<html><head></head><body>By CGN StaffThis coming Thursday, Friday and Saturday features a number of opening receptions taking place in galleries around Chicago and the greater Midwest!An overview of highlights from this coming weekend can be viewed below, and our full calendar may be <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events?filter=openings">viewed&nbsp;here</a>.See you in the galleries!&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418329/mmvvvmmcavhgf0qkx0nk.gif"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/five-works-cathy-hsiao">Five Works: Cathy Hsiao</a>Opening Thursday, January 30 - PilsenMana ContemporaryCathy Hsiao is the next artist in Five Works, a bimonthly project series that features five new and/or recent works by emerging Chicago artists.Born in New York and raised by a Falun Dafa Buddhist mother, Cathy Hsiao grew up between the US and Taiwan. She holds an MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and a BA from the University of California, Berkeley, and is the recipient of a New Artist Society Merit Fellowship.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418330/kcceqx0yj31cgfyzylsn.gif"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/hive">Hive</a>Opening Thursday, January 30 - U of I, Urbana-ChampaignKrannert Art Museum, University of IllinoisHive&nbsp;is a site-specific sculpture and sound commission by Nancy Davidson and Lakshmi Ramgopal, two artists with distinctive practices collaborating for the first time at Krannert Art Museum.On view for a full year, Hive is housed within and responds to the architecture of KAM’s 1988 Kinkead Pavilion, a postmodern addition to the museum designed by architect Larry Booth.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418331/iql8uj4cxcgxkpxqwvzs.gif"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/ceramic-impressions-etc">Ceramic Impressions, etc.</a>Opening Friday, January 31 - EvanstonSpace 900A one-weekend pop-up exhibition featuring an exciting and mutually empowering collaboration between ceramic artist Mariko Ventura and printmaking artist, Bert Menco.&nbsp;The collaborative effort consists of impressions made into clay by Mariko from wood blocks carved by Bert.&nbsp;&nbsp;In addition the exhibition will include Bert’s paper impressions of the same blocks along with personal ceramic work by Mariko.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418332/u6etacluwges03ce78ao.gif"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/candida-alvarez-air-paintings">Candida Alvarez: Estoy Bien</a>Opening Saturday, February 1 – West TownmoniquemelocheThis is Alvarez’s first exhibition with Monique Meloche and her first solo gallery exhibition in Chicago.The work of Candida Alvarez is imbued with both personal and formal aspects which evolve through her relationship to color, light, and architectural elements.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418333/c1pk7gm6jbr00jd05qw8.gif"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/winter-group-show-featuring-leon-keer-julieta-xlf-li-hill-james-knight-fourhundredml">Winter Group Show featuring Leon Keer, Julieta XLF, Li-Hill, James Knight (FourhundredML)</a>Opening Saturday, February 1 – Ukrainian VillageVertical GalleryAfter a January break, Vertical Gallery presents a special five-artist exhibition for their first exhibition of 2020. The Winter Group Show will feature Leon Keer, Martin Whatson, Julieta XLF, Li-Hill, and James Knight (Fourhundred ML). This five-artist exhibition allows each artist to create a full collection of work to show a range styles.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418334/q0f28t4v0i8hqznvsmsf.gif"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/steve-geer-river-ice">Steve Geer: River Ice</a>Opening Saturday, February 1 - EvanstonPerspective Group + Photography Gallery"Deep in the winter, after the water has lost its summer heat, the surface of the river in Chicago freezes. Sunlight and city lights are reflected from the ice and, when it’s newly washed and wet, the frozen water also reflects the cityscape. It’s magical." ~ Steve Geer&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

Weekend Art Highlights: January 30 - February 1

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418641/wmh0nv2rwzhpieueync3.gif"><figcaption>Judy Bowman</figcaption></figure>ART Is... is an ongoing series for CGN by former intern Riley Yaxley, who seeks to write about underrepresented perspectives and voices in the arts community. This is the fourth installment in the series.&nbsp;By RILEY YAXLEYThe sculpture rests on the battered remains of an ornate, wooden chair, mounted atop a white swan with two legs dangling on either side. On each shoulder of the body fashioned out of found objects, ceramic and plaster birds are perched or in mid-flight, suggesting a figure in angelic repose or alluding to an innate freedom within the subject.Vanessa German’s A Love Poem to Nia Wilson #2 is one of the standout pieces from This Stillness, an exhibition at <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/intuit-the-center-for-intuitive-and-outsider-art">Intuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art</a> curated by Jamillah Hinson. I cannot help but find myself transfixed by the meticulous accumulation of materials bound together to form the regal, delicate figure of the sculpture. The work is on loan from the <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/carl-hammer-gallery">Carl Hammer Gallery</a>, where I would later encounter it again during a private event for Intuit. A Love Poem to Nia Wilson #2 feels at home in both the white cube of Intuit’s galleries and when positioned as a centerpiece in the warm study-like atmosphere of Hammer Gallery.The title of the sculpture refers to Nia Wilson, a black teenager who was stabbed to death by a white man while waiting on a Bay Area Rapid Transit station platform in Oakland, California in 2018. Nia’s death prompted nearly 1,000 people to hold a vigil for an attack that many in the community considered a hate crime. Vanessa German created a number of these “power figures” to represent the secret lives of black girls in America and to show how they save their power and pain to triumph in hostile environments.<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418642/m4slatun7g6pptgnbknk.gif"><figcaption>Vanessa German, A Love Poem to Nia Wilson #2</figcaption></figure>For This Stillness, Jamillah placed the work of Vanessa German in conversation with the work of Detroit-based artist Judy Bowman and painter Tracy Crump, who was represented by famed Chicago gallerist Ann Nathan and now exhibits at Pagoda Red. Jamillah curated This Stillness to explore the complexities of Black girlhood and womanhood and the quiet reflections of self that arise from these circumstances.I first met Jamillah while I was interning at Intuit in 2018. She was the Financial Manager and Assistant to the Executive Director at Intuit but would later leave to work as an office assistant in the Textiles Department at the Art Institute of Chicago. Deb Kerr, the Executive Director at Intuit, remarked to me after Jamillah’s departure that she wished Jamillah would pursue curating rather than working in another administrative position. Deb’s words were not an empty aside. Alison Amick, the Chief Curator at Intuit, approached Jamillah this year to write a proposal for the exhibitionJamillah and I now serve together on Intuit’s Young Professionals Board, an auxiliary leadership group at the museum designed to support Intuit’s mission to celebrate the power of and explore Outsider art as well as spread awareness about the genre. We reconnected at the Young Professionals’ inaugural meeting.*<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418643/tktubr6lqfy3lbx8miiq.gif"><figcaption>Jamillah Hinson</figcaption></figure>I climbed the steep, carpeted stairs to the second floor of Intuit’s unique space. Long folding tables had been set up with neatly laid out materials and bowls of M&amp;M’s. I immediately see Jamillah. She has one of the kindest faces I know, with a broad smile, and dainty glasses that give her an air of quiet, focused intellectualism. During the meeting, she leans forward when she has something to contribute to the discussion and she often laughs after making a precise observation about why something would or wouldn’t work well for the event. A week after the meeting, I sent an email asking Jamillah to interview for CGN, knowing that This Stillness would be opening in a few weeks. She enthusiastically agreed, signing her email with “Bright moments, Jamillah.”We meet at the Goddess and The Baker during my lunch break. I ask Jamillah to give me a brief elevator pitch of This Stillness to begin, and as she describes the aim of the exhibition to survey Black womanhood, girlhood, and adolescence, as well as contemporary assemblage and collage. Both assemblage and collage have a rich history in both Folk art and Black art tradition. She stops herself briefly, self-consciously confessing how “arty” (read: pretentious) she is being.“Oh please, I am constantly at risk of being pretentious.” I say to her.Jamillah’s simultaneous ability to code switch between the vernacular of art theory and everyday conversation is one of the many reasons I admire her work. This skill allows her to curate with an inclusive eye, focusing on collaboration with artists and curators to best present the work so that it is accessible to its audience.Jamillah started curating in Omaha, after graduating from Creighton University with her Bachelors in Art History, Criticism and Conservation, because she recalls she had friends who were making incredible work and she offered, she says, to try and put something together for them, which explains why she describes her curatorial method as very grassroots and cautions herself against becoming too 'professionalized.'Describing her maximalist approach to filling the gallery space, Jamillah explains, “I wanted people to come into the space and feel softly suffocated. I love a salon wall.” This Stillness deviates from Intuit’s usual minimalist curatorial approach, allowing Jamillah to create an overwhelming sensation for visitors as they encounter the abundance of Judy Bowman’s, Tracy Crump’s, and Vanessa German’s work.Jamillah hoped that this experience would elicit a feeling similar to that of growing up Black in America. The array of media—including sculpture, assemblage, and hand drawing—gives visitors the opportunity to admire the works, the broader statements, and themes upon which the pieces are built, or immerse themselves in the nuances and identities that are drawn out and put on display.My interest is immediately piqued when Jamillah points out, “With Judy Bowman I was pushing to see what Intuit considers self-taught art.”I was first introduced to self-taught and intuitive art when I interned for Intuit in 2018, so I am admittedly not an expert on the genre. However, I have always been intrigued with self-taught and intuitive art, especially as technology rapidly alters our social landscapes. Communities and individuals that previously would have been considered “outsiders” can now be connected through digital networks.“I want to be as transparent as possible because that’s how I am,” Jamillah warns me, and I nod affirmatively. As I ask about the process of curating This Stillness, Jamillah alludes to envelope-pushing conversations with Intuit’s board that drew out, but ultimately deepened, the process of bringing the exhibition from proposal to execution.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418644/jhaiel3t6kvusjxl7xtu.gif"><figcaption>Tracy Crump</figcaption></figure>Like most museums, Intuit’s board has an Exhibitions Committee that governs the museum’s exhibitions. Board member perspectives on the genre may be informed by their personal collections and knowledge of art history, which supplements, but not does not replace, the professional expertise of curatorial staff. Feedback from board members to Jamillah’s initial proposal, which included the work of Chicago-based Brittney Leeanne Williams, indicated they were concerned that the aesthetic of Williams’s work was not “Outsider” enough, despite being primarily self-taught after dropping out of the School of the Art Institute a year into her studies. Williams was recently included in Show Me Yours, an exhibition featuring the work of emerging artists at Chicago’s renowned Monique Meloche Gallery.A previous exhibition at Intuit featured the work of Stephen Warde Anderson, who attended the University of Chicago for a year before dropping out to serve in the United States Navy for four years.Intuit, as a leader in the genres of Outsider, Intuitive, and self-taught art, is faced with the challenge of remaining flexible even as these genres shift and are redefined.Jamillah states, “A lot of the planning for this show was trying to help the board understand what they wanted from [my] show. I decided to give them what I think they need.”Despite these ambitious aims in challenging the institution, Jamillah’s biggest concern when planning an exhibition was the artist’s experience. She wanted, she says, for them to be happy at the end of the day, even if they never came to see the show. Judy Bowman did visit from her hometown of Detroit and loved the exhibition, demonstrating Jamillah’s careful attention and stewardship of the artists.Intuit’s Exhibitions Committee initially argued that Bowman’s inclusion in the exhibition may not be a fit with Intuit's program, since she had some formal training, earning a degree in education from Atlanta’s Spelman College and took a few art classes at the time. However, she would not create work for another 35 years following her time in school, when she retired and began crafting multimedia portraits and scenes depicting Black American life in Detroit’s Black Bottom and the South. The Black Bottom neighborhood was demolished in the early 1960’s during the City’s Urban Renewal program to combat “Urban Blight," and the predominantly black neighborhood, as well as Paradise Valley, was replaced by the Chrysler Freeway and Lafayette Park, a mixed-income development designed by Mies van der Rohe as a model neighborhood combining residential townhouses, apartments and high-rises with commercial areas. Many of the residents of these neighborhoods were displaced and moved into public housing.Bowman’s work reimagines an earlier generation heavily inspired by the tradition of collage, assemblage and material work in Black American history. These works offer a “non-traditional” documentation of Black life placed in conversation with the works of Vanessa German and Tracy Crump. Their works are, as Jamillah says, a response to the now, something she thinks should be included more often in Intuit’s programming.As the criteria for Outsider, Intuitive, and self-taught art inevitably shift, museums that exhibit the work of self-taught or intuitive artists will have to remain nimble and capable of change as well. This Stillness represented a new endeavor for Intuit or, as Jamillah suggests, “It may not look like what Intuit has done in the past, but to me it looks like what Intuit can be doing in the future."&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

