurring symbol of both familial abundance and the secrets and silences carried between generations. <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/brendan-fernandes-in-the-roundsept" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789678115/sxevn5c2qqz2dglanoay.jpg" alt="Brendan Fernandes: In the Round" height="400" width="600"></a><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/brendan-fernandes-in-the-roundsept" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Brendan Fernandes: In the Round</a></h3> Sep 16 – 19Performance: Wednesday, Sep 16, 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/the-driehaus-museum" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">The Driehaus Museum</a>The Driehaus Museum’s first artist-in-residence brings dance, sound, and sculptural installation into the historic Murphy Auditorium. Inspired by the experimental spirit of Judson Dance Theater, Fernandes’s&nbsp;Score for the Murphy Auditorium&nbsp;returns on September 16, inviting audiences to encounter movement in dialogue with the building’s architecture. Programs are free; reservations are encouraged. <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/brendan-fernandes" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789678115/erjgre9grwzk3rz3bjnn.jpg" alt="Brendan Fernandes" height="600" width="600"></a><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/brendan-fernandes" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Brendan Fernandes</a></h3> Sep 17 – Oct 31Opening Reception: September 17th, 5:00–7:00 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/moniquemeloche" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">moniquemeloche</a>moniquemeloche presents an exhibition by Chicago-based artist Brendan Fernandes, whose multidisciplinary practice spans dance, installation, video, and sculpture. His work considers migration, labor, queer identity, and collective movement, bringing cultural performance into contemporary art through collaborative projects. <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/flowers-and-leaves" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789678116/bse9aqbddq5zgm5l7deu.jpg" alt="Flowers and Leaves" height="450" width="600"></a><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/flowers-and-leaves" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Flowers and Leaves</a></h3> Sep 17 – Oct 24Opening: Thursday, Sep 17, 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/volume-gallery" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Volume Gallery</a>Christy Matson’s fifth solo exhibition at Volume Gallery begins with a collection of nineteenth-century family textiles. Drawing on inherited lace and woven cloth, Matson translates floral and geometric motifs into layered collages and Jacquard-woven paintings, connecting the history of women’s labor with questions of memory, resistance, and pattern. <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/alexandra-barth-the-awnings" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789678117/oipw4lckhq8vwutpwo5n.jpg" alt="Alexandra Barth: The Awnings" height="798" width="600"></a><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/alexandra-barth-the-awnings" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Alexandra Barth: The Awnings</a></h3> Sep 17 – Nov 7Opening: Thursday, Sep 17, 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/document" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">DOCUMENT</a>Alexandra Barth’s first Chicago exhibition turns a familiar architectural feature into an unexpected subject. Working from photographs found online, the artist uses airbrushed paint to depict awnings in showrooms, secondhand listings, and states of disuse, revealing the overlooked patterns, mechanics, and histories of everyday surroundings. <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/second-star" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789678117/fjlkirin3pbye3kmbumr.jpg" alt="Second Star" height="600" width="600"></a><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/second-star" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Second Star</a></h3> Sep 17 – 30Opening: Thursday, Sep 17, 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/secrist-beach" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Secrist | Beach</a>Secrist | Beach introduces its satellite project space, Second Star, with an inaugural project featuring Stephen Eichhorn. The opening takes place during Chicago Exhibition Week at 1801 W. Hubbard Street. <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/olivia-zubko" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789678118/wc9skpe4791bnbfgjexd.jpg" alt="Olivia Zubko: Nymphaeum" height="800" width="600"></a><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/olivia-zubko" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Olivia Zubko: Nymphaeum</a></h3> Sep 17 – Oct 31Opening: Thursday, Sep 17, 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/western-exhibitions" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Western Exhibitions</a>In her first solo show at Western Exhibitions, Chicago artist Olivia Zubko transforms familiar objects from bathrooms, locker rooms, and other intimate spaces into ceramic sculptures. Cast fixtures and everyday materials evoke rituals of bodily care, while references to mythological bathers connect domestic experience with the history of the human figure. <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/nolis-anderson-no-such-thing" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789678118/myj9cvpooajsp5kjp4xm.jpg" alt="Nolis Anderson: No Such Thing" height="750" width="600"></a><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/nolis-anderson-no-such-thing" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Nolis Anderson: No Such Thing</a></h3> Sep 17 – Oct 31Opening: Thursday, Sep 17, 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/elise-seigenthaler-gallery" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Elise Seigenthaler Gallery</a>Eight medium-format photographs mark Nolis Anderson’s first exhibition at Elise Seigenthaler Gallery. Made over three years, the portraits explore ideas of perfection through conversations with their subjects and the unpredictable qualities of film. Scratches, dust, and light effects become part of the finished images, embracing the space between intention and accident. <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/karla-wong-journeys-of-being" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789678119/kqalsydoimvwo8zxvkbi.jpg" alt="Karla Wong: Journeys of Being" height="805" width="600"></a><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/karla-wong-journeys-of-being" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Karla Wong: Journeys of Being</a></h3> Thru Jan 10, 2027Opening: Thursday, Sep 17, 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/intuit-art-museum" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Intuit Art Museum</a>Celebrate Karla Wong’s richly symbolic paintings with the artist and the Intuit Art Museum community. Drawing on her Mexican and Chinese heritage, her experience as a trans woman, and her ties to Oaxaca and Chicago, Wong creates dreamlike scenes of identity and transformation. The free reception includes Mexican cocktails, bites, and a performance by singer Geo Meneses. <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/jaume-plensa-beyond-silence" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789678120/kwdgp78v8qz0iket8n3s.jpg" alt="Jaume Plensa: Beyond Silence" height="400" width="600"></a><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/jaume-plensa-beyond-silence" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Jaume Plensa: Beyond Silence</a></h3> Sep 17 – Dec 19Opening: Thursday, Sep 17, 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/gray" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">GRAY</a>Jaume Plensa’s tenth solo exhibition with GRAY brings together monumental carved-wood reliefs, cast-iron and granite sculptures, and smaller bronze works. Moving between architectural scale and intimate encounters, the exhibition explores the human figure through contrasting materials, with two twenty-eight-foot reliefs at its center. <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/japanese-whiskey-koji-fermentation-science-history-and-taste" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789678120/djrx53ncdlzckiplayug.jpg" alt="Japanese Whiskey &amp; Koji Fermentation: Science, History, and Taste" height="303" width="600"></a><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/japanese-whiskey-koji-fermentation-science-history-and-taste" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">Japanese Whiskey &amp; Koji Fermentation: Science, History, and Taste</a></h3> Thursday, Sep 17, 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/international-museum-of-surgical-science-imss" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(23, 75, 120);" target="_blank">International Museum of Surgical Science (IMSS)</a>The International Museum of Surgical Science hosts an evening exploring Japanese whiskey through its scientific and cultural history, with koji fermentation providing the focus for a program connecting science, history, and taste. # View full CGN calendar <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events?filter=upcoming&amp;page=1" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>. <a href="mailto:ginny@chicagogallerynews.com?subject=Listing%20with%20CGN&amp;body=I'd%20like%20to%20know%20how%20to%20list%20my%20space%20and%20events%20with%20CGN.%20" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ask us</a> about being part of CGN.

New Exhibitions and Events: September 15–17

<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789334145/qi6eujbbzrlhddzvate0.jpg">Gertie members and artists at NEPO curated by Tony Lewis at Lewis Bag. Image Credit: Zoey Marciniak, Courtesy of Gertie By GINNY VAN ALYEA We included Chicago Exhibition Week in CGN’s fall season preview, but with final plans now announced—and more than 50 galleries participating—it is worth taking a closer look at what you can expect September 14–20 so you can at least try to fit in as much art viewing and mingling as possible this week. Chicago's galleries are the reason to get out and explore, and this year’s participants represent a broad cross-section of the city, from longtime galleries to newer and artist-run spaces. Among them are Anthony Gallery, Corbett vs. Dempsey, Devening Projects, Elise Seigenthaler Gallery, The Franklin, Good Weather, Kavi Gupta, M. LeBlanc, Mariane Ibrahim, McCormick Gallery, moniquemeloche, Regards, Rhona Hoffman Gallery (participating with the launch of a second RHG catalog rather than a gallery exhibition), Secrist | Beach, Volume Gallery and WesternExhibitions. The week offers a useful occasion to catch up on new fall exhibitions, revisit familiar spaces and discover galleries outside your usual route. Hours and programming vary, so as always we recommend checking individual gallery schedules before heading out. Final additions to the week include seven Curated Routes assembled by Chicago artists, writers, chefs and cultural leaders. The routes combine art destinations with neighborhood restaurants, bookstores, shops and public spaces. Contributors include artist Yvette Mayorga, chef Jake Potashnick, writer Kaylen Ralph, Griffin Museum of Science and Industry President and CEO Dr. Chevy Humphrey, and SkyART Executive Director Devon VanHouten-Maldonado. “We are reaching more widely and more deeply this year, which is a reflection of how deeply invested we are in Chicago, its artists, and cultural institutions, and the many people who make this community what it is. That includes the collectors and longtime supporters who have helped sustain Chicago’s cultural ecosystem, as well as the next generation of artists, collectors, patrons, and curious people who will shape its future,” said Chanelle Lacy, Head of Programming, Partnerships, and Membership at Gertie. Visitors who complete the activities included on CXW's printed and digital maps may present them on Sunday, September 20 for complimentary admission to the Art Institute of Chicago, the Driehaus Museum or the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago. Mayorga's curated route this year includes the National Museum of Mexican Art, Chicago Art Department, El Anticuario, Semillas, Café Jumping Bean, Rubi’s Tacos, Cerdito Muerto, and Skylark, highlighting cultural, artistic, and neighborhood destinations across Pilsen. Two newly announced conversations round out the public programming:&nbsp;Art After Subcultures, featuring critics Sean Tatol and Troy Sherman, on September 17 at the Gertie Hub; and&nbsp;A River Runs Through It: ICI’s Mississippi River Projecton September 20 at the Studio Gang Treehouse. Organized by Gertie, Chicago Exhibition Week takes place September 14–20. Find the participating galleries, exhibition details and related events at <a href="https://www.chicagoexhibitionweek.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">chicagoexhibitionweek.com</a> #