ART IS… Jamillah Hinson: Outside the Boundaries of Self-Taught Art

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417984/fvpnlxsboqjaibskmiz3.png"><figcaption>Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin West in Scottsdale, Arizona, is photographed in 2018. AP</figcaption></figure><h3>Taliesin, Frank Lloyd Wright' Famed Architecture School to Close</h3>The architecture school that architect Frank Lloyd Wright started nearly 90 years ago is closing, officials announced Tuesday.The School of Architecture at Taliesin, which encompasses Wright properties in Wisconsin and Arizona, will shutter in June. The school’s governing board said in a statement the “gut-wrenching decision” was made after no agreement could be made with the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation to keep operating the school. Specific details about the negotiations between the school and foundation were not disclosed.By AP via Sun Times<a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2020/1/28/21112687/frank-lloyd-wright-architecture-school-to-close-taliesin-arizona">Read More</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417985/pcgh5b0mghfpgm6tlnqc.jpg"><figcaption>© Peggy und Marco Lachmann-Anke</figcaption></figure><h3>Coronavirus crisis: Hong Kong follows China in shutting museums</h3>Hong Kong is indefinitely closing its public museums and leisure facilities in a bid to contain the novel corona virus, or 2019-nCoV, which developed in Wuhan, Hubei Province in late December. Wearing a face mask, Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam also announced yesterday that the special administrative region will be curtailing travel to mainland China, suspending train and ferry services, and limiting flights. Individual travelers will also no longer be able to receive permits to visit Hong Kong from the mainland.By Lisa Movius, The Art Newspaper<a href="https://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/coronavirus">Read More</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417985/qzvijmzfkwon8ilhxeti.png"><figcaption>This is one of a pair of twin 1880s buildings that are part of Pullman Artspace lofts, on opposite ends of the new building. Each has six apartments.&nbsp;</figcaption></figure><h3>Artists are moving into Pullman’s first new homes in decades</h3>The first eight renters have moved in at Pullman Artspace Lofts, a trio of buildings that contain the first new housing built in the onetime factory town in several decades. Another nine will move in Feb. 1.By Dennis Rodkin, Crain's<a href="https://www.chicagobusiness.com/residential-real-estate/artists-are-moving-pullmans-first-new-homes-decades?utm_source=today-s-crain-s&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=20200127&amp;utm_content=article13-readmore">Read More</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417986/om4eieccu0xntwvnhpx8.jpg"><figcaption>Naftali Fürst (2019). © Martin Schoeller.</figcaption></figure><h3>On the 75th Anniversary of the Liberation of Auschwitz, 75 Moving Portraits of Holocaust Survivors Are Going on View in Germany</h3>When two Russian soldiers arrived to the Auschwitz concentration camp on January 27, 1945, the guards were gone but 7,000 survivors remained, including many children. Now, one of those children, Marta Wise, is among 75 subjects in a poignant new photography exhibition that captures the portraits of Holocaust survivors.The show, “Survivors – Faces of Life after the Holocaust,” in Essen, Germany, includes 75 recent photographs by the German-born artist Martin Schoeller.By Kate Brown, Artnet<a href="https://news.artnet.com/exhibitions/75th-anniversary-auschwitz-exhibition-1762671">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

News From Around the Art World: January 28, 2020

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418306/osj8phnrwwtfyk3avu3o.gif"><figcaption>William Conger, Chicago Trails, 43' x 68', 2019</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By GINNY VAN ALYEAEncountering a work of art can, in large part, be about the initial encounter and the first impression it leaves on the viewer. Do you like it, or does it make you uncomfortable? Is it two dimensional or 3D? Large or small? Dark or light? Do you think it's beautiful? Is there a deeper message to interpret? The vast majority of art that you come across tends to be constructed on a relatable scale – a 2' x 4' painting on a gallery wall, or a near life-size sculpture in a park. When art is big – especially when it's really big – the terms of the first impression change. You have to take the art in piece by piece, before you see the big picture.&nbsp;Last summer a collaboration, formed between artist William Conger and real estate developer Robert Koerner, resulted in a large-scale, months-long undertaking to create a work of art that will exist for decades and is sure to be enjoyed by many. I spoke with Conger and Koerner, as well as supporting artist Jeff Zimmerman, to find out how the project came to be and what it was like to bring an idea to life at 43 x 68 feet.&nbsp;The mural, titled Chicago Trails, is the largest work Conger has ever created, and it is located in Lakeview near Clark and Belmont.&nbsp;An edited transcript of our conversation is below.&nbsp;First we spoke with developer Robert Koerner, who selected Conger’s work for the project. Then we followed up with Conger himself. Finally we asked artist Jeff Zimmerman about his process for working so accurately on such a scale, something for which he is highly regarded and well known.Note: CGN was asked in spring of 2019 to provide a list of mural artists for this project, and William Conger was part of that list. This interview is a follow up to share more about the project from start to finish.&nbsp;Robert Koerner, Real Estate Developer&nbsp;CGN: Please share a little about your real estate background.Robert Koerner: I head the Midwest office of Standard Companies, a private investment company that was founded to create, preserve, and improve affordable, workforce, and market rate housing nationwide. Standard is one of the 50 largest affordable housing owners in the country (per Affordable Housing Finance, April 2019) and has acquired a portfolio of over 12,425 apartment units – of which more than 8,600 are affordable. Standard has completed more than $2 billion of multifamily investment, including 11 properties that we own in Illinois.CGN: Have you always been interested in art?&nbsp;RK: I was an Art History major at Brown University, and I have always tried to apply that background in my real estate career, usually focusing on the architectural elements of development. It was particularly gratifying to commission a painting for this project.CGN: What inspired you to make art such a key part of this project in Lakeview?RK: The first unit I saw in the building was a small studio on the lowest floor that faced a blank wall.&nbsp;Every time I walked into that unit (which was understandably vacant!) I tried to think of different ways to make it nicer.&nbsp;Painting a mural outside was a natural solution to turn that blank wall into a positive.<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418307/gmqmd59ckwqedhtub9se.gif"><figcaption>A view from a property unit looking towards the mural</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;CGN: What made you choose William Conger to do the mural?RK: After deciding to proceed with the mural, we had a hard time figuring out how to select an artist. We quickly decided that we wanted a local artist, and eventually concluded that an abstract image would fit the program best. William Conger has a long history in Chicago, which appealed to me, but the formal qualities of his work made the strongest impression.&nbsp;I particularly appreciated the illusion of depth and motion in his painting and felt that would be the perfect antidote to the flat, static wall that was blocking our building’s views. I also was curious to how his work could be transformed onto such a large scale (the finished mural is 43 feet by 68 feet!)CGN: What do you hope residents appreciate about&nbsp;living with this mural?&nbsp;RK: I hope the residents appreciate the thoughtfulness and attention to detail that went into the design.&nbsp;William [Conger] was very deliberate in laying out the mural to fit our building, including a fairly detailed analysis of how each window would face the completed image.&nbsp;Since each unit window reveals only a portion of the mural, William took great pains to ensure that there were “paintings within the painting” that made compositional sense. He also drew inspiration from the building’s location - the work’s title, Chicago Trails, alludes to Chicago’s diagonal streets (such as Clark Street, where our building is located), which echo the original Native American trails.<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418308/x1xbwc4vtvubbylso4s9.gif"></figure>&nbsp;CGN: What were the challenges as well as some exciting elements of making an effort like this happen?RK: One of the fun things about this project was that we hired a second artist, Jeff Zimmerman, to copy and enlarge the painting onto the wall.&nbsp;Jeff painted a mural by Kerry James Marshall onto the outside of the Cultural Center in 2016, and he has done many other murals in the city. William and I were both initially unsure how the finished mural would look, but after several weeks in Jeff’s studio and on scaffolding, Jeff produced a perfect replica of the original oil painting (the painting itself will be displayed prominently in our third floor lobby).I was also concerned we wouldn’t get permission from the neighboring building to paint the mural on their wall, but as it turns out the owners (Craig Knapp and Bill Cline from Meta Properties) are great guys. We have become friends as a result of the mural.&nbsp;William Conger, Commissioned Artist&nbsp;CGN: How did you first approach this project?William Conger: I began the project by consulting with Robert [Koerner], who commissioned it, visiting the site, getting photos, and obtaining architects’ plans for the building with the mural wall as well as for the building of apartments facing it.Then I had to consider the first, and most difficult, challenge of creating a very large work that would be viewed in parts from nearby apartment windows instead of the usual long view for murals. Almost no one would see the completed mural as a whole at one time, and they would need to mentally assemble it from partial views, due to its proximity to the windows facing it.I then began by making sketches and small gouache studies as I centered on the concept of Chicago’s vibrant history, which I’ve long studied.A second challenge was to keep the mural scale in mind as I developed the concept and composition. I made little paper figures, which I attached to my studies, to keep me mindful of the ultimate size of the mural.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418309/raozu6rb6xwxuaoedy7r.gif"><figcaption>An initial ink sketch of mural</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;CGN: What was the inspiration for this work?WC: I wanted to celebrate Chicago’s vibrant history and urbanity. The mural site is on North Clark Street, which traces the old Green Bay Trail, one of the many ancient trails that led to and from the hinterland to the Chicago River and Lakefront. Those trails became busy routes as Chicago’s population and commerce grew so very rapidly. They outlined, cut through, and shaped the many different Chicago neighborhoods where people from every part of the globe come to seek their dreams.As with all my work, the mural, titled Chicago Trails, connects formal abstraction to the world of things and feelings by allusion. Just as abstract shapes always retain some ambiguous reference to other things, so do those things allude to abstract form and to art. As Chicago Trails alludes to the multi-faceted and interconnected energy of urban life, it also invites viewers to perceive their own energy, memories, and feelings as if they were abstract form and color.&nbsp;&nbsp;The lines and bright colors of the mural both connect and divide the overall composition, enabling partial views that nevertheless lead to adjacent areas, forming new centers of interest. While working on the final sketch I imagined it embodying a spirit of free-flowing, figural animation suggesting a shamanistic dance, and maybe jazz, thus celebrating the different cultures intermingle in Chicago, embraced by the city’s architectural rationality.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418310/qpclo3rkvek2a9jkj8s7.jpg"><figcaption>Final sketch, about 7 x 11 inches. Gouache on rag paper, 2019</figcaption></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418311/mo3aajibpmy7dzpzhdet.gif"><figcaption>Scale painting in progress, 43 x 68 inches.&nbsp; Final gouache study on wall, cut-out figures at bottom of painting for size of mural.</figcaption></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418312/fcjqk0nngxjyujrszgfl.gif"><figcaption>Scale painting, 43 x 68 inches, oil on linen, 2019</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;CGN: Tell us about the actual execution of the piece and what it took to get it up on such a large surface.WC: After completing sketches, I made a scale oil painting, 43 x 68 inches, as a model for the mural. Artist Jeff Zimmerman then made large outline drawings of that model, which he traced onto the prepared wall. He mixed quantities of a special outdoor acrylic paint perfectly matching the colors of my model painting.&nbsp; Then he had a scaffold placed and began to paint by hand, replicating my composition. It took Jeff about 6 weeks to complete the mural and then he coated it with a varnish. During his weeks of painting I visited the site and watched the progress and enjoyed talking with Jeff about his process. Since the mural wall is more than 90 feet high, I was glad not to be needed on the scaffold! Yet I could observe Jeff at work through various windows, amazed by his ability to perfectly paint a modulated shape as large as a truck from inches away.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418313/akm9fjb5ejb1wupbkser.jpg"></figure> CGN: What was it like to collaborate with another artist to bring your art to life?WC: It was great working with Jeff! His confidence and skill erased my trepidations about how the enormous size and physical challenges of the mural.&nbsp; He enlarged an image of the mural painting onto large sheets of paper attached to his studio wall. Then he traced the outlines and punctured them with tiny holes. On the mural wall he “pounced” the holes, transferring dotted outlines to it. This laborious transfer process is identical to the method employed by Renaissance mural masters.CGN: What are you working on now?WC: I’m opening a show of new paintings for a solo show on January 24, 2020 at <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/zolla-lieberman-gallery">Zolla/Lieberman Gallery</a>. These are smaller paintings, and somewhat experimental.&nbsp;I also have a plan to begin working on a large fresh canvas, about 7 x 8 feet, that’s been staring at me in my studio for a year! It was fun to do the Chicago Trails mural, and I’m interested in developing its concept in another big painting.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418314/hszjc8mwvhxuiutcxlum.gif"></figure>&nbsp;Jeff Zimmerman, Mural Artist&nbsp;CGN: Please share details about your process for taking a smaller scale work of art and translating it onto a large surface.Jeff Zimmerman: I enlarge anyone’s work, including my own, by “pouncing.” I draw the artwork to scale on paper and use a pounce wheel to transfer the full size drawing onto the wall, where it becomes one big piece of artwork to be painted. It’s the same process Michelangelo used for the ceiling of the <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/videos/category/smithsonian-channel/museum-secrets-revealed-pouncing-on-the-sis/">Sistine Chapel</a>. I also use a special brand of acrylic that’s True Tone. It has enough pigment to last outdoors for a long time. From experience I’ve learned what colors will fade, so I avoid them.CGN: What was it like to collaborate with William Conger?JZ: I’ve collaborated with many other artists, including some other very established and internationally known ones. William was really easy to talk to, which made it easy for him to guide me verbally to achieve his needs. I think it was one of my best collaborations ever.CGN: What else have you been working on?&nbsp;JZ: I’ve got a new body of my own work in my studio, and I created a piece of street art for Hermosa [near Humboldt Park] recently. I’m also prepping for upcoming projects in Lucerne, Switzerland and in Mexico.This past fall I put Andy Warhol’s Orange Marilyn onto the side of 633 N. Michigan Avenue for the Art Institute of Chicago's exhibition (on view through January 26, 2020)&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

Art On the Wall: A Large-Scale Commission Takes William Conger to New Heights

<html><head></head><body>By GINNY VAN ALYEA&nbsp;January is flying by, with another round of openings taking place this coming weekend in multiple neighborhoods throughout the city and behind.&nbsp;Starting Thursday, January 23 and running into Saturday, January 25 a number of spaces open solo as well as group shows to invite the art-loving public in to see what's new. &nbsp;Our overview of highlights from this coming weekend is below, and our full calendar may be <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events?filter=openings">viewed&nbsp;here</a>.See you in the galleries!&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418110/pa4stvftr1zpq7rfm9g9.gif"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/william-conger">William Conger</a>Opening Friday, January 24Zolla/Lieberman GalleryNew works by this established Chicago abstract painter are on view at the gallery, in addition to a show of new works by <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/va-depintor">VA de Pintor</a>.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418111/h7f8r52fj5wdtmvh0vsi.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/harold-mendez-the-years-now">Harold Mendez: The Years Now</a>Opening Friday, January 24Logan CenterLos Angeles–based artist Harold Mendez brings together objects, images, and sounds—all with their own multiple and layered histories—culled from sites across the Americas and spanning from pre-Columbian times to the present. Transformed and reconfigured into poetic assemblages, they evoke the body’s connections to histories of violence and erasure on the one hand and renewal and remembrance on the other. Mendez’s exhibition presents a suite of new sculptures and premieres a new sound installation featuring a found recording in which a speaker contemplates a crisis of identity.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418112/gcehszr0bv49o2bgkaqm.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/return-to-the-everywhere">Return to the Everywhere</a>Opening Friday, January 24Weinberg/Newton GalleryPresented in collaboration with WBEZ Chicago, Chicago’s NPR news station, Return to the Everywhere is the second exhibition in the gallery’s new location in River West. The exhibition considers various modalities of communication in an attempt to grasp the broader implications of our current “post-truth” era.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418113/y9j5ny0nk2znlvfukmtq.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/niu-school-of-art-and-design-faculty-biennial-exhibition-37b033e4-b9cc-4584-b40a-171dd61f40b5">NIU School of Art and Design Faculty Biennial Exhibition</a>Opening Thursday, January 23Northern IL Univ.&nbsp;Presented every two years, this exhibition features recent artwork and scholarship by faculty and teaching staff from all divisions of the NIU School of Art and Design and highlights the artistry, research, and world-class instruction found at NIU.<h3>&nbsp;</h3><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418114/pvlcapndrikkztmvmyvs.jpg"><figcaption>Image: &nbsp;Charles Moore, Fire Hose Aimed at Young Demonstrator, Birmingham, Alabama, May 3, 1963, gelatin silver print. Humana Foundation Endowment for American Art, 2007.031.001</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/snite-salon">Snite Salon</a>Thursday, January 23, 5:30–6:15pmSnite Museum of Art at Univ. of Notre DameSnite Salons encourage close looking and thoughtful conversation with a different work each session. This month, in conjunction with campus Walk the Walk week celebrations, the conversation will focus on Charles Moore's photograph&nbsp;Fire Hose Aimed at Young Demonstrator, Birmingham, Alabama from the Birmingham Campaign on May 3 in 1963. This work will only be on view during this program.<h3>&nbsp;</h3><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418115/w7xwaziwtrcdiud7lwwe.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/2020-wisconsin-artists-biennial">2020 Wisconsin Artists Biennial</a>Opening Saturday, January 25Museum of Wisconsin ArtEvery two years the Museum of Wisconsin Art is privileged to showcase the most compelling, engaging, inventive, and unique art from a state rich in creative capital. The 2020 Wisconsin Artists Biennial is open to all contemporary artists from throughout the state, representing a wide spectrum of media and creative perspectives.&nbsp;&nbsp;Two notable museum shows are ending this weekend, so now is your last chance to catch them before they're gone:<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418116/zyxushkkqw1yvrjvfzaf.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/andy-warhol-from-a-to-b-and-back-again">Andy Warhol—From A to B and Back Again</a>thru January 26The Art Institute of Chicago&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418117/ayrxcdok4lloif8ofn8r.gif"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/direct-messages-art-language-power">Direct Messages: Art, Language &amp; Power</a>thru January 26The Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago (MCA)&nbsp;&nbsp;Top of page key image: Sayward Schoonmaker from Weinberg Newton Gallery's Return to the Everywhere&nbsp;</body></html>