A Closer Look at Chicago Exhibition Week

<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485212/jxryqhayppogrtryuu0b.jpg"> By CGN Staff There is no shortage of art to see at home in Chicago but fall also offers chances to venture elsewhere for the day or for a weekend. In Milwaukee right now, and through October 6, is a new Milwaukee initiative that brings together museums, galleries and public art with a free passport to help visitors explore the city’s cultural offerings easily. Organized by Sculpture Milwaukee,&nbsp;Milwaukee Art Escape runs through October 6, 2026, with participants including the Milwaukee Art Museum, Saint Kate – The Arts Hotel, Villa Terrace Decorative Arts Museum, Lynden Sculpture Garden, Haggerty Museum of Art and Milwaukee Institute of Art &amp; Design Galleries. Sample itineraries are available. The free Milwaukee Art Escape Passport offers a starting point for building a day trip or weekend itinerary, connecting art destinations with dining, hospitality and other local partners. Participating locations offer a range of visitor incentives, including special experiences and, at some stops, prize giveaways. The specially created Welcome Packet includes participating partner offers, transportation tips, and your Milwaukee Art Escape Passport. Organizers say that as you explore, you can take advantage of exclusive offers and visit participating partners, using the Passport as a guide and tool to access exclusive offers by visiting in person. Examples are a Lion’s Tooth bookstore 10% discount, and 15% off general admission or $10 off the annual membership at Villa Terrace Museum &amp; Gardens. There is even a free streetcar that connects several destinations. “There are so many great cultural institutions in Milwaukee, and collectively we are building a culture of collaboration,” said John Riepenhoff, Executive Director of Sculpture Milwaukee. “By working together, we are increasing the visibility of the arts and sharing our Milwaukee art experience with visitors from Chicago, Madison, and beyond.” Launched August 21 with a few days left of summer, the initiative has received support from Travel Wisconsin and Baird, as the campaign also encourages Milwaukee residents to explore their own city. For returning visitors, the roster offers a reason to pair a familiar museum stop with a sculpture garden, gallery or historic site they have yet to visit. Find participating destinations and register for the free passport at&nbsp;<a href="https://www.milwaukeeartescape.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">milwaukeeartescape.com</a>.

Milwaukee Art Escape Connects Museums, Public Art and More This Fall

<h3><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485331/klzhtgtl7curcrgzekrn.jpg"></h3><h3> </h3><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/emmy-star-brown-and-danym-kwon" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Peace of Wild Things: Emmy Star Brown and Danym Kwon</a></h3> Aug 28, 2026 - Oct 17, 2026Opening: Friday, Aug 28, 2026 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/joy-machine" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Joy Machine</a> Drawing its title from&nbsp;<a href="https://www.scottishpoetrylibrary.org.uk/poem/peace-wild-things-0/" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" target="_blank">Wendell Berry’s often-quoted poem</a>,&nbsp;The Peace of Wild Things&nbsp;is a return to wonder through disparate yet complementary practices. For both Brown and Kwon, color and layering become a means of self-discovery and a way to tap into the emotions, dreams, and memories that might not surface otherwise. Their practices diverge in notable ways–Brown works abstractly, while Kwon turns to surreal representations of care and domestic life–but when presented together, they enter into a harmonic dialogue about the ways experiences linger long after a moment has passed. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485331/khhazbuzkvlxlqdmjd7s.jpg"><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/k-pop" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">K-POP! A Mini Exhibition Featuring iri5</a></h3> Saturday, Aug 29, 2026 12:00 PM – 5:00 PMOpening: Saturday, Aug 29, 2026 12:00 PM – 5:00 PM <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/jackson-junge-gallery" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Jackson Junge Gallery</a> Jackson Junge Gallery presents K-POP!, a mini exhibition featuring Chicago-based artist iri5, celebrated for her unexpected mixed-media artworks created from cassette tape. In celebration of the exhibition, Jackson Junge Gallery is teaming up with Purple Court to bring fellow BTS fans together for a special BTS-inspired cupsleeve event on Saturday, August 29, from 12:00–5:00 PM. NO TICKET NECESSARY - this event is free and open to the public! Stop by to see the art, stay to argue about your bias! <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485332/ty5h0l3fsvabd2ltzfxr.jpg"><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/terra-machina" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Terra Machina: Lefty OUT There</a></h3> Aug 29, 2026 - Oct 10, 2026Opening: Saturday, Aug 29, 2026 12:00 PM – 4:00 PM <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/vsg-contemporary" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">VSG Contemporary</a> Using exceptional materials sourced from around the world, Lefty OUT There combines modern machinery with handcrafted techniques to reveal their natural beauty. The result honors each material's origins while celebrating fine art and contemporary craftsmanship. Running through every piece is Lefty's signature polymorph pattern, inspired by vibration, frequency, and the interconnected systems found throughout nature. The pattern reflects the rhythms that exist at every scale, from microscopic cellular structures to the landscapes of our terrain. It serves as a reminder that the same forces shaping the natural world are constantly at work around and within us. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485332/leetfqebcyobfardxdxu.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/anthony-lewellen-various-work" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Anthony Lewellen: Various Work</a>&nbsp;</h3> Aug 29, 2026 - Sep 26, 2026Opening: Saturday, Aug 29, 2026 2:00 PM – 6:00 PM <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/chicago-truborn" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Chicago Truborn</a> ANTCK will take over the gallery with a new body of work created specifically for this exhibition.&nbsp;Two site specific murals will be painted and a new, limited edition, print drop will be released!&nbsp;It's also the gallery's 13th anniversary / Bat Mitzvah! <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485333/c4tvqqmikhpyshwu3pk6.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/ioto-artist-talk-and-walkthrough" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">IOTO Artist Talk and Walkthrough</a></h3> Saturday, Aug 29, 2026 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/sona-chicago-contemporary-art" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">SoNa Chicago Contemporary Art</a> SoNa Chicago Contemporary Art is proud to host&nbsp;World Without Promises,&nbsp;the culminating exhibition of the&nbsp;Industry of the Ordinary (IOTO) 2026 Summer Residency. The one-day&nbsp;full activation of the exhibition with 16 artists took place on&nbsp;Aug. 22. The non-performative elements of the exhibition will be on view at the gallery through&nbsp;Sat., August 29. An&nbsp;Artist Walkthrough will take place on Sat., Aug. 29 from 5-7 pm&nbsp;where the artists will discuss their work and offer deeper insights into their processes and the evolution of their practice. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485333/zemn63jee7bvdgu6hlbl.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/closing-reception-for-deborah-maris-lader-we-become-birds" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Closing Reception for Deborah Maris Lader: We Become Birds</a></h3> Sunday, Aug 30, 2026 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/bert-green-fine-art" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Bert Green Fine Art</a> A skilled artist and printmaker who constantly explores experimentation with a vast array of other materials,&nbsp;Deborah Maris Lader’s newest work extends the printed image off the page via animations, sculptural techniques, and automata. Using mechanistic props, light and space, she devises a diverse menagerie of beings, creatures from the inner workings of Lader's creative brain.