Weekend Art Highlights: January 23–25

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418322/vhjc9gb1exbb1soq07t1.gif"><figcaption>PHOTO: COURTESY OF THE GRAHAM AND PAMELA LEE COLLECTION</figcaption></figure><h3>&nbsp;</h3><h3>Behind the Lens of a Trailblazing Chicago Photojournalist</h3>&nbsp;More than 50 years after his death, the little-known photographer of Chicago’s most historic moments is finally getting his due. From January 24 to March 31, the Poetry Foundation and Newberry Library will celebrate the life of photographer and poet Jun Fujita&nbsp;with a new exhibit entitled Jun Fujita: American Visionary. Believed to be the first Japanese-American photojournalist, Fujita photographed the 1919 race riots, the St. Valentine’s Day massacre, the Eastland Disaster, the 1910 garment workers’ strike, and other pivotal events. His harrowing images have shaped and preserved our understanding of what it means to live in Chicago, warts and all.By Taylor Moore, Chicago Magazine<a href="http://www.chicagomag.com/arts-culture/January-2020/New-exhibition-book-honor-Jun-Fujita-Chicagos-Japanese-American-Renaissance-Man/">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418323/pd9rkij3ufujszmmpzzp.gif"></figure><h3>&nbsp;</h3><h3>EXPO Chicago boosting art collector outreach with new hire</h3>&nbsp;EXPO Chicago, the city’s annual international exposition of contemporary and modern art, is adding a new position, head of VIP Relations and Strategic Initiatives, which will be filled immediately by Eboni Gates. She will be tasked with a job that has become increasingly important in the world of art expositions — cultivating deeper relationships with the fair's most important customer base, serious art collectors.By Lewis Lazare, Chicago Business Journal<a href="https://www.bizjournals.com/chicago/news/2020/01/21/expo-chicago-boosting-art-collector-outreach-with.html">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418324/utsptmkmayf3igpyupzc.gif"><figcaption>The 35,000-square-foot Conservation Center is housed in a 19th century warehouse in Chicago’s West Town neighborhood. &nbsp;</figcaption></figure><h3>&nbsp;</h3><h3>Where to Go to Watch the Paint Dry</h3>&nbsp;In the never-ending quest for engagement in a short attention-span world, museums around the world have long looked for ways to spice up visitor experiences. But as after-hours gatherings and dedicated Instagram experiences continue to take off, a time-honored practice has surprisingly gained traction, and become a destination-worthy draw: conservation, or art restoration, done in the public eye.By Lauren Sloss, The New York Times<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/21/travel/Open-conservation-art-preservation.html">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418326/tnyiojivj0noyirbavj7.gif"></figure><h3>&nbsp;</h3><h3>How Käthe Kollwitz Invented a New Art of Protest</h3>&nbsp;In the days following the death of Qasem Soleimani, protestors scrambled to organize demonstrations against possible war between Iran and the United States. Posters, texts and graphics disseminated across social media. One image, attributed to the Iranian graphic novelist Marjane Satrapi, depicted scores of angry agitators in concise black-and-white lines. ‘NO WAR IN IRAN!’ it read. Shortly thereafter, a friend shared a much older image on his Instagram upon which Satrapi’s drawing could have been based: a 1924 lithograph by the German artist Käthe Kollwitz, first published in an issue of the magazine Socialist Worker Youth. In the print, a boy raises his hands, his mouth agape, as German words in tactile cursive slide over a stark, neutral background: ‘Nie wieder Krieg’ – ‘Never War Again.’By Joseph Henry, Frieze<a href="https://frieze.com/article/how-kathe-kollwitz-invented-new-art-protest">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

News From Around the Art World: January 21, 2020

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418321/l10vxmmqljf8jqagbfc3.jpg"></figure>Via PRCHICAGO (January 15, 2020) – The third edition of the <a href="https://chicagoarchitecturebiennial.org/">Chicago Architecture Biennial</a> closed on January 5 after a season of engaging the city in a discussion on architecture and the built environment. This year’s biennial, titled ...and other such stories, ran September 19, 2019–January 5, 2020 and brought together more than 80 contributors from over 20 countries to explore the way architecture shapes, and is shaped by, culture, history, and nature around the world.The contributors — selected by the Biennial’s curatorial team, Graham Foundation Artistic Director Yesomi Umolu, and co-curators Paulo Tavares and Sepake Angiama — presented works that reflect on architecture as it relates to social, political, and environmental issues worldwide, including issues around property and social housing, the harmful impacts of natural resource extraction, and civil rights and systems of power.Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot remarked, “The Chicago Architecture Biennial is a cornerstone of our city’s cultural programming and underscores the type of conversations and explorations that are truly meaningful to us here in Chicago -- conversations about our shared past, present, and future. The Biennial brought together some terrific contributors from here in Chicago and around the world to address the issues facing us today, and the result was an exhibition that not only garnered interest nationally but engaged us locally.”Many of the commissioned works that met with critical acclaim, including those by MASS Design Group and Forensic Architecture, focused on critical urban issues, while demonstrating how architectural tools and techniques can be galvanized to promote social change. These design projects and others, including the Settler City Colonial Project and FICA, addressed a range of timely movements in collaboration with community groups, activists and families working to create equitable housing, to decolonize cultural institutions, and to address the crisis of gun violence, mass incarceration and climate change, among others.One of these projects -- The Gun Violence Memorial Project -- will remain at the Chicago Cultural Center until early February before traveling to Washington DC for exhibition at the National Building Museum later this spring. A piece that provided a forum for the community to come together, share experiences, and mourn the victims of gun violence, the houses will remain a space for reflection, and StoryCorps will still accept appointments to share experiences until the end of January.“We are proud to have unraveled the complexities and potentialities of Chicago‘s architecture and urbanism with people from all over the city and further afield, who collectively embraced the ideas and projects presented across the 2019 edition of the biennial,” noted Graham Foundation Artistic Director Yesomi Umolu. "Together with over 80 contributors, we brought the diverse perspectives of architects, urbanists, social movements and everyday citizens to the fore and reflected on what constitutes the city today while imagining our built and natural environment in more inclusive and expansive ways."The emphasis on engaging a diverse cross-section of Chicago sites and issues in a global conversation was foregrounded in the constellation of off-site venues -- including (former) Anthony Overton Elementary School, the National Public Housing Museum, the School of the Art Institute at Homan Square, and the Jane Addams Hull House Museum, where contributors from South Africa, Turkey, England, Romania, Puerto Rico, Poland, and Chicago engaged the concerns of a local public through exhibitions, performances, workshops and community celebrations. These curatorial sites, along with the Chicago Cultural Center, once again the Biennial’s main venue, received 246,415 visitors through the exhibition’s run.The Biennial also activated over 120 partner sites and 125 partner organizations across Chicago, producing over 300 exhibitions and public programs in over 50 neighborhoods and communities. This included the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events and Chicago Department of Planning and Development, Art Institute of Chicago, Design Museum of Chicago, Farnsworth House and MAS Context, Garfield Park Conservatory, Graham Foundation, MPEA, Wrightwood 659, Signature Education Partner Chicago Architecture Center, and Aligning Partner EXPO CHICAGO, as well as six Community Anchors: Beverly Arts Center, DePaul Art Museum, Hyde Park Art Center, DuSable Museum of African American History, National Museum of Mexican Art and National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture. Select partner sites contributed another 237,000 in core attendance, extending the Biennial platform throughout the city and region.&nbsp;The Biennial’s total audience across three editions since 2015 is just over 1.5 million visitors, and in 2019, it generated an estimated $42 million in total economic impact to the city.“The exhibits and programs presented by the 2019 Biennial attracted a wide array of audiences—at the Chicago Cultural Center, at neighborhood venues, in schools across the city,” said Biennial Board Chairman Jack Guthman. “Focusing on the intersection of architecture and the social issues affecting the built environment, the exposition gained widespread, favorable media coverage. We are proud that the Biennial, only in its third iteration, continues to position Chicago at the center of the global dialogue about the profession.”The Chicago Architecture Biennial empowered students, teens and families, as well as educators, to use architecture and design as tools for change through engagement at the Chicago Cultural Center, at community sites and in classrooms. In 2019, the education program reached 180 schools and youth organizations through a variety of workshops, tours, youth studios, and other hands-on programming. Nearly 500 students across 81 zip codes participated in two BP Student Ideas Competitions — an opportunity for creative youth in elementary and high school to explore the built environment through design and also the humanities, visual and performing arts, and STEM fields.Learning Initiatives engaged nearly 10,000 visitors of all ages, including through field trips and guided tours for K-12 and university students, public tours, and family-friendly weekend activities. Learning Initiatives staff and volunteers also worked to make the Biennial accessible by offering tours in Spanish, Mandarin and Portuguese; providing interpretive assistance to blind and low vision audiences; and developing educator tools and family guides to help visitors identify common themes within the exhibition.The Biennial also hosted a wide range of performances throughout the run. Opening weekend kicked off with performances by CAMP, Alexandra Pirici, and Jimmy Robert. Regular programming throughout the Biennial included free public programs such as the opening “Land Acknowledgement” with Heather Miller (Wyandotte), Les Begay (Navajo) and Fawn Pochel of the American Indian Center with artists Feather Marsh (Ojibway) and Santiago X (Choushatta); and conversations like “Bauhaus: Through Other Stories” moderated by Art Institute of Chicago curator Alison Fisher and foregrounding the work of Biennial contributor Wendelien van Oldenborgh and artist Barbara Kasten; additionally, the Biennial, coinciding with EXPO CHICAGO, presented the opportunity to explore the intersections between contemporary art and architectural practices through its Dialogue Series.“We were thrilled to see the enthusiastic reception of the Biennial this fall, and to have been a part of so many compelling discussions on the future of the field,” noted Biennial Executive Director Todd Palmer. “We will keep all of these conversations top of mind as we look to the future, and plan for our next edition.”&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