New Exhibitions and Events: August 28–30

<h3>A few highlights from CGN's fall calendar include several not-to-be-missed gallery openings, performances, talks and more filling this season's calendar. There is plenty to enjoy, see and support this fall. We have prepared a list of a few happening this September in galleries throughout the city and into the suburbs and near midwest.</h3><h3> </h3><h3>The schedule of gallery and museum openings changes frequently, so please check CGN's online calendar for weekly updates and consider subscribing to CGN in print&nbsp;here and follow @ChiGalleryNews on Instagram.</h3> <h3> </h3><h3>– CGN</h3><h3> </h3> <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789486071/fdxth7ny6ojxibckachf.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/witness-to-bedlam-with-olivia-petrides-and-lynn-basa" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Witness to Bedlam with Olivia Petrides and Lynn Basa</a></h3> Oliva GallerySept. 4–Oct. 3 Bringing Petrides’s fractured works on paper into proximity with Basa’s ceramic forms, the exhibition examines disorder through its physical traces.&nbsp; Through ruptured structures, obscured language, unstable surfaces, cavities, and accretions, Witness to Bedlam considers what remains after coherence has broken down. Rather than treating disorder as spectacle, Petrides and Basa work across paper and clay with rupture, compression, and residue, creating forms that are unsettled but deliberate, marked by seams, collisions, fissures, and the suggestion of an unnamed aftermath. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789486072/htibgvj1msmx7qjiteye.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/honoring-resilience" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Bruno Surdo:&nbsp;Honoring Resilience</a></h3> Gallery VICTORSept. 11–Oct. 25 Gallery VICTOR presents&nbsp;Honoring Resilience, commemorating the 25th anniversary of 9/11 through Chicago artist Bruno Surdo’s monumental&nbsp;Tragedy, Memory and Honor. The exhibition pairs the five-panel painting with Ground Zero artifacts, preparatory drawings, photography, testimonials, historical materials, and video, creating a powerful meditation on loss, courage, remembrance, and resilience.&nbsp; The exhibition will premiere during the&nbsp;10th Annual River North Design District Fall Gallery Walk&nbsp;on&nbsp;Friday, September 11, 2026, from 5 to 8 PM. This special evening will offer the public its first opportunity to experience Surdo’s monumental work at Gallery VICTOR on the 25th anniversary of 9/11. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789486072/ksousc3gvxufhupzzdcc.jpg">Pope.L, Well (Redistribution Version),&nbsp;2019, 9 drinking glasses, water, dimensions variable, installation <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/popel-no-thing-skin-sets" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Pope.L:&nbsp;No Thing Skin Sets</a></h3> Corbett vs. DempseySept. 15–Oct. 31 In the first gallery exhibition since Pope.L's untimely death in 2023,&nbsp;No Thing Skin Sets&nbsp;presents a precisely gathered selection of recent work, including the major installation&nbsp;I Machine&nbsp;(2014–2020), on which the artist worked during most of the time he was based in Chicago. In the McPhee, CvsD presents a tribute to Pope.L's little known post-punk band Jon Waine, with historical artifacts and the release of a double CD of previously unheard music, 1975–1983. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789486073/updnsmyq907nkdil1xyn.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/clotilde-jimnez-eramos-silencios" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Clotilde Jiménez:&nbsp;Éramos Silencios</a></h3> Mariane IbrahimSept. 15–Oct. 31 Marking his fifth presentation with the gallery and his second solo exhibition in Chicago, Jiménez (b. 1990 in Hawaii; lives and works in Mexico City, Mexico) turns to a personal narrative rooted in Puerto Rico, tracing the histories, memories, and inherited silences that have shaped his understanding of family and identity. Through painting, collage, drawing, and sculpture, the orange emerges as a recurring motif and metaphor. It evokes the sweetness and abundance of family histories, but also the omissions, secrets, and unresolved tensions that pass from one generation to the next. Like the fruit itself, lineage carries both nourishment and decay. Beneath its vibrant skin lies stories that shape a family's character and flavor, revealing how memory—and the spaces where memories falter—becomes embedded within the narratives we inherit. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789486074/nvd9zlclwv7ktqawatbf.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/jaume-plensa-beyond-silence" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Jaume Plensa: Beyond Silence</a></h3> GRAYSept. 17–Dec. 19 Jaume Plensa: Beyond Silence, opening at GRAY Chicago September 17, marks the artist’s tenth solo exhibition with the gallery. Bringing together monumental carved-wood reliefs, vertical sculptures in cast iron and granite, and intimate bronze works, the exhibition explores scale and material through representations of the human figure. At its center are two 28-foot carved-wood reliefs,&nbsp;Beyond Silence (Julia)&nbsp;and&nbsp;Beyond Silence (Maria), which transform the figure into an architectural presence. Works from Plensa’s new&nbsp;Clouds&nbsp;series and smaller bronzes from the&nbsp;Twilight&nbsp;series offer contrasting encounters with material and scale. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789486075/g2vivg5upfg21ljxs1ql.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/brendan-fernandes" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Brendan Fernandes:&nbsp;The Noise Will Sound</a></h3> Monique MelocheSept. 19–Oct. 31 Brendan Fernandes&nbsp;is an internationally recognized,&nbsp;multidisciplinary artist&nbsp;who&nbsp;examines issues of cultural displacement, migration, labor, and queer subjectivity through installation, video, sculpture, and dance. He is invested in confronting the complexities of transitional and transnational identities, with a particular interest in incorporating elements of cultural performance into contemporary art, arising from his unique cultural background as a Queer, Kenyan Indian Canadian.&nbsp;Fernandes’&nbsp;projects address issues of race, queer culture, migration, protest, and other forms of collective movement. Always looking to create new spaces and new forms of agency,&nbsp;his&nbsp;projects take on hybrid forms: part Ballet, part queer dance party, part political protest...&nbsp;always rooted in collaboration and fostering solidarity. &nbsp; <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789486075/z8u7cmv4b9ck4enyung8.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/inner-worlds-visions-from-the-hirshhorn-collection" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Inner Worlds: Visions from the Hirshhorn Collection</a></h3> Sep 25, 2026 - Dec 19, 2026Wrightwood 659 Inner Worlds: Visions from the Hirshhorn Collection&nbsp;features the work of three trailblazing women artists who rose to international acclaim for their distinct approaches to perception and embodiment:&nbsp;Yayoi Kusama&nbsp;(b. 1929),&nbsp;Niki de Saint Phalle&nbsp;(1930–2002), and&nbsp;Mary Bauermeister&nbsp;(1934–2023). Born in Japan, France, and Germany, respectively, within five years from 1929 to 1934, all three artists rejected cultural archetypes traditionally imposed on women and made their way to New York by the early 1960s.&nbsp;These artists came of age in a period defined by economic instability and the rise of fascism. They lived through the devastation of the Second World War in their respective countries, leading them to engage with the fragments of buildings, culture and spirit left behind. Amid the destruction they constructed something new. The focused exhibition presents two of Kusama’s Infinity Mirror Rooms—her first and one of her more recent—and the large sculpture&nbsp;Pumpkin&nbsp;(2016); three of Bauermeister’s intricate optical and stone-laden assemblages; and a large-scale mixed-media collage and works on paper by Saint Phalle. Together, these artworks illustrate how ways of artmaking can overlap and converge by exploring the possibilities of pattern and tapping into the latent expressiveness of repetition. # <h3>View CGN's full calendar <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events?filter=upcoming&amp;page=1" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>.</h3>

This Season’s Highlights: Fall 2026, Part II – September Exhibitions

<h3>Fall is always a busy&nbsp;season in Chicago’s art world, with new&nbsp;exhibitions across galleries and museums opening every week.&nbsp;Right after Labor Day many new exhibition will be open, often through October and beyond. Listed here are a few highlights we are looking forward to seeing.</h3> <h3>Significant exhibitions begin right after Labor Day with If Emmett Till Lived at the Museum of Contemporary Photography, followed by the 10th anniversary of River North Design District's Gallery Walk. </h3><h3> </h3><h3>The 4th edition of Chicago Exhibition Weekend, which is now a full week, begins September 14. </h3><h3> </h3><h3>Throughout the fall there are many notable exhibitions taking place, from the Art Institute downtown, to the Smart Museum in Hyde Park and the Block Museum in suburban Evanston. </h3><h3> </h3><h3>Please check CGN's online calendar for weekly updates and consider subscribing to CGN in print <a href="https://chicagogallerynews.myshopify.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>.</h3><h3> </h3><h3>– CGN</h3> <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789486053/kg0brk0khgtt090ipt1c.jpg">Stephen Marc, Untitled, from Changing Chicago Project, 1988. Gelatin silver print.&nbsp;Courtesy: Museum of Contemporary Photography at Columbia College Chicago. <h3>If Emmett Till Lived: Freedom on American Ground –</h3><h3>Museum of Contemporary Photography</h3> What if Emmett Till lived? What if he had returned home still a child, alive and free? If Emmett Till Lived… is an exhibition and a civic invitation. The very statement invites a range of questions, a reckoning with the past, and a probing investigation of the current state of American life. This exhibition, and the invitation it offers to viewers, creates a collective arena to consider how freedom has been secured on American ground. If Emmett Till Lived… honors Till and the history born of his sacrifice. The show—drawn entirely on work in the collection of the Museum of Contemporary Photography at Columbia College Chicago—imagines what could have come in his life: photographs of different restaurants pay homage to the last meal Till’s mother, Mamie Till-Mobley, packed for him before he left Chicago; others show his favorite pastimes, meditate on the love he might have experienced, on days spent enjoying life in Chicago, on the playground, at the beach, attending prom, living free.&nbsp; September 10–December 19, 2026&nbsp;Columbia College Chicago600 S. Michigan, Chicago, IL 60605 <a href="https://www.mocp.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">mocp.org</a> <h3><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789486054/jj8hczkr8qpy1f0ikbki.jpg"></h3> <h3>River North Design District 10th Annual Fall Gallery Walk –&nbsp;</h3> This year’s walk, free and open to the public, takes place throughout River North in 17 locations featuring 31 artists and 16 designer vignettes. Showrooms will have extended hours on September 11, from 5–8 p.m., with food and libations. Vignettes are on display through October 9. A closing event takes place October 10. Light after Dark, the official after party on September 11, 8:00–10:30 p.m. at the BSH Experience Center in THE MART commemorates the 25th anniversary of 9/11 while celebrating a decade of RNDD. Art is Living Fashion, a 6’ × 30’ immersive installation presented by Brizo, is a monumental textile uniting art, fashion, and design through 20 artist-created panels that will be sold by the square foot to benefit Tunnel to Towers.&nbsp;September 11-October 10, 2026Various locations <a href="https://rivernorthdesigndistrict.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">rivernorthdesigndistrict.com</a> <h3><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789486055/jy6uvbkoaespt3apszz3.jpg"></h3>Image courtesy of Gertie <h3>Chicago Exhibition Week –&nbsp;</h3> Chicago Exhibition Week (CXW) returns September 14–20, 2026, bringing together more than 50 galleries, cultural institutions, and programming partners across the city. Presented by Gertie, the week celebrates Chicago’s vibrant arts community through exhibitions, events, and opportunities to explore the city. Highlights include the inaugural CXW Launch Party at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago on September 15, hosted and headlined by Vic Mensa; new collector-led cocktail gatherings; and the Annual CXW aDinner on September 18, presented in partnership with EXPO CHICAGO.&nbsp; CXW’s Wayfinding Routes by prominent Chicagoans offer curated themed guides to galleries, restaurants, bars, cultural venues, and local businesses, giving visitors an insider’s perspective on Chicago’s art, culture, neighborhoods, and creative community. September 14–20, 2026Various locations <a href="https://www.chicagoexhibitionweek.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">chicagoexhibitionweek.com</a> <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789486056/v5dycxybjga7mqcheoy3.jpg"> <h3>Lee Miller: Fearless –&nbsp;</h3><h3>The Art Institute of Chicago</h3> “It was a matter of getting out on a damn limb and sawing it off behind you.” That is how Lee Miller—fashion model, magazine photographer, studio operator, Surrealist innovator, international adventurer, and battlefield correspondent—summed up her approach to life and creativity. Lee Miller: Fearless is the first comprehensive survey of her photographs in more than 25 years and gathers together the major episodes of her singular career.&nbsp; Thru Dec 7111 S. Michigan Ave.&nbsp; <a href="https://www.artic.edu" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">artic.edu</a> <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789486057/h21axpoqgyvq0mxarbxo.jpg">Amanda Browder, Power Plant Beloit <h3>In/Between Arts Festival –</h3><h3>Racine, WI</h3> Racine Art Museum presents In/Between, a mostly free visual and performing arts festival running September 18–27, 2026. Exploring craft aacross disciplines, the biennial activates Racine County through exhibitions, performances, and participatory projects. Highlights include installations by Amanda Browder and Eric Rieger (HOTTEA), plus the U.S. premiere of Look-Up Aerial Arts’ Éolia. Six interconnected series encompass exhibitions, performances, talks, wellness programs, workshops, and social events, inviting visitors to experience Racine through art, movement, and community engagement. September 18–27, 2026Various locationsRacine, WI <a href="https://www.ramart.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">ramart.org</a> <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789486058/hyihg3z7xcdgpwr8vgep.jpg">Nick DrNaso, painted glass <h3>Linework: Chicago Comics and Community –&nbsp;</h3><h3>Cleve Carney Museum of Art</h3> This exhibition explores Linework, a publication guided by acclaimed cartoonist, designer, and educator Ivan Brunetti that became a gathering point for Chicago’s contemporary comics scene. Bringing together emerging and established artists, Linework fostered creative exchange and strengthened the city’s reputation as a hub for alternative comics. The exhibition revisits the publication, its collaborative community, and the paths its contributors have taken since, including Chicago-based cartoonist Nick DrNaso, whose Sabrina became the first graphic novel longlisted for the Booker Prize. Sept 19–Nov 21, 2026Glen Ellyn, IL <a href="https://www.theccma.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">theccma.org</a> <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789486060/gsmmp6tfjdeeqeiswpux.jpg"> <h3>teamLab: Everything Exists in Infinite Continuity –&nbsp;</h3><h3>Smart Museum of Art</h3> The Smart Museum of Art presents teamLab: Everything Exists in Infinite Continuity, the Tokyo-based international art collective’s first major institutional exhibition in the Midwest.&nbsp; Founded in 2001 by Toshiyuki Inoko, teamLab brings together hundreds of artists, scientists, programmers, mathematicians, architects, and other specialists to create immersive digital installations exploring perception, consciousness, and the relationship between the self and the world.&nbsp; Spanning 25 years of the collective’s practice, the exhibition features iconic works alongside new pieces created specifically for the Smart Museum. Together, the works trace teamLab’s evolving experimentation with digital technology and its creation of immersive environments that blur boundaries between viewer and artwork, emphasizing individual perception within a shared, collective experience. Sept 22–Feb 21, 20275550 S. Greenwood, Chicago <a href="https://smartmuseum.uchicago.edu" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">smartmuseum.uchicago.edu</a> <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789486061/wlwcm9qxgtygqonkd2wc.jpg">Yuan Goang-Ming, still from Everyday War, 2024, single-channel video with sound. © Yuan Goang-Ming. Courtesy of the artist. <h3>Everyday War: Yuan Goang-Ming –&nbsp;</h3><h3>Wrightwood 659</h3> Taiwanese new media pioneer Yuan Goang-Ming explores the fragmented, surreal nature of contemporary life through poetic video and installation. Based on his acclaimed 2024 Venice Biennale exhibition, Everyday War at Wrightwood 659 immerses visitors in layered soundscapes and installations examining the unsettling intrusion of war into everyday life. Sept 25–Dec 19, 2026659 W. Wrightwood <a href="https://wrightwood659.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">wrightwood659.org</a> <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789486061/opmtsqobw1qqdtqazato.jpg"> <h3>Picturing the Modern Metropolis: Prints and Photographs from The Block’s Collection – </h3><h3>The Block Museum of Art</h3> Featuring over 100 prints and photographs, this exhibition explores how 20th-century artists captured and reimagined urban life. Works by Edward Steichen, Vivian Maier, Ed Ruscha, Andy Warhol, and Chicago-based artists examine the city’s energy, diversity, mobility, belonging, and possibilities for creative expression. Sept 9–Dec 6, 2026Evanston, IL <a href="https://www.blockmuseum.northwestern.edu" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">blockmuseum.northwestern.edu</a> # <h3>View CGN's full calendar <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events?filter=upcoming&amp;page=1" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a></h3>

This Season’s Highlights: Fall 2026, Part I - Museums and Events

<h3><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485446/lwimbvrr3gemvbomze1j.jpg"></h3> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/to-be-remembered-woven-matters-of-the-heart" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">To Be Remembered: Woven Matters of the Heart</a></h3> Aug 21, 2026 - Feb 28, 2027Opening: Friday, Aug 21, 2026 4:00 PM – 7:00 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/chicago-cultural-center" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Chicago Cultural Center</a> To Be Remembered: Woven Matters of the Heart&nbsp;embraces the reflective ways in which five contemporary textile artists illuminate their rich interior worlds through their unique fiber practices. The artists: ebere agwuncha, Nnaemeka Ekwelum, Hale Ekinci, Josué Esaú, and Thương Hoài Trần each visually intertwine time, memory, and emotion to conjure deeply felt histories across spatial geographies, venerating the cultural traces that connect us to the motherlands. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485447/oydseylhwcy95nvdnalx.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/open-studios-third-fridayaugust2026" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Open Studios Third Friday</a></h3> Friday, Aug 21, 2026 7:00 PM – 10:00 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/bridgeport-art-center" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Bridgeport Art Center</a> On view: COLOR SONGS: MUSICIANS AS VISUAL ARTISTSJuly 17-Sept 4 20264th Floor Gallery GURUSHOTS PHOTO EXHIBITION: CHICAGO 2026JULY 17 – SEPT 4, 20263RD FLOOR GALLERY <h3> </h3><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485447/kuapyxjld8cu8gpyy9tf.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/industry-of-the-ordinary-2026-summer-residency-exhibition-world-without-promises" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Industry of the Ordinary 2026 Summer Residency Exhibition: World Without Promises</a></h3> Aug 22, 2026 - Aug 29, 2026Opening: Saturday, Aug 22, 2026 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/sona-chicago-contemporary-art" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">SoNa Chicago Contemporary Art</a> SoNa Chicago Contemporary Art is proud to host "World Without Promises," the culminating exhibition of the Industry of the Ordinary (IOTO) 2026 Summer Residency on Sat., August 22, 2026 from 5-8 pm. The non-performative elements of the exhibition will be on view at the gallery through Sat., August 29. An Artist Walkthrough will take place on Sat, August 29 from 5-7 pm where the artists will discuss their work and offer deeper insights into their processes and the evolution of their practice. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485448/mfxmytaaxi3zuaj3eins.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/erin-jane-nelson-living-and-working-book-signing-and-release-party" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Erin Jane Nelson: Living and Working | Book Signing and Release Party</a></h3> Tuesday, Aug 25, 2026 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/document" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">DOCUMENT</a> Institute193 and DOCUMENT are pleased to invite you to a book signing and release party for&nbsp;Living and Working, a monograph on the work of artist Erin Jane Nelson, on Tuesday, August 25 from 5-7pm at DOCUMENT Chicago. Published on the occasion of an exhibition of the same name at the Abroms-Engel Institute for the Visual Arts at the University of Alabama at Birmingham,&nbsp;Living and Working&nbsp;traces ten years of artist Erin Jane Nelson’s evolving practice in and around Atlanta, Georgia. Moving from fabric collages to wall-hanging ceramics to analogue photography using cameras of her own making, Nelson has investigated the relationship between the watery landscapes of the American Southeast and the psychological and political structures of our contemporary world.⁠ # View the full CGN calendar <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events?page=1" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>