Chicago Architecture Biennial Concludes Third Edition

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418338/ro72tdwwegj84jvgcqvj.png"></figure>Via PRCHICAGO, Illinois – On February 6, the University of Chicago will host the US-China Forum 2020: The Matter of Art. Convened by UChicago Global and UChicago Arts in collaboration with the Smart Museum of Art, this year’s forum explores how China and the United States intersect, interact, and overlap through the arts.The one-day program, which is free and open to the public, features performances, lectures, and in-depth conversations between renowned artists and distinguished UChicago faculty members.&nbsp;From Xu Bing’s experiments in language, to Miao Ying’s playful and complex internet-generated art, to the composition of city soundscapes in Wang Lu’s Urban Inventory, the US-China Forum offers a rare opportunity to hear from some of the most innovative Chinese artists working today and to experience the critical dialogue generated by their work. The Forum takes place from 10am to 7pm at the <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/logan-center-exhibitions">Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts</a>, 915 E. 60th Street, in Chicago.&nbsp;For a complete schedule and registration information, visit <a href="https://global.uchicago.edu/us-china-forum-2020-matter-art">global.uchicago.edu/us-china-forum-2020-matter-art</a>“We are thrilled to bring together this particular group of artists and university faculty who – singly and together – are generating new ways of understanding art and its relationship to our world,” says David Levin, Senior Advisor to the Provost for Arts. “The US-China Forum will introduce audiences to a broad range of topics from re-imagining the sound and bustle of contemporary life, to rethinking our relationship to the internet, to reflecting upon the role of language in our lives. It promises to be an enormously stimulating day.”Wu Hung – the Harrie A. Vanderstappen Distinguished Service Professor of Art History at UChicago, Director of the Center for the Art of East Asia, and Adjunct Curator at the Smart Museum – will deliver the closing keynote address at the US-China Forum. He also co-curated The Allure of Matter, a related art exhibition which opens the next day, February 7, and which is co-presented by the <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/smart-museum-of-art">Smart Museum of Art</a> and <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/alphawood-gallery">Wrightwood 659</a>.The Allure of Matter is the first exhibition partnership between the Smart Museum in Hyde Park and Wrightwood 659 in Lincoln Park. Too large for a single venue, the exhibition takes up the full gallery footprint of both institutions. It opens twenty years after the Smart Museum’s first contemporary Chinese art project with Wu Hung. The works, many monumental in scale, are made from a range of unique and humble materials and explore how conscious material choice has become a symbol of expression for many leading Chinese contemporary artists.This fifth annual US-China Forum at the University of Chicago is sponsored by the China-United States Exchange Foundation, and brings together renowned experts—including scholars and artists from the US and China—for high-level engagements focused on issues of importance to both countries.In addition to the US-China Forum and the events surrounding The Allure of Matter, the Logan Center will host Sifu:&nbsp;An Evening of Cantonese Opera on Tuesday, March 17 at 6:30pm. The tradition of Cantonese opera, with its vivid costumes, distinctive music, and dramatic presentation, has been fostered and developed for over 500 years. For one performance only, opera&nbsp;sifu&nbsp;will present a collection of these canonical stories at the Logan Center through&nbsp;martial arts, acrobatics, acting, and singing, accompanied by traditional Chinese percussion.&nbsp;This event is presented in part by&nbsp;UChicago&nbsp;Global, the Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts, and the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (NY). For ticket pricing and program detail, visit <a href="https://arts.uchicago.edu/visit/uchicago-arts-box-office">the Logan Center Box Office website</a>.&nbsp;</body></html>

University of Chicago to Host US–China Forum on Arts

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418366/paswhbxhburw8yrm1jde.png"></figure>&nbsp;A Communion of Waxwings, a painting and collage by artist Tony Fitzpatrick has been chosen to celebrate the American Birding Association's 2020 Bird of the Year the Cedar Waxwing.Fitzpatrick's work is part of a limited edition of 200 posters, signed by the artist, being sold for $50 to benefit the ABA.In a recent episode of the American Birding Podcast, ABA President Jeffrey Gordon noted the ABA’s first 50 years were about finding and identifying all the birds in the ABA Area, and that the ABA’s second 50 years should be about finding and identifying birders. In that way, perhaps Cedar Waxwing is the perfect Bird of our 51st Year. Famously gregarious, Cedar Waxwings are all about community. They share berries, they congregate at fruiting trees, they even occasionally over-imbibe. Think back to the first time you saw a Cedar Waxwing. For many of us, this may have been a very long time ago indeed, as Cedar Waxwings can be found across the continent and in nearly every corner of the ABA Area.<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418366/ognslhwrz3yqc8ik2lab.jpg"></figure>Tony Fitzpatrick is a Chicago-based artist best known for his multimedia collages, printmaking, paintings, and drawings. Fitzpatrick’s work are inspired by Chicago street culture, cities he has traveled to, children’s books, tattoo designs, and folk art. Fitzpatrick has authored or illustrated eight books of art and poetry, and he is an unabashed bird lover.To announce the choice of the new bird of the year as well as publicly release the poster the ABA held a special celebration of birding on January 12 featuring food, music, and art while helping the ABA help birds and birders.<figure class="image"><img src="https://i1.wp.com/www.aba.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/secret.jpg?resize=179%2C269&amp;ssl=1" alt="" srcset="https://i1.wp.com/www.aba.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/secret.jpg?resize=200%2C300&amp;ssl=1 200w, https://i1.wp.com/www.aba.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/secret.jpg?fit=225%2C338&amp;ssl=1 225w" sizes="100vw" width="179"></figure>&nbsp;Poster details: Actual size 12.5 in x 16.5 in, #100 Cougar smooth cover stock, matte finishPosters are being <a href="https://www.aba.org/store/2020-bird-of-the-year-cedar-waxwing-poster/?fbclid=IwAR0SiuI5G5tja-XjSwfC_6HEIZS8Rzr8yMleWixe5xySw1yws4a7NnALIdk">sold online</a> for $50 through the ABA.&nbsp;</body></html>

Bird is the Word: American Birding Assoc. Picks Work by Tony Fitzpatrick to Celebrate 2020

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418352/djmvzbazm49znbdi5dsn.gif"></figure><h3>&nbsp;</h3><h3>Free Admission Days In 2020 For Chicago Museums</h3>&nbsp;The winter doldrums can best be fought by planning a day out at the museum. Chicago is home to many world renowned museums with many offering the opportunity for you to take in all the sights without making a dent in your wallet.Many Chicago area museums are offering Illinois residents free admission throughout the year. &nbsp;<a href="https://wbbm780.radio.com/articles/free-admission-days-in-2020-for-chicago-museums">Read More</a>Via WBBM News Radio Staff&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418353/ikcyref7hfhqgqgkcqr3.gif"><figcaption>John Soss, Courtesy of Abel Uribe / Chicago Tribune</figcaption></figure><h3>&nbsp;</h3><h3>Maybe the debris found on the lakefront could be art — a Chicago photographer opens ‘On the Beach’</h3> &nbsp;A beach can be a lonely place, particularly in winter. John Soss wanders beaches in every season but does so less frequently when the cold comes, and the snow and the ice bury what he is seeking.What he is seeking are remnants of this world, specifically things that have been lost or tossed or otherwise found their way into the waters of Lake Michigan. Thousands of these things eventually wash up along the shore and Soss grabs some, looks them over and takes a few home, there to arrange together in patterns and take a photo.<a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/ct-ent-beach-artist-kogan-0112-20200108-gb5dfnfeanemnbje7x7qb3uqhy-story.html">Read More</a>By Rick Kogan, Chicago Tribune&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418354/wytgsoxsipqemeem3d0w.gif"></figure><h3>&nbsp;</h3><h3>Zor Zor Zor | Discovering Chicago’s graffiti world, creating art while traveling, and&nbsp;more</h3>&nbsp;This week the Cornerstore spoke with Zor Zor Zor about her discovering Chicago’s graffiti world on her own &amp; navigating her way into shows with prominent graffiti artists early in her career, creating art while traveling, her work with Grace Jane Projects and more.<a href="https://wgnradio.com/2020/01/14/zor-zor-zor-discovering-chicagos-graffiti-world-creating-art-while-traveling-and-more/">Read More</a>By Casera Heining, WGN Radio&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418355/dqamvnb2zrc4c7k2laxb.gif"><figcaption>Olowu, photographed at his boutique in London in 2015.Photo: Getty Images</figcaption></figure><h3>&nbsp;</h3><h3>In a New Exhibition, Designer Duro Olowu Fashions a Portrait of Chicago</h3>&nbsp;“What drives Chicago is still a mystery to me,” says Duro Olowu, speaking by phone from the city’s Museum of Contemporary Art, where lately he’s been pondering such matters as he puts the final touches on the expansive new art exhibition he’s curated, Duro Olowu: Seeing Chicago, opening February 29.<a href="https://www.vogue.com/article/duro-olowu-chicago-exhibition">Read More</a>By Julia Felsenthal, Vogue Magazine&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

News From Around the Art World: January 14, 2020

<html><head></head><body>By CGN StaffSaturday, January 17 features a number of openings taking place in galleries around Chicago and Milwaukee!Our overview of highlights from this coming weekend is below, and our full calendar may be <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events?filter=openings">viewed&nbsp;here</a>.See you in the galleries!&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418335/usp3xw7wqrlnwiszkxp9.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/3rd-midwest-open">3rd Midwest Open</a>Opening Friday, January 17 - PilsenWoman Made GalleryIn her juror statement, Mia Lopez writes: “I was inspired by WMG’s decades of supporting female-identifying artists through refreshing and inclusive exhibitions. Though the selected artists represent a wide variety of perspectives and approaches, they are unified via thoughtful consideration of form and content. From figurative paintings to conceptual photography, abstract sculptures, and myriad media in between, this annual exhibit demonstrates the incredible diversity of artistic practices in the Midwest.”&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418336/tt6b8kumwa6sovtnhh7p.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/meditations-in-an-emergency">Meditations in an Emergency</a>Opening Friday, January 17 - West TownCatherine Edelman GalleryConcurrent with New Formations,&nbsp;Catherine Edelman Gallery is&nbsp;honored to present Meditations in an Emergency, Bettina von Zwehl's&nbsp;latest portrait series inspired by the teenage die-ins that were&nbsp;staged shortly&nbsp;after the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland,&nbsp;Florida. Von Zwehl presents seventeen portraits of New York City teenagers (the&nbsp;result of the&nbsp;first artist-in-residence&nbsp;at the New York Historical&nbsp;Society) in the classic silhouette profile, describing the photographs as death&nbsp;masks sculpted from life. These seventeen portraits honor the number of victims&nbsp;of the&nbsp;school shooting on Valentine's Day, 2018, and serve as a testament to&nbsp;the endurance and practice of protest and teen activism. Presented in a small&nbsp;quiet room on the gallery's lower level, Meditations in&nbsp;an Emergency offers&nbsp;viewers a moment to reflect and think about the power of protest.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418337/wpzaix923gsvnsrdebiu.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/on-the-nature-of-wisconsin">On the Nature of Wisconsin</a>Opening Friday, January 17 - Milwaukee, WIThe WarehouseFeaturing work from the permanent collection, On the Nature of Wisconsin is a celebration of Wisconsin artists and their relationship with the natural world. A state known for its fresh water, forests, and parks, this exhibition examines the connections artists have made and observed with these surroundings. Works included depict sweeping landscapes, quiet farm life, reimagined&nbsp;plants and animals, and objects exemplifying natural forms. &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418337/nak6prae0hogfez4ghfu.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/david-dunlop-landmarked">David Dunlop: Landmarked</a>Opening Friday, January 17 - Milwaukee, WILily Pad Gallery WestDavid Allen Dunlop is a contemporary American painter. His stylized work is characterized by its heavy use of phthalo blue, an intensely blue-green pigment, which he employs to form representational images of city architecture, nature scenes, and figures in motion. Born in 1951, Dunlop received his BA from the College of Wooster in Ohio and MFA from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, NY.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