New Exhibitions and Events: August 21-25

<h3>Summer is winding down and there are several area exhibitions you can still catch if you have some time this weekend. </h3><h3> </h3><h3>–&nbsp;CGN</h3> <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485456/t9cb4dhly2n8wljcilyq.png"><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/gregory-bae-and-tony-lewis-lets-go-exploring" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Gregory Bae and Tony Lewis: Let's Go Exploring!</a></h3>Jun 20, 2026 - Aug 22, 2026<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/patron" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">PATRON&nbsp;</a> <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485457/apepvfpdpk5n5elmai6y.jpg"><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/creature-feature" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Creature Feature</a></h3>Jul 10, 2026 - Aug 22, 2026<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/gallery-victor" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Gallery VICTOR</a> <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485458/he4pubxrf9qthk5nmyt5.jpg"><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/the-soccer-show-a-celebration-of-the-world-cup" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Soccer Show: A Celebration of the World Cup</a></h3>Jun 12, 2026 - Aug 22, 2026<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/elise-seigenthaler-gallery" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Elise Seigenthaler Gallery</a> <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485458/u9ye5goqrvmm2ggufsvd.png"><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/wonderland" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Collin van der Sluijs: Wonderland</a></h3>Jul 10, 2026 - Aug 22, 2026<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/joy-machine" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Joy Machine</a> <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485459/h3uxj7hgzcfkxyo2wz19.jpg"><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/david-hockney-the-moon-room" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">IT’S ABOUT TIME: Counterproductive Conceptualisms in Chicago</a></h3>Jul 10, 2026 - Aug 22, 2026<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/gray" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">GRAY</a> <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485460/lwe6jwntqqwxf6hbv1hq.jpg"><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/david-hockney-the-moon-room" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">David Hockney: The Moon Room</a></h3>Jul 10, 2026 - Aug 22, 2026<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/gray" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">GRAY</a> <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485460/zvs6ybjtgi1jblpbzlsb.png"><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/painters-painters" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Painters' Painters</a></h3>Jul 10, 2026 - Aug 22, 2026<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/secrist-beach" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Secrist | Beach</a> <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485461/cv4pgdiejy8hersonef2.jpg"><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/alberto-aguilar-i-just-really-want-to-tell-you-this-one-thing" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Alberto Aguilar: I just really want to tell you this one thing</a>&nbsp;</h3>Mar 28, 2026 - Aug 23, 2026<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/chicago-cultural-center" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Chicago Cultural Center</a> <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485462/lnzdk1bjcdqv2ehdzguu.jpg"><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/impressions-of-a-city-drawings-by-marvin-young" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Impressions of a City: Drawings by Marvin Young</a></h3>Apr 9, 2026 - Aug 23, 2026<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/intuit-art-museum" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Intuit Art Museum</a> <h3> </h3> # View full CGN Calendar <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>

Last Call: Exhibitions Ending August 21-23

<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485402/eoohhcodgssgqdtevq0o.jpg">Anna Kunz: “Echolocation One”, 2022. Monotype, 30” x 27”. Published by Manneken Press. By GINNY VAN ALYEA There’s something new on Chicago’s late-summer art calendar. On&nbsp;Saturday, August 29, the inaugural&nbsp;IN / PRINT&nbsp;will bring together galleries and print publishers from across the Midwest for a free, one-day celebration of contemporary artists’ prints in West Town. Taking place from&nbsp;11am to 6pm, the new event arrives at an ideal moment: the last stretch of summer, just before Chicago’s busy fall gallery season gets underway. Galleries throughout the neighborhood will host publishers presenting original prints to see, learn about, and purchase, with all of the participating spaces within walking distance. For anyone who follows contemporary art, there will be plenty of familiar names along the way. Prints by artists including&nbsp;Candida Alvarez, McArthur Binion, Bethany Collins, Mark Dion, Edie Fake, Julia Fish, Michelle Grabner, Diana Guerrero-Maciá, Arturo Herrera, Richard Hull, Judy Ledgerwood, Harold Mendez, Alice Tippit, and many others will be on view. At the same time, IN / PRINT offers a chance to discover artists, publishers, and ways of making prints that may be less familiar. Visitors will encounter everything from traditional&nbsp;etchings, screenprints, woodcuts, and lithographs&nbsp;to experimental relief and mixed-media approaches. Prints occupy a particularly interesting place in contemporary art because their creation is so often collaborative. Artists work closely with printers and publishers, bringing together artistic ideas and highly specialized knowledge of materials and processes. IN / PRINT gives visitors the unusual opportunity not only to see the finished works, but to meet some of the people who helped make them. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485403/umu7toocdgysepsspqpu.jpg">John Yau and Richard Hull: “Giorgio Guston/ Philip de Chirico, 1”, 2023. Monotype, 29.75” x 22.25”. Published by Manneken Press. Prints can also be an inviting way into collecting. Original works are available across an approachable range of prices, offering emerging collectors an opportunity to own work by artists they know while giving experienced collectors another way to engage with familiar practices. And there’s something appealingly simple about the premise: spend a late-summer Saturday walking between some of West Town’s most beautiful exhibition spaces, looking closely at prints and talking with the people who make and publish them. Before the pace of the fall art season takes over, IN / PRINT offers a chance to slow down and spend some time with the medium. The cross-collaboration of the event is especially creative and welcoming, giving visitors the chance to see Manneken Press from downstate Bloomington exhibit in Mariane Ibrahim's space. Chicago Printmakers Collaborative is spending the day out of their Lincoln Square location and coming to DOCUMENT. Bringing together some of Chicago’s best-known galleries with ambitious print publishers from across the Midwest, this first edition of IN / PRINT feels especially at home in a city whose art community has long thrived on collaboration.IN / PRINT is free and open to the public and is an initiative of Process/Process and Volume Gallery. <h3>Where to go</h3> Normal Editionsat PATRON Gallery1612 W Chicago Ave Bert Green Fine Artat Western Exhibitions1709 W Chicago Ave, Floor 2 Chicago Printmakers Collaborativeat DOCUMENT1709 W Chicago Ave, Floor 2 Manneken Pressat Mariane Ibrahim Gallery437 N Paulina St Process/Processat Volume Gallery1700 W Hubbard St Colum Press and the Archives of Anchor Graphics (Columbia College Chicago)at DeGroot Fine Art1801 W Hubbard St Island Pressat SECRIST | BEACH1801 W Hubbard St <h3>IN / PRINT: Contemporary Art Prints from Midwest Publishers</h3> <a href="https://process-process.com/events/19/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">DETAILS HERE</a> One day only: Saturday, August 2911am–6pm Chicago’s West Town neighborhoodFree and open to the public <a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/3itAChiGV4H28aQz5" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">View the event map</a> <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485404/hqyr3bk89dvydubotfmr.jpg"> * Thumbnail image: Alice Tippit, Flute, 2024, Intaglio and monoprint on Okawara, Edition of 12. Published by Process/Process. On view at Volume Gallery

New IN / PRINT Event Brings Contemporary Printmaking to Chicago’s West Town

<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485518/yrtjskyjvnsmdy5bsw6p.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/later-impressions" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Later Impressions</a>Opening: Friday, August 14, 5:30 PM – 8:00 PMThe Art Center Highland Park <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485519/trv3kj1dkdvyzumfcsve.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/megan-wolfkill-to-bear-witness" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Megan Wolfkill: To Bear Witness</a>Opening: Friday, August 7, 5:00 PM – 8:00 PMARC Gallery <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485520/fhqyubfhdai8qa5n1zqa.png"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/summer-salon" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Summer Salon</a>Opening: Friday, August 7, 5:00 PM – 8:00 PMVivid Art Gallery <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485521/fc8kpry7htruaqfuaic2.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/whispers-of-the-unfamiliar" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Whispers of the Unfamiliar</a>Opening: Friday, August 7, 6:00 PM – 9:00 PMChicago Sculpture International (CSI)

New Exhibitions August 7

<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485367/zvoybwfu59gww3d5toyi.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/glass-castles-curated-by-azul-alberto-nogueron" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Glass Castles | Curated by Azul Alberto Nogueron</a>Exhibition begins August 8Evanston Art Center <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485367/dspbbtdjnu3q39phqygy.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/resiliencea-sansei-sense-of-legacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Resilience—A Sansei Sense of Legacy</a>Exhibition begins August 8Kalamazoo Institute of Arts <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485368/z3sorehitmmjo6m9tt42.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/fenestra-falsa" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Fenestra Falsa</a>Opening: Saturday, August 8, 1:00 PM – 3:00 PMOS Projects <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485369/po8clyi0eszzcnpgcrun.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/ground-floor2026" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ground Floor</a>Opening: Sunday, August 9, 1:00 PM – 4:00 PMHyde Park Art Center

New Exhibitions Beginning August 8 - 9

<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485548/v104u4iufffv6jqhmtb1.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/artifacts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">ar•ti•facts&nbsp;</a>Opening: Saturday, August 1, 5:00 PM – 7:00 PMPerspective Photo Gallery <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485549/zs9qzwb8e9rpwaaoggz5.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/black-is-beautiful-ii" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Black Is Beautiful (II)</a>Begins July 31Manneken Press <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485550/ytqnhrvoaetezxnqv4ij.png"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/the-artistry-of-plastic-surgery" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Artistry of Plastic Surgery</a>Begins July 31International Museum of Surgical Science (IMSS) <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485550/ha00f4ecazawozpv10bi.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/continuum-selected-works-by-carol-neiger" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Continuum: Selected Works by Carol Neiger</a>Opening: Saturday, August 1, 2:00 PM – 5:00 PMThe Grove Gallery <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485552/a4fglkmlykrlj4jsm9tc.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/the-big-picture-midwest-large-format-asylum-large-format-photography" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Big Picture: Midwest Large Format Asylum: Large Format Photography</a>Begins August 4Chicago Cultural Center

New Exhibitions July 30 - August 4

<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485539/y0k6squgitwifw8j7rjq.jpg">Gladys Nilsson, c. 1966–67.Photo: Courtesy of the artist and the Crocker Art Museum, Sacramento. <h3><a href="https://www.vogue.com/article/the-perfectly-peculiar-art-of-gladys-nilsson" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Perfectly Peculiar Art of Gladys Nilsson</a></h3> It’s not more than a few seconds after we meet that the artist Gladys Nilsson, 86, insists on helping me carry my suitcase over the threshold and into her home. Nilsson has lived in a handsome brick house with Craftsman-style interiors in the town of Wilmette, just north of Chicago, since 1976 with her husband, the artist Jim Nutt, 87. The two met in 1960 when they were both students at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. There is art everywhere—paintings and sculptures and masks, piles of papers and books, work made by the two of them or their friends, plus plenty of souvenirs from their decades of travel. “Stuff gets put down and it stays there and we ignore it,” Nilsson deadpans. Eclecticism suits them. Via Vogue <h3><a href="https://www.artnews.com/art-news/market/christies-art-tech-summit-2026-ai-wealth-art-market-1234793113/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">At the Art + Tech Summit, Christie’s Pins Its Future on AI Billionaires Who Aren’t Buying Art… Yet</a></h3> “We are in a historic moment in wealth creation,” said&nbsp;CNBC&nbsp;wealth reporter Robert Frank at the keynote presentation of the 2026 edition of the Christie’s Art + Tech Summit last week, alongside Christie’s CEO Bonnie Brennan and Michael Anders, founder of the investment firm ICONIQ Capital. Frank was referring to the riches being created as big AI companies like Anthropic, OpenAI, and SpaceX go public. These initial public offerings are projected to create&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/12/business/economy/spacex-openai-anthropic-billionaires-ipos.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">20 new billionaires</a>, while SpaceX’s IPO alone is projected to have made <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/10/technology/spacex-ipo-employee-millionaires.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">4,400 employees into millionaires</a>. The question at the summit was: will all this new wealth create new art collectors? Anders, Brennan, and Frank struggled to define the future desires of a new generation of mega-rich. Via ARTnews <h3><a href="https://news.artnet.com/art-world/jeff-koons-made-in-heaven-copyright-dispute-2789631" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Jeff Koons Beats Copyright Infringement Claims in ‘Made in Heaven’ Lawsuit</a></h3> A U.S. appeals court upheld a ruling in favor of&nbsp;Jeff Koons&nbsp;in a copyright dispute over his iconic “Made in Heaven” series, rejecting the claims of a sculptor who had accused Koons of using one of his works without permission. Prop designer&nbsp;Michael Hayden&nbsp;first sought compensation in 2021 for the appearance of his 1988 sculpture in three works from&nbsp;<a href="https://www.jeffkoons.com/artwork/made-in-heaven" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(31, 31, 31);" target="_blank">Koons’s series</a>, made between 1989 and 1990. As Hayden himself acknowledged in his filing, the series caused “a media sensation” and has been credited with “launching Mr. Koons into the art world’s stratosphere.” Despite this, Hayden claimed to have only discovered the alleged infringement in 2019. Via Artnet <h3><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/22/arts/design/charles-ross-star-axis-land-art.html?unlocked_article_code=1.zlA.W_MV.3_bRLw4pqWhN&amp;smid=url-share" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">He’s the Last Great Land Artist You’ve Never Heard Of</a></h3> This spring, Charles Ross sat in his studio in SoHo, but his mind was elsewhere: a mesa in eastern New Mexico, where his life’s work, a monumental naked-eye earthwork called “Star Axis,” — part observatory and part pyramid — juts at the cosmos. “If you’re there in the winter when there’s a snowstorm, it’s like the sky is painting the earth white,” he said. “And the thunderstorms. And rainbows several times a week.” Ross has a degree in math and a yen for physics. He says he can sense celestial alignments, and feel the difference between colors of light in a spectrum. When he needed a well dug for his desert home, he called a dowser. The artist, 88, belongs to a generation of land artists who shed galleries and cities to work at a scale more common in ancient Egypt and Mesoamerica. In 1975, he had been crisscrossing the Southwest for four years, hunting for the perfect location for “Star Axis,” when a cowboy appeared and handed him a business card. Via NYT

What We're Reading: July 22, 2026

<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1785263391/o2pycfiipv7enkatoxg5.jpg"> By CGN Staff With so much to do each weekend of summer in the art world, it's worth zeroing in on a daytime event that offers many things in a single destination as Randolph Street Market takes over the West Loop on Saturday, July 25 and Sunday, July 26. Known for bringing together hundreds of dealers, artists, and vintage vendors from across the country, the market remains one of Chicago's best destinations for discovering antiques, original art, vintage fashion, home décor, collectibles, and unexpected treasures—all in one place. This month's "Made in the Shade" market offers plenty for art lovers, with visiting artist Sam North joining Chicago artists Nicholas Holman and Michael Trulis, along with a lively artist tent featuring Damon Reed, Pugz, AliSix, Cujo, and Delisha. Visitors can also participate in the market's first Art Camp, creating a take-home project from recycled materials led by Lake Forest College instructor Emmie Osuna. Bring three empty prescription pill containers to donate and you'll receive a free pass to a future Randolph Street Market. Collectors won't want to miss the Ballroom, where dealers will present antique oil paintings, vintage French advertising posters, sterling silver, porcelain, glassware, and other exceptional finds. With both indoor and outdoor shopping, plenty of shade, food and drinks, and a festive atmosphere, Randolph Street Market continues to be one of Chicago's signature weekends for collectors, designers, treasure hunters, and anyone who simply enjoys the thrill of discovering something unexpected. If it's been a while since your last visit—or if it's become part of your summer tradition—this weekend is a perfect time to head back. <a href="https://randolphstreetmarket.com/2026/06/made-in-the-shade-july-25-26/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Details here</a>

Weekend Pick: Randolph Street Market is Back July 25 and 26

<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1785263378/syjoxlvs5sllczaubroa.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/cristina-mittermeier-marks-of-memory" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Cristina Mittermeier: Marks of Memory</a>Opening: Wednesday, July 22, 5:30 – 8:00 PMHilton Contemporary <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1785263379/u7lcferuw68hlw8cw6gn.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/michael-velliquette-intuitive-patterns" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Michael Velliquette: Intuitive Patterns</a>Begins July 22Racine Arts Council <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1785263379/wdfwnqcj9jgzqzk3285x.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/sculpture-at-the-kavanagh2026" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Sculpture at the Kavanagh</a>Opening: Thursday, July 23, 6:00 – 8:00 PMKavanagh Gallery at Fine Line Creative Arts Center <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1785263380/deaj59q7adzan41zg291.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/jesse-bond-own-who-you-are" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Jesse Bond: Own Who You Are</a>Opening: Friday, July 24, 7:00 – 10:00 PMSAWHORSE <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1785263381/v3bdsksbbank4sxsjahz.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/art-in-transit-with-bridgeport-artist-community" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Art in Transit with Bridgeport Artist Community</a>Opening: Friday, July 24, 5:00 – 9:00 PMOliva Gallery <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1785263382/wiyxlq6j5plfnmibzvht.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/deborah-maris-lader-we-become-birds" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Deborah Maris Lader: We Become Birds</a>Opening: Saturday, July 25, 5:00 – 7:00 PMBert Green Fine Art <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1785263382/bs1meh9btznsj0dzawkg.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/george-clinton-mothership" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">George Clinton: Mothership</a>Begins July 25Mariane Ibrahim

New Exhibitions: July 22 - 25

<h3><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1785263356/ekh6mkbvnsxdnawigib5.jpg"></h3><h3> </h3><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/forward-v-our-wisconsin-regional-artists" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Forward V: Our Wisconsin &amp; Regional Artists&nbsp;</a></h3> Jul 15 - Aug 30, 2026 <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/jk-art-house" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">JK Art House</a> The momentum continues at JK Art House in Milwaukee this summer with&nbsp;Forward V: Our Wisconsin &amp; Regional Artists, their fifth annual celebration of the exceptional painters, sculptors, printmakers, and mixed-media artists who call Wisconsin and the greater Midwest home.&nbsp;&nbsp;This beloved exhibition carries special meaning in 2026 — it will be the first Forward in our beautiful new space, and it arrives at a landmark moment for the Third Ward as the&nbsp;Historic Third Ward Association celebrates its 50th Anniversary. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1785263357/esuz9pxu3txwa8okaccm.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/treasures-from-the-law-offices-of-abraham-lincoln" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Treasures from the Law Offices of Abraham Lincoln</a>&nbsp;</h3> Gallery talk: Wednesday, July 15 | 5 - 7 p.m.&nbsp;Talk begins promptly at 6 p.m. <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/heritage-auctions" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Heritage Auctions</a> Treasures from the Law Offices of Abraham Lincoln Preview Reception Featuring a Gallery Talk from Renowned Lincoln Scholar Harold Holzer&nbsp;This gallery talk will draw from decades of Harold Holzer's experience researching, writing, and lecturing about Abraham Lincoln and the political culture of the Civil War era. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1785263358/gkplal8belxt8uuhjszg.png"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/third-wednesday-music-in-motion-from-ireland-to-chicago" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Third Wednesday: Music in Motion from Ireland to Chicago</a></h3> Wednesday, Jul 15, 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/the-driehaus-museum" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Driehaus Museum</a> Third Wednesday: Music in Motion from Ireland to Chicago is inspired by&nbsp;Ink &amp; Outrage: 18th-Century Satirical Prints in London &amp; Dublin. This program features the interplay of the Irish harp and the accordion.<a href="https://driehausmuseum.us3.list-manage.com/track/click?u=32343bbcd4e3063e18cdf64bf&amp;id=9111c600f4&amp;e=d1db3f815c" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">TICKETS</a> <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1785263359/yhjoxl0lsii0y7vxgju0.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/art-after-work-drawing-with-metal" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Art After Work: Drawing with Metal</a></h3> Thursday, Jul 16, 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/intuit-art-museum" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Intuit Art Museum</a>Every third Thursday, IAM stays open until 8 pm with after-hours programming designed to help you end your day inspired. Explore Drawing with Metal: Sculpture by Bill Brady with an evening of conversation and making. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1785263360/mjvp4otuiey2tlffhblj.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/marian-carow" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Marian Carow: Permit Pending</a></h3> Jul 17 - Aug 15, 2026Opening: Friday, Jul 17, 6:00 PM – 9:00 PM <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/65grand" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">65GRAND</a>Within the past&nbsp;several years, I have been making wall-mounted mixed media objects out of everyday materials.&nbsp;With a process-driven, improvisational approach, I allow chance and contingency into the work.&nbsp;A major project has been investigation of the possibilities of salvaged corrugated cartons.&nbsp;I also employ wood elements, both purchased and found, cast-off scraps, repositories of my own and others' decision making.&nbsp;By bringing materials into my studio, I can live with and consider them over time. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1785263361/avew3wjabazvkqokutyt.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/newberryfest-250-years-of-the-united-states" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">NewberryFest: 250 Years of the United States</a></h3> Saturday, Jul 18, 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/newberry-library" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Newberry Library</a> Celebrate all things Newberry with collection presentations, hands-on activities, tours, a mini used book sale, and so much more at this open house event. This summer our theme is the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1785263362/yn2enzgtazwr5jynzz7x.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/56th-midsummer-festival-of-the-arts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">56th Midsummer Festival of the Arts</a></h3> Jul 18 &amp; 19 <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/john-michael-kohler-arts-center-jmkac" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">John Michael Kohler Arts Center (JMKAC)</a> The John Michael Kohler Arts Center (JMKAC) invites you to attend and help share the 56th Midsummer Festival of the Arts, taking place July 18–19, 2026, in downtown Sheboygan.This free, two-day event brings together more than 100 juried artists from across the country, live music through the Levitt AMP Sheboygan Music Series, artist demonstrations, hands-on artmaking activities, family-friendly programming, food vendors, and community partners. The festival annually attracts thousands of visitors and celebrates creativity, community, and artistic excellence. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1785263362/kop6mey1o3cew7lrcm7s.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/artist-talk-with-melanie-p-brown" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Artist Talk with Melanie P. Brown</a></h3> Saturday, Jul 18, 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/arc-gallery" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">ARC Gallery</a> Join ARC Gallery Members &amp; Melanie P. Brown for an artist talk about her new solo exhibition,&nbsp;Driving My Meat Machine: Flight Fantasies.Melanie P. Brown has a long standing practice of painting in direct response to sound, music, and motion. Since 2020 her process has centered on live and recorded sound, her gestures and movements while painting, and video of birds and her own body in motion. Preparing extensive palettes and integrating pastel and charcoal, she translates rhythm, texture, and spatial perception into layered compositions.&nbsp; # <h3>View the full CGN calendar <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a></h3>