January 17 Gallery Openings

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721420195/lbfeunv2vzlb6t1iiu9c.png"></figure>VIA PRThe Joyce Foundation announced today that the 2020 Joyce Awards have been awarded to four collaborations between artists of color and arts and cultural organizations in Chicago, Cleveland and the Twin Cities.&nbsp;We are so honored be one of the participating organizations.The <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/hyde-park-art-center-hpac">Hyde Park Art Center</a> will commission visual artist Faheem Majeed to create a monumental artwork, exhibition and programming to commemorate the legacy of the South Side Community Art Center.&nbsp;The $50,000 grants will develop works that engage, educate and challenge while celebrating the diversity in their local communities. This year’s Joyce Awards projects will take an important look at the themes of heritage, history and resilience.HPAC will share more about Faheem's exhibition and programming throughout the year.&nbsp;Click <a href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=0019U7Bbnji4t6padLmx5jLF3AGg9_GUWSdDexnnv3w72iYnVxIutH3fyr_E9RqDqllnTsWJM-V0clO0QzDw6ouG4899bsBnel-pNk25TC3dRmzeuPbCOWWXC4YIq0AZQAS9wZoDTq5a5hDMiWZCR38gC0LEjkulolFoROyG6LL9J49zgiz0bxbXA==&amp;c=lgXeg7T8uN-fsP80xYFU1KTCGRSO_NuTE_dUDME8FMrqLcDvNQjd9A==&amp;ch=m3m70qXtP3ApouZpxBLXPkPJPMH-wZUfZDZ-9jjSLuHDUh-Fny7QoA==">here </a>to see the rest of the 2020 Joyce Awards Winners.The South Side Community Art Center also recently <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/12/south-side-community-art-center-announces-new-exec-dir-and-2-million-gift">named a new Exec. Director. and a $2 million gift</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

Hyde Park Art Center will commission Faheem Majeed to create a monumental artwork to commemorate South Side Community Art Center

<html><head></head><body>By GINNY VAN ALYEA&nbsp;Happy new year and welcome to a new year of art. A round of openings take place this weekend, kicking off the winter art season for 2020 and spanning multiple neighborhoods.&nbsp;Much of the new work on view this weekend is very colorful, as well as a means to consider alternative perspectives of individual artists as well as canonical art history.&nbsp;Friday, January 10 and Saturday, January 11 both feature a number of openings taking place in galleries around the city, from West Town to River North, as well as Michigan Ave. and Hyde Park, as many spaces open solo as well as group shows to invite the art-loving public in to see what's new. &nbsp;Our overview of highlights from this coming weekend is below, and our full calendar may be <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events?filter=openings">viewed&nbsp;here</a>.See you in the galleries!<h3>&nbsp;</h3><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417901/xwkblsusqpmhjibml3v7.gif"><figcaption>Left: William Blake; Right: Beth Foley</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/beth-foley">William Blake + Beth Foley: Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory</a>Opening Friday, January 10Gallery Victor ArmendarizPerhaps inspired by presidential tweets, news headlines, and evidence of a growingly divided country, Foley finds diverse representatives of the American ideal. &nbsp;Also opening at the gallery the same night is &nbsp;a show of Civil War focused paintings by <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/william-blake-beth-foley">William Blake</a>.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417902/cyye7ly2aa7lo9lcs3ud.gif"><figcaption>Tony Davis, Hell Cats (2010)</figcaption></figure><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/down-by-line">Down By Line</a></h3>Opening Friday, January 10One After 909Down by Line highlights the work of four Chicago-based artists with well-established practices independent of art world trends. While Tony Davis, Jason Lamantia, Paul Lamantia and Tom Torluemke create in many mediums, Down by Line focuses on their works on paper. The figure features prominently in this exhibition, which is subsequently rife with human interactions and expressions, exploring violence and conflict, as well as humor and social commentary.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417903/tiwewih94x5qzcwkhe5s.jpg"><figcaption>Robyn O’Neil</figcaption></figure><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/robyn-o-neil-the-tapestries">Robyn O’Neil: The Tapestries</a></h3>Opening Friday, January 10Western ExhibitionsRobyn O’Neil, known for her epic magisterial drawings, will not be showing any drawings for her third show at Western Exhibitions. For the first time in a gallery, O’Neil will be presenting her tapestries, which she sometimes refers to as “yarn drawings.” The woven narratives are just as enigmatic as O’Neil’s drawings, if maybe just a little warmer. The Tapestries opens in Gallery 2, alongside the group show <a href="http://westernexhibitions.com/exhibition/female-trouble/">Female Trouble</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417903/ddh8vgdl2gpv8wqdnckc.jpg"><figcaption>Alicia LaChance</figcaption></figure><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/terrachroma">TerraChroma</a></h3>Opening Friday, January 10Addington GalleryThis show explores various contemporary approaches to landscape painting juxtaposed in the same space with richly optical color-based abstraction. The result is an exhibition of bracing chromatic shifts, rich tactile surfaces, and deep enveloping spaces. Featuring the work of Kathleen Waterloo, Alicia LaChance, Joanne Mattera and many others.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417904/ke6t6gmo1cyz3pbuvsuw.png"><figcaption>A.R. Ammons</figcaption></figure><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/a-r-ammons-watercolors">A.R. Ammons: Watercolors</a></h3>Opening Thursday, January 9Poetry FoundationWell known as one of the most gifted and prolific poets of the modern era, A.R. (Archie Randolph) Ammons was also an abundant painter. A.R. Ammons: Watercolors focuses on Ammons’s abstract watercolors painted during 1977–1979, a time of intense productivity. The abstraction of these watercolors echo those found in Ammons’s poems and offer an expanded understanding of his art.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417905/couvqr4m7mg1ttuufcjf.jpg"><figcaption>Gordon Parks</figcaption></figure><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/gordon-parks-this-land-is-your-land">Gordon Parks: This Land is Your Land</a></h3>Opening Friday, January 10Rhona Hoffman GalleryFocusing particularly on Parks’ images of African American youth, the exhibition This Land Is Your Land includes works from the 1940s to the 1960s, many of which are being shown for the first time.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417906/yhwfqolawyl71fmupix8.png"><figcaption>Luther Konadu</figcaption></figure><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/tentative-photo-luther-konadu">Tentative Photo: Luther Konadu</a></h3>Opening Friday, January 10Filter PhotoLuther Konadu positions his work as one continuous documentary project centering on the way objective visual documentation ostensibly formulates public perception surrounding collective identities and historic record. Photography, with its attendant history, continues to be an evidential entity used to profile, classify, surveil, speculate, and “understand” different subjectivities and communities.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417907/e6q6wslolqnp1ol1js5r.png"><figcaption>Margie Criner</figcaption></figure><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/margie-criner-mind-over-matter">Margie Criner: Mind Over Matter</a></h3>Opening Saturday, January 11Bert Green Fine ArtMargie Criner makes intimate sculptures which contain miniature dioramas, viewable through a small window on one or more sides of the work. Her intention is to stimulate curiosity and discovery — opening up new worlds to anyone who is willing to look. At once charming, disarming, challenging and provocative, these sculptures make one work a little harder at looking, in an effort to make engagement with the artwork more satisfying.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Top image: Paul Lamantia, Tick-Tock, 2019, Drawing and acrylic on paper, 28.75 x 22.5 inches. Part of Down By Line at One After 909&nbsp;</body></html>

2020's New Decade of Art Begins This Weekend 

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417946/tubxzpyxblkysjkq2yq0.gif"></figure>&nbsp;As 2019 comes to a close, we wanted to share some of CGN's top interviews, features and announcements from this past year.&nbsp;We welcomed a new mayor, plus a new art fair, we covered major anniversaries as well as retirements, we profiled several of Chicago's most prolific and interesting artists, and we highlighted a couple of very special art collectors and their collections.&nbsp;Below is a summary of what we want to share with you again before this year ends. We look forward to sharing even more news and events with you in 2020!&nbsp;Happy new year!– Ginny Van Alyea, CGN Publisher&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417947/avxukaxvpewhwxsopiq7.gif"></figure><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/4/30-years-later-the-1989-river-north-fire">30 Years Later: The 1989 River North Fire</a></h3>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417948/ormqnobaotdfmjt9nlfk.jpg"></figure><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/5/a-new-mayor-and-a-new-role-for-the-arts-in-chicago">A New Mayor's Welcome Embrace of the Arts in Chicago</a></h3><h3>&nbsp;</h3><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417949/nchehxo1tlwgvcdeapxv.gif"></figure><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/9/collector-robert-buford-embracing-the-connectivity-of-art">Collector Robert Buford: Embracing the Connectivity of Art</a></h3>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417950/hqwydugw1qtuttm5rnoc.jpg"></figure><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/12/andrew-bae-announces-retirement-after-30-years-in-river-north">Andrew Bae Announces Retirement After 30 Years in River North</a></h3>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417951/rgf1mtoerqoynzydao8y.gif"></figure><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/1/6511e2a7-7a9d-4ec2-8a75-2baeb79ce99e">Tony Fitzpatrick's Second Act</a></h3>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417952/xnrwtzeuqleiv5dis7so.gif"></figure><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/7/money-talks-what-does-it-really-cost-to-make-a-gallery-last">Money Talks: What Does It Really Cost to Make a Gallery Last?</a></h3>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417953/u11yvshmlex0v6esfzrt.gif"></figure><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/9/nada-s-first-chicago-fair-invites-viewers-to-engage-with-art">NADA's First Chicago Fair Invites Viewers to Engage With Art</a></h3>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417954/cdrf6pog3undmofirvzo.gif"></figure><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/9/richard-hull-chicago-s-lasting-impression-on-an-artist">Richard Hull: Chicago's Lasting Impression on an Artist</a></h3>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417955/nn3dupg7h42bwspy9crs.gif"></figure><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/5/stewards-of-art-and-history-the-expansive-collection-of-lee-wesley-and-vicki-granacki">The Expansive Collection of Lee Wesley and Vicki Granacki</a></h3><h3>&nbsp;</h3><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417957/wc9mfgcfoosabhjcmgh9.gif"></figure><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/5/artist-edra-soto-mining-personal-history-to-create-artistic-engagement">Artist Edra Soto: Mining Personal History to Create Artistic Engagement</a></h3>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417958/ugd7r7tj7svjyetpxju5.gif"></figure><h3><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/9/phyllis-bramson-reimagining-imagism-s-chicago-legacy">Phyllis Bramson: Reimagining Imagism's Chicago Legacy</a></h3>&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