New Exhibitions and Events: July 15 - 18

<h3><a href="https://hyperallergic.com/nyc-mayor-mamdani-approves-record-323m-funding-for-culture/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">NYC Mayor Mamdani Approves Record $323M Funding for Culture</a></h3> Mayor Zohran Mamdani and the City Council will provide the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs (DCLA) with its highest-ever yearly appropriation as part of the city’s Fiscal Year 2027 budget. A spokesperson for the Mayor’s Office told&nbsp;Hyperallergic&nbsp;that the city government will give $323.8 million to the agency, which administers public funding to arts institutions throughout the city. The appropriation marks a nearly 7% increase from&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nyc.gov/mayors-office/news/2025/07/-best-budget-ever-gets-even-better-mayor-adams-dcla-cultural-leaders-celebrate-historic?ref=hyperallergic.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" target="_blank">last year’s then-record&nbsp;</a>$299.6 million investment. Via Hyperallergic <h3><a href="https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/louvre-jewel-heist-suspects-claim-sponsor-recruited-them-1234791929/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Louvre Jewel Heist Suspects Claim ‘Mysterious Sponsor’ Recruited Them</a></h3> The alleged mastermind reportedly sent the pair a video filmed inside the Apollo Gallery, showing the royal jewels on display, along with concise instructions: break the gallery’s windows and retrieve the jewelry from the display cases. Abdoulaye N., a former motocross social media star who, by his own admission, was in desperate need of money, said he was promised between 15,000 and 20,000 euros to break into the Louvre—“maybe more,” depending on the outcome. For his part, Ghelamallah A. claimed he had been told the target was “a jewelry store where jewelry is made in Paris,” not the world’s most-visited museum. “I would never have set foot there if I had known,” he said, adding that he had been offered between 20,000 and 25,000 euros.&nbsp; Via ARTnews <h3><a href="https://news.artnet.com/market/heritage-auctions-mid-year-total-2786935" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Heritage Auctions Posts Record $1.4 Billion Mid-Year Total, as Collectibles Market Roars</a></h3> Heritage Auctions&nbsp;said today that it had more than $1.4 billion in sales through June, the highest mid-year total in the company’s 50-year history.&nbsp; That is a roughly 47 percent jump over Heritage’s 2025 mid-year total of $962 million. If the pace continues, the Dallas-based house is poised to eclipse its&nbsp;annual sales&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ha.com/heritage-auctions-press-releases-and-news/heritage-auctions-closes-2025-above-2.15-billion-for-its-fifth-consecutive-annual-sales-record.s?releaseId=5383" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(31, 31, 31);" target="_blank">record of $2.15 billion</a>, which was set in 2025. That made it the year’s third highest-selling auction house, behind only&nbsp;Sotheby’s&nbsp;and&nbsp;Christie’s. Via artnet Image: <a href="http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">CC0 Public Domain</a>

What We're Reading: July 13, 2026

<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1784661813/s6s4al5fa2v63snt9svi.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/creature-feature" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Creature Feature</a>Opening: Friday, July 10, 5:00 PM – 8:00 PMGallery Victor <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1784661814/ttutl0d3twtbvu6v58wv.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/all-terrain-a-landscape-group-show" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">All Terrain, a landscape group show</a>Opening: Friday, July 10, 5:00 PM – 8:00 PMAddington Gallery <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1784661815/pdnokbdlrmhqhffndwad.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/john-buck-mont-blanc-on-wood" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">John Buck: Mont Blanc on Wood</a>Opening: Friday, Jul 10, 2026 4:00 PM – 7:00 PMZolla / Lieberman Gallery <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1784661815/s3hzsiufata1f9nb8usy.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/david-hockney-the-moon-room" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">David Hockney: The Moon Room</a>Opening: Friday, Jul 10, 2026 3:00 PM – 8:00 PMGRAY <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1784661817/hqypr5x9rofzrzpkmxlb.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/its-about-time-counterproductive-conceptualisms-in-chicago" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">IT’S ABOUT TIME: Counterproductive Conceptualisms in Chicago</a>Opening: Friday, Jul 10, 2026 3:00 PM – 8:00 PMGRAY <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1784661818/ntkcsfavyz5tlaea2obf.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/audrey-yang-sanctuary-as-method" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Audrey Yang: Sanctuary As Method</a>Opening: Friday, July 10, 5:00 PM – 8:00 PMARC Gallery <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1784661819/fhfbtyyagmwi3s4lw1zb.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/melanie-p-brown-driving-my-meat-machine-flight-fantasies" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Melanie P. Brown: Driving My Meat Machine: Flight Fantasies</a>Opening: Friday, July 10, 5:00 PM – 8:00 PMARC Gallery <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1784661820/cx1fku5ef4mydbwnqf1e.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/wonderland" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Collin van der Sluijs: Wonderland</a>Opening: Friday, Jul 10, 2026 6:00 PM – 8:00 PMJoy Machine <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1784661821/vlkeer606xgu2igk0ok6.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/painters-painters" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Painters' Painters</a>Opening: Friday, July 10, 5:00 PM – 8:00 PMSecrist | Beach <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1784661822/ggnechcxjnpz8tkjqbpt.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/ruti-modlin-saltwater-lullabies" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ruti Modlin : Saltwater Lullabies</a>Opening: Friday, July 10, 5:00 PM – 8:00 PMARC Gallery <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1784661822/jmrbt181zpuhochqgyt8.jpg"> <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/dust-that-lay" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Dust That Lay</a>Opening: Friday, July 10, 5:00 PM – 8:00 PMChicago Artists Coalition (CAC)

Exhibitions Opening July 10, 2026

<h3><a href="https://news.artnet.com/market/dante-gallery-ebay-art-seller-2784297" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">An eBay Seller Was Offering Bargain Rates for Artists like Christina Ramberg and Jim Nutt</a></h3> The hunt started when a friend pinged me the&nbsp;eBay&nbsp;store link for&nbsp;dantegallery, where two works on paper by famed Chicago Imagists&nbsp;Jim Nutt&nbsp;and&nbsp;Christina Ramberg&nbsp;(1946–95) were listed for $499 each (framed), a minuscule fraction of what they would typically fetch. And that was the “buy it now” option. Bidding opened on the lots at $99. We acquired both. Both works had gallery labels on their backs, one from&nbsp;Phyllis Kind Gallery&nbsp;(for the Ramberg) the other from&nbsp;Jean Albano Gallery&nbsp;(the Nutt), legitimate and well-known Chicago galleries. (Kind closed her gallery in 2009 and died in 2018 at the age of 85.) Via Arnet Pro<h3> </h3><h3><a href="https://www.wbez.org/arts/2026/06/26/depaul-art-museum-collections-to-stay-on-campus-as-day-to-day-operations-cease" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">DePaul Art Museum collections to stay on campus as day-to-day operations cease</a></h3><h3> </h3>The DePaul Art Musuem has officially closed to the public, but the collections will remain with the institution, according to a university spokesperson. Months ago, DePaul University&nbsp;<a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/museums-zoos/2026/02/26/depaul-art-museum-closing-in-june-amid-campus-layoffs-financial-troubles" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(37, 37, 37);" target="_blank">announced</a>&nbsp;the museum would cease all operations on June 30. Days later, university staff, faculty, students, alumni and notable Chicago arts leaders added their names to a<a href="https://openletter.earth/letter-opposing-the-closing-of-dpam-f02e5d5a?limit=0" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(37, 37, 37);" target="_blank">&nbsp;letter of opposition</a> to the closure.<h3> </h3>Via WBEZ <h3><a href="https://www.wbez.org/arts-culture/2026/06/25/creative-economy-impact-study-arts-alliance-illinois-workers?subscription=true&amp;utm_source=Newsletter_Daily-Rundown-Non-Member&amp;utm_medium=WBEZEmail&amp;utm_campaign=Daily_Newsletter_Daily-Rundown_Sponsored_20260625&amp;utm_content=6/25/2026&amp;DE=" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">New study finds the creative sector is Chicago’s third-largest industry</a></h3><h3> </h3>The creative sector is Chicago’s third-largest industry and accounts for nearly 213,000 jobs, according to a new economic impact study released Thursday by Arts Alliance Illinois, a statewide advocacy organization. The group also released a statewide version of the study. Arts Alliance Illinois Executive Director Claire Rice said this is the most comprehensive report of this kind the group has conducted and that the findings provide arts organizations and advocates with concrete numbers that can be used to push for funding and policy changes across levels of government. Via WBEZ <h3> </h3> <h3> </h3>