CGN's 2019 News Highlights

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417914/mmftindz3a2qahhzc93e.jpg"></figure><h2>Another Benefit to Going to Museums? You May Live Longer</h2>Researchers in Britain found that people who go to museums, the theater and the opera were less likely to die in the study period than those who didn’t.By Maria Cramer, The New York Times<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/22/us/arts-health-effects-ucl-study.html">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417915/pbbhf5fijvbwcvxliltv.jpg"></figure><h2>&nbsp;</h2><h2>What Was the Most Influential Exhibition of the Decade? We Asked Dozens of Art-World Experts for Their Pick</h2>As the turbulent and event-filled 2010s come to an end, we (artnet news) asked more than 100 artists, curators, gallerists, and other art-world figures to tell us their picks of the most influential art and art-makers of the decade. Here is a selection of their responses.Via Artnet News<a href="https://news.artnet.com/art-world/most-influential-show-of-the-decade-1728396">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417916/qoucoabruofb8pua3rje.jpg"></figure><h2>&nbsp;</h2><h2>The colorful creatures in artist Jason Scroggin’s “Massimals” art installation will “hibernate” under the city this winter.</h2>By Mitch Dudek and Jacob Wittich, Chicago Sun Times<a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2019/12/22/21032032/bears-pedway-art-chicago-installation-scroggin">Read More</a>&nbsp;<h2>&nbsp;</h2>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417917/gjhu8ssdzcsqgtirqh0n.jpg"></figure><h2>&nbsp;</h2><h2>These 8 Artists Broke into the Art Market Big Leagues in 2019</h2>Art market headlines were dominated by familiar names in 2019, from Jeff Koons and Claude Monet to KAWS and Banksy. But this year also saw a new set of players achieving major results, from surprising surges into the seven-figure club and sold-out solo presentations in galleries and art fair booths, to repeatedly smashed auction records and power moves onto mega-gallery rosters. These are eight artists who surprised art market observers and broke into the big leagues in 2019.By Benjamin Sutton, Artsy Editorial<a href="https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-8-artists-broke-art-market-big-leagues-2019">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

News From Around the Art World: December 30, 2019

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417870/hhx9vz2ysqd6tllaeecj.gif"></figure>Via PRTwyler Jenkins and Phillip M Gant, Co-Presidents of the Board of Directors announced the appointment of Monique Brinkman-Hill as Executive Director.Following the strong leadership of Masequa Meyers, the <a href="http://www.sscartcenter.org/">South Side Community Art Center</a> is poised for its next chapter having recently been named a National Treasure by the National Trust for Historic Preservation and listed on the National Register of Historic Places.&nbsp;In addition, the Center is slated to receive two million dollars as part of the State of Illinois capital bill to revitalize and expand the Center so it can meet the needs of youth, artists and the community long into the future.Following a three-month search led by Phillip M. Gant, the search committee and Board are pleased that fellow Board member and Interim Executive Director Monique Brinkman-Hill has agreed to serve as the next Executive Director of the South Side Community Art Center. &nbsp;“While we were fortunate to have a number of strong candidates, as a strategic visionary, our next Executive Director Monique will provide strong leadership for the Center as we build on our artist driven exhibition and education programs, prepare to make major physical improvements to the Center with the support of the City, State, and other key funders and celebrate our 80th Anniversary,” said Gant. &nbsp;A SSCAC board member since 2018, Monique is the Founder and Owner of MBH Coaching and Consulting LLC, an Executive Coaching Firm. Monique brings more than two decades of financial services experience and leadership, most recently as a Senior Vice President and Managing Director with Northern Trust.&nbsp; In&nbsp;addition to her membership on the SSCAC Board, Monique sits on the advisory board of Dymund, Inc. and has previously served on the board of the Metropolitan Planning Council and the Anti-Defamation League's Women of Achievement Committee.&nbsp; Passionate about art and an avid collector Monique is excited to lead the South Side Community Art Center into the future.“I am honored to work with the terrific Staff at the SSCAC, our Volunteers, Artists, Curators and my fellow Board members to advance the South Side Community Art Center's forward momentum.&nbsp; I am also super excited to work within an incredible art community as we carry the baton forward and embark on this next chapter for the Center,” said Brinkman-Hill.&nbsp; "I welcome the opportunity to create, collaborate and honor our history while at the same time forging new paths that will help to ensure that our programming continues to celebrate the rich cultural history of Bronzeville, the African American Artist, and the City of Chicago while inspiring and showcasing the next generation of great artists."“Among Monique’s many strengths is her history of organizational leadership including extensive financial, facilities and staff management as well as her strong project management and coaching experience,” said Jenkins. “We are excited that she is bringing these talents as well as her passion for art and artists and clear understanding of the impact that the South Side Community Art Center, its programs, archive, and collection can have in Chicago and beyond to her new role as Executive Director.”The South Side Community Art Center Board will be hosting a reception to welcome Monique in her new role on Thursday, January 23, 2019 from 5:30 – 8 pm at the South Side Community Art Center, 3831 South Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL 60653.&nbsp; All are welcome.&nbsp;ABOUT THE SOUTH SIDE COMMUNITY ART CENTER&nbsp;A pillar of excellence in African American art and culture, the <a href="http://www.sscartcenter.org/">South Side Community Art Center </a>(SSCAC) preserves, conserves and promotes the legacy and future of African American art and artists while educating the community on the value of art and culture.&nbsp; As the oldest independently owned African American art center in the United States, the SSCAC takes pride in its past and present contributions to the development and showcasing of emerging and established artists.&nbsp; An established resource for the art community locally, nationally and abroad, the SSCAC seeks out and educates young artists; exhibits the work of emerging and international recognized artists; presents and hosts a variety of cultural and educational programs and serves as a repository for African American artists, scholars, collectors and the community.The South Side Community Art Center has been instrumental in the careers of many nationally and internationally established African American artists - from the WPA era to the present. Poet Gwendolyn Brooks wrote and taught at the Center; photographer Gordon Parks had his first darkroom in the Center’s basement and Charles White and Elizabeth Catlett shared what they learned from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago with other artists who could not afford the tuition. These names are just a few of the many artists who have contributed to the Center’s rich legacy.&nbsp;</body></html>

South Side Community Art Center Announces New Exec. Dir and $2 million Gift

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417853/b9un8wwc6fhmtkn3dswx.png"><figcaption>Photo of Carrie Johnson by Shelly Mosman, 2019</figcaption></figure>Via PRInterim Executive Director Carrie Johnson has been officially named Executive Director/Curator of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/rockfordartmuseum/?__xts__%5B0%5D=68.ARCYJ461TyNmTMp4otrzta554zpZJL52DvwOZXp6liUF5iqAmUTn7trUXG-AkLsjK9jkN81cK8ZtV6N0pzApNIvlTKb9vFdLRPAvQxLedQoD6QnqLXIPJmXF2gfjxFvC9InDEqmIvo-cNJbGDjW-pzLyHu4pfrQQyUvg6yu5xmTfBb0W9gPLzf1dpgJQv3Q2cSxh_CMjgejsDLyDfHwVFB27FHfrmlkZDDNPSkvqo9lP1CCgBTN5XQdaehl5KcNAooghuQnclYXB8i85eN5H6qFui55FhUFJY8ojD8EMla3-QOw2iSJ79hrGcg2oqpu-1HSo9ZCdFfve0osNBmtTN3Kmny0nkcU40DpMfNYmNWCYuFpa0XBHSg&amp;eid=ARAVzFY7LGZ9JEGWezQx5jCM8U1S9sbao9jtR3PVP_A5PnpowFkTRp78drp73uEwI0EoAFawoulBJQyT">Rockford Art Museum</a> (RAM).&nbsp; Carrie Johnson has been with RAM since 2006, most recently as Curator, leading the development and innovative implementation of exhibitions while overseeing the care for and management of the RAM Permanent Collection. A Rockford native, she has a deep knowledge of the organization and a passion for supporting and working with artists, having also led education department prior to becoming Curator in 2012—a position she has held longer than anyone else in the 106-year-old history of the contemporary art museum. “Carrie’s work to develop connections throughout the art world has brought significant donations of artwork to the RAM Collection, and introduced nationally known artists to our museum and to the Rockford region,” RAM Board President David Boccignone said in an earlier statement. “Her passion for art, education and the community make her a perfect fit to take on the leadership of Rockford Art Museum.”</body></html>

Carrie Johnson named Executive Director of Rockford Art Museum

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417854/mlfjykfzkj4ubux5xttm.jpg"></figure>&nbsp;Maurizio Cattelan’s ‘Comedian,’ AKA the Viral Banana Art, ExplainedThe banana phenomenon is a study in how stories go viral in our hyperconnected world—and how much some love to hate on contemporary art.By artnet<a href="https://news.artnet.com/art-world/maurizio-cattelan-banana-explained-1732773">Read More</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417855/d70jaqedjtq9g4ewbk5o.jpg"></figure>A Gardener Found a Stolen Gustav Klimt Painting—in the Very Building It Was Stolen From'Portrait of a Lady,' pilfered over two decades ago, was found in a black bag and originally mistaken for a sack of trash.By Caroline Elbaor, artnet<a href="https://news.artnet.com/art-world/23-years-theft-gustav-klimt-painting-may-discovered-1729515?utm_content=from_&amp;utm_source=Sailthru&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=US+News+Afternoon+4%3A30+p.m.+for+12%2F11%2F19&amp;utm_term=NEW+US+NEWSLETTER+LIST+%2890+DAY+ENGAGED+ONLY%29&amp;fbclid=IwAR1FGMNF_K7CqPkAxOZWTeiLh4pY7EzptIqIy9W0KthSSZpdpgMASWZLEV0">Read More</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417856/rcx9b7syi9mwdtfo48wu.jpg"></figure>A statue of a black man on a horse has a new home in the heart of the ConfederacyA monument of a young African-American man has found its permanent Virginia home near the Confederate statue it was modeled after. "Rumors of War," by artist Kehinde Wiley was unveiled at Richmond's Virginia Museum of Fine Arts.By Madeline Holcombe, CNN<a href="https://www.cnn.com/style/article/rumors-of-war-monument-virginia-trnd-style/index.html">Read More</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417857/lq9bicacjzgwf9sfcn6x.jpg"></figure>Author Alice Walker Says She Must Sell Bill Traylor Art to Save ItA two-sided work by the self-taught artist and former slave Bill Traylor heads to Christie’s.By Kelly Crow, WSJ<a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/author-alice-walker-says-she-must-sell-artwork-to-save-it-11576252401">Read More</a></body></html>

News From Around the Art World: December 17, 2019

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418716/h2jbms0aebkvpfjwx0lr.gif"></figure>&nbsp;By CGN STAFFBuying art does not have to bust your bank account.&nbsp;CGN is home to hundreds of galleries and art spaces that each have dozens if not hundreds of works of art available—many at totally approachable price points. One of the most common queries we have heard from readers and friends over the years is, especially from those who are starting out and want to build a collection, 'Can you buy good art that doesn't cost a fortune?" Our answer is of course, yes! The challenge is more likely, where do you start?&nbsp;Art buying is very personal, and there are no right or wrong answers for what to buy and live with. But as we have been updating our website with 2020's new listings and shows, we have come across plenty of works of art priced under $1,000. We want to share them as a way to show just what one can expect to purchase in dozens of art spaces in the city and suburbs – each is a small business supporting many artists and creative professionals. We have selected a total of seven approachable works, ranging in price from $75–$1,000, highlighting one gallery from each of our geographic districts (from Michigan Ave. and West Town to the Suburbs). We have relied on prices posted on gallery websites and their (increasingly common) e-commerce sites. We love the conversations we have with dealers and artists in person, but there's no denying the rise of art buying online. In each example posted below, you will NOT find these items on Amazon, making these perfect for yourself as well as for gift giving.&nbsp;&nbsp;Some tips to keep in mind:• There are many factors that go into pricing art, such as the medium (photography and prints vs paintings), the quantity available (in an edition of 25 or a unique work) as well as the reputation of and career stage of the artist (a young, emerging artist vs a contemporary master)• Not all prices are marked when you visit a gallery exhibition or art fair. But that does not mean that you cannot ask for a price, and maybe even discuss a (be reasonable!) discount.&nbsp;• Payment plans are often available. Ask before you buy what the options are.• Explore on your own, and don't hesitate to contact a gallery or artist to get a conversation started.• Use CGN as your guide to learn when shows are happening where and then get out there and look for yourself!&nbsp;&nbsp;<h1>&nbsp;</h1><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418716/khfaacaegnvnk7lnex48.jpg"></figure>JOEL OPPENHEIMER INC. (DOWNTOWN/MICHIGAN AVE.)<a href="https://www.audubonart.com/shop/product/ocb-051-audubon-1st-ed-octavo-pl-51-rough-winged-swallow-7943?page=17&amp;order=list_price+asc">JOHN JAMES AUDUBON&nbsp;</a>1st Ed. Octavo Pl., 51 Rough-winged Swallow1839–1844Hand-colored lithograph, 6 1/2" x 10 1/4" (approx.)$75.00&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418717/a7m0uftppj3gktvwcgjy.jpg"></figure>&nbsp;CHICAGO PRINTMAKERS COLLABORATIVE (NORTH SIDE)<a href="https://www.chicagoprintmakers.com/purchase-prints/">KUMI OBATA&nbsp;</a>Day and Night That Scatter in the Universe9" x 7", color etching$140&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418718/fxnuaknmcfo2vnpivavm.jpg"></figure>VALE CRAFT GALLERY (RIVER NORTH)<a href="https://valecraftgallery.indiemade.com/product/david-huang-luminosity-1686copper-wpatina-sterling-silver-23-karat-gold-leaf-3-x-3-x-3-400">DAVID HUANG</a>Luminosity 1686Copper w/patina, Sterling Silver, 23-Karat gold leaf, 3" x 3" x 3"$400&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418719/kiyhu6fol4lv4kqm0r0m.png"></figure>FLXST CONTEMPORARY (SOUTH SIDE – PILSEN)<a href="https://www.flxst.co/shop/roberto-jamora-notes">ROBERTO JAMORA</a>Notes2019Silkscreen print on cotton rag paper, 15 x 18". Edition size: 20From $500.00&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418721/jhxdnn0ibgbdnw3zzxdx.png"></figure>WANTOOT GALLERY<a href="https://www.wantoot.com/collections/modern-american-art/products/mineral-point">RICHARD ABRAHAM</a>Mineral Point&nbsp;2015Original oil painting painted "en plein air" in Mineral Point, WI. Canvas board in wooden frame19.375" W x 16.375" H$700.00&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418722/zqiokcy37rbnqtqetbh6.jpg"></figure>ART POST GALLERY (SUBURBS – GLENCOE)<a href="https://artpostgallery.com/artists/rath-berger/strawberries/">RATH BERGER</a>StrawberriesOil on wood panel, 12" x 13" (Framed)$990 (Framed) &nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418722/puzyjovwcleffifjfydz.png"></figure>LINE DOT EDITIONS (WEST SIDE)<a href="https://www.linedoteditions.com/products/josh-grotto-80s-woman-with-a-cigarette">JOSH GROTTO</a>80s Woman with a Cigarette2019Mixed Media on Paper, 22" x 29" (26.5" x 33.5" Framed)$ 1,000.00&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img></figure>GALLERY VICTOR ARMENDARIZ (RIVER NORTH)<a href="https://www.galleryvictor.com/jim-rose-steel-furniture">JIM ROSE</a>Structure #210found steel7.50h x 7.25w x 3d in$725 &nbsp;&nbsp;(Also pictured at top of page as key image for article, Josh Grotto: Bonfire of the Vanities, $ 800.00 from Line Dot)&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

Art Picks: Works Under $1,000

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418641/mxiomkttobjwxakw6i7b.gif"></figure>By CGN STAFFFollowing is a list of events and exhibitions that should be on your cultural calendar for 2020. This list represents just a handful of notable shows coming to the Chicago area's museums. From international innovation on display to artistic fashion and two summer blockbusters, there will be a lot to see and talk about in 2020.&nbsp;More exhibitions and events in galleries and museums throughout the region are added to the<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events"> CGN calendar</a> daily, and we will also offer seasonal previews throughout the year.&nbsp;Please sign-up for our <a href="http://lb.benchmarkemail.com//listbuilder/signupnew?om9I%252B75JX6HB6TidKfz3Wv5pwVnAjsSIfmScmCLyVXjtO5iNRn8gS049TyW7spdJ">free newsletters</a> to receive the latest news and events.&nbsp; &nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418642/ao8tcujx1tav1rczpgyw.gif"><figcaption>Image: Lin Tianmiao, Day-Dreamer, 2000, photo courtesy of the artist, © Lin Tianmiao</figcaption></figure><h3>THE ALLURE OF MATTER: MATERIAL ART FROM CHINA</h3>Since the 1980s, Chinese contemporary artists have cultivated intimate relationships with their materials, establishing a framework of interpretation revolving around materiality. Their media ranges from plastic, water, and wood, to hair, gunpowder, and Coca-Cola. The exhibition features 45 monumental works.Feb 7–May 3, 2020Co-presented at the <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/smart-museum-of-art">Smart Museum of Art</a> and <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/alphawood-gallery">Wrightwood 659</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418643/au4og7wsm6kofp1rak7v.gif"><figcaption>Duro Olowu, Spring/Summer 2020, Look 1. Photo: Christina Ebenezer</figcaption></figure><h3>DURO OLOWU: SEEING CHICAGO</h3>Duro Olowu, a Nigerian-born British designer, is internationally recognized for his womens wear label. Characterized by unique fabrics, evocative patterns, and impeccable construction, Olowu’s garments are informed by his international background and curator’s eye. Now Olowu focuses on Chicago’s public and private art collections, including works at the MCA, to curate a show that reimagines relationships between artists and objects. &nbsp;Feb 29–May 3, 2020<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/museum-of-contemporary-art-chicago-mca">Museum of Contemporary Art</a><h3>&nbsp;</h3><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418644/rvmvdsoveawmcagt18dw.gif"></figure><h3> PAR EXCELLENCE REDUX&nbsp;</h3>A commissioned 18-hole artist-designed golf course pays homage to the wildly popular 1988 exhibition Par Excellence at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. The fully playable course will be conceived and fabricated for the Elmhurst Art Museum by a new group of artists, designers, and architects.May 9–Sept 13, 2020<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/elmhurst-art-museum">Elmhurst Art Museum</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418645/w8buabwhfvnlh5f5pjp7.gif"><figcaption>Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn), 1890/91, Claude Monet.Mr. and Mrs. Lewis Larned Coburn Memorial Collection</figcaption></figure><h3>MONET AND CHICAGO</h3>During Claude Monet’s&nbsp; lifetime, Chicago was the American city that most aggressively acquired his work. This exhibition is the first to explore Chicago’s pioneering connection to the great Impressionist artist. Among the more than 65 paintings—from the Art Institute’s holdings and Chicago-based collections—are beloved major works as well as rarely seen still lifes, figural scenes, seascapes, and landscapes.May 10–Sept 7, 2020<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/art-institute-of-chicago">Art Institute of Chicago</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418646/vjtqfga6erdrg7w8qnkw.gif"><figcaption>Thoughtful Frida, Photo by Hulton Archive and Getty Images</figcaption></figure><h3>FRIDA KAHLO 2020</h3>This presentation of the life and works of the artist Frida Kahlo will feature 26 original pieces on loan from the Dolores Olmedo Museum Collection, as well as an immersive historical exhibit that provides a framework of the life, circumstances and events that led to Kahlo becoming one of the most important painters of the 20th century and of our time.Jun 1–Aug 31, 2020<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/cleve-carney-art-gallery-mcaninch-arts-center">Cleve Carney Museum of Art</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

2020: CGN Culture List

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418641/rhnzapqrb973p3lczmzg.gif"><figcaption>Could this be CGN’s publisher, Ginny Van Alyea?</figcaption></figure>By GINNY VAN ALYEAThe caption for the photo shown above reads, “Ginny made a fool of herself in the art gallery by admiring the fire alarm.”&nbsp;A friend gave it to me as a custom birthday card several years ago, and I have it framed and hanging in my office, mostly because it makes me laugh, but also because it’s a reminder that the art world can seem so intimidating to some people that they never fully explore it. For more than 35 years CGN’s mission has been to poke holes in that very perception. Art is about looking, which is why CGN truly wants readers to know that they are always invited to view art and to ask questions about it, and they are encouraged to seek out those who make art as well as champion it.There are currently many situations in our society where people worry about being perceived the wrong way or that what they think may be unpopular. As far as art is concerned, the enigmatic market influences of money, taste, and access can, understandably, lead people to assume that eye-popping auction prices or art fair name dropping mean that the average person could make a fool of himself if they don’t have the right knowledge or connections.I’ve been part of this community since 2002, and I’m honestly still figuring it out. Plenty of things, places and people continue to intimidate me, but I am committed to continually learning about what I like and don’t like as well as what’s current, even when it makes me feel uncomfortable or awkward. Ultimately, my experience, beyond market headlines and in the real world, is among a community of earnest and welcoming artists, dealers and collectors eager to connect through art, regardless of how it is personally interpreted. I’ve become more confident that it doesn’t matter so much what I think, relative to the prevailing consensus, but it matters that I observe and participate, and that I don’t hide out. I don’t even have to wear all black!The Art Institute of Chicago’s fall 2019 exhibition spanning decades of <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2019/10/charting-andy-warhol