What We're Reading: June 30, 2026

<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485623/vl9mee0codzjdu9yje9m.jpg">Jeanne Gang and CAC CEO Eleanor Gorski. Photos by CGN. By GINNY VAN ALYEA A new exhibition opening June 11 at the <a href="https://www.architecture.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Chicago Architecture Center</a> invites visitors to consider Chicago's built environment through the lens of one of the city's most important seasonal visitors: migratory birds. Developed in partnership with Jeanne Gang and Studio Gang, Flyway City explores how architecture and urban design can help protect wildlife along the Mississippi Flyway, which runs through Chicago and is one of North America's major bird migration routes. Through interactive displays, research, design case studies, and hands-on activities, the exhibition highlights both the challenges birds face in urban environments and the solutions available to architects, building owners, and residents. "Chicago is such an amazing place because it is on this migratory flyway. So we want to lean into that identity," Gang said. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485624/syjdkkhoyf3agyb9zbz0.jpg">Birds that have collided with glass The exhibition examines the growing movement toward bird-friendly design. One of the most notable and compelling take-aways of the exhibition is being able to view the application on the CAC’s river-facing windows of an adhesive film of barely visible clear dots, which when used on the glass creates enough of a visual for birds that they redirect flight and are significantly less likely to crash. This is especially useful and easy to do for existing buildings, including residences, as window coverings or protections are needed up to the tree canopy or about 100 feet. New construction can use specially formulated glass.&nbsp; <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1789485624/n0og2krd8m6mq1x3bwaq.jpg">A display shows how birds collide with glass Visitors will also learn about Chicago's unique biodiversity and the role architecture can play in supporting urban habitats. For Gang, the project brings together longtime interests in both the natural and built worlds. "The reason why that I wanted to do this exhibit and partner with CAC,” explained Gang, “was that in my whole career, even growing up, I love nature and also cities and architecture. I've been working on this for a long time to understand how to make cities more attractive to wildlife and nature, as well as how to make sure that the buildings and the built environment respond and protect them. Chicago is such an amazing place because it is on this migratory flyway, hence the flyway city. So we want to lean into that identity.” Beyond raising awareness, Flyway City aims to inspire action. The exhibition offers practical ideas for homeowners and building managers while encouraging broader conversations about policy and urban planning. CAC CEO Eleanor Gorski shared, “I'm thrilled that we have the flexibility to [do this exhibition at the Architecture Center], but also our mission is to create better design through living and that means not just for people but for everyone who's part of our environment. We have over half a million people that come through here annually, especially during the summer months. We have a lot of visitors that come on our walking tours, on boat tours. We saw this as a great way to educate people about the flyway in general and specifically about architecture and how that dovetails with our living environment.” With that kind of critical mass in mind Gang added, ”We're going to try to create this whole class of advocates for bird safety in the city.” The exhibition will remain on view through the end of the year, inviting visitors to rethink Chicago not only as a city for people, but as a habitat shared with countless other living species. "We want Chicago to really be a city that's about nature and cities and protect birds that fly through here and live here," Gang said. June 11, 2026&nbsp;- January 2, 2027 Chicago Architecture Center – Skyscraper Gallery111 E. Wacker DriveChicago IL 60601 Details at <a href="https://www.architecture.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">architecture.org</a> #

A preview of the new exhibtion Flyway CIty at the Chicago Architecture Center with Jeanne Gang

Jeanne Gang and Chicago Architecture Center Launch "Flyway City”

<h3>June's busy first weekend continues, with some exhibition openings, gallery walks and art fairs happening. Pistachios features artistic jewelry by four Swedish artists. Mariane Ibrahim shows ceramics by Jennifer Rochlin. Jeff Carter considers the last remaining building from Michael Reese Hospital. Tour two West Town galleries with Art Encounter, make art with artist Jeremiah Hulsebos-Spofford in Elmhurst, and visit the 79th annual 57th Street Art Fair in Hyde Park. Grove Gallery has an opening in Evanston too. </h3><h3> </h3><h3>Browse the full CGN calendar <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events?filter=upcoming&amp;page=1" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(136, 136, 136);" target="_blank">here</a></h3> <h3>– CGN</h3> <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1784661523/fdpf2phnrsayike2aewg.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/jennifer-rochlin-the-horizon-keeps-moving" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Jennifer Rochlin: The Horizon Keeps Moving</a></h3>Jun 6, 2026 - Jul 18, 2026 Mariane Ibrahim• West Town Marking the gallery’s second solo exhibition with Jennifer Rochlin, on view in Chicago from June 6 through July 18, 2026, the presentation will unveil a new body of ceramic vessels and paintings in which personal narrative, memory, and material experimentation are closely interwoven. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1784661524/ciamir8v3arqxnj7oepn.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/mystic-meadows" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Mystic Meadows</a></h3> Jun 4, 2026 - Aug 30, 2026Opening: Saturday, Jun 6, 2026 4:00 PM – 7:00 PM Pistachios Contemporary Art Jewelry and Objects• River North Mystic Meadows is an ethereal exhibition with dark undertones. Featuring work from four Swedish artists - Hanna Liljenberg, Karin Roy Andersson, and Märta Mattsson and Sofia Bjorkman - the exhibition addresses themes of repetition, transience, rebirth, and the tension that lies between beauty and decay.&nbsp; <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1784661525/awsv9zd13tbzl5h8tjxp.png"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/a-modest-pile-sean-patrick-hannaway" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">A Modest Pile: Sean Patrick Hannaway</a></h3> Jun 6 - Jun 20, 2026Opening: Saturday, Jun 6, 2026 2:00 PM – 6:00 PM Chicago Truborn• West Town Opening Saturday, June 6, "A Modest Pile" marks&nbsp;<a href="https://www.instagram.com/thehway/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@thehway</a>&nbsp;return to Chicago Truborn with a focused presentation of new work that blends Renaissance painting, street culture, found objects, and a dry sense of humor into something entirely his own. Born and based in Chicago, Hannaway is known for transforming ornate rococo mirrors from the 1960s into richly layered paintings. <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1784661528/ocaaxw7fg4zwukrqobkl.png"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/jeff-carter-the-singer-pavilion-project" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Jeff Carter: The Singer Pavilion Project</a></h3> Jun 6, 2026 - Sep 20, 2026 Hyde Park Art Center• Hyde Park Exploring the historic and architectural significance of the Singer Pavilion—the only building remaining of the former Michael Reese Hospital and Medical Center in Bronzeville, the exhibition prompts critical reflection on the Modernist promise of social progress, and considers how architectural ideals are compromised by histories of institutional failure, abandonment, and inequality. ﻿<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1784661528/jsjoe5o01a4iwvtsvuww.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/in-the-absence-of-space" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">In the Absence of Space</a></h3> Jun 6 - Jun 28, 2026Opening: Saturday, Jun 6, 2026 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM The Grove Gallery• Evanston, IL Hosted by the Evanston ASPA (Asian, South Asian, Pacific Islander American) Association <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1784661529/fefzqt7awd73rncxuiig.jpg">Jennifer Rochlin is exhibiting at Mariane Ibrahim <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/weekend-art-walk-west-town-galleries-6-26" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Weekend Art Walk: West Town Galleries</a></h3> Saturday, Jun 6, 2026 11:00 AM – 12:45 PM Art Encounter• West Town Visit two expansive West Town galleries – Secrist Beach and Mariane Ibrahim – with Joanna Pinsky to explore intriguing exhibitions based on personal and magical narratives.&nbsp; <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1784661530/aywuombqfwteraibhhwy.png"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/create-with-artist-jeremiah-hulsebos-spofford" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Create With Artist Jeremiah Hulsebos-Spofford</a></h3> Saturday, Jun 6, 2026 1:00 PM – 4:00 PM Elmhurst Art Museum• Elmhurst Jeremiah will speak about his sculptures and his practice, and then guide participants through art-making inspired by his work. Included with museum admission.&nbsp; <img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1784661530/gqgan5hfjtz2nfh5bshg.jpg"> <h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/79th-annual-57th-street-art-fair" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">79th Annual 57th Street Art Fair</a></h3> Jun 6, 2026 - Jun 7, 2026 57th Street Art Fair• Hyde Park The 57th Street Art Fair, the Midwest’s oldest juried art fair run by a committee of dedicated volunteers, will mark its 79th year featuring nearly 200 artists, kids’ activities, live music presented by Buddy Guy’s Legends, and Food Trucks for attendees to enjoy delicious bites from Chicago.

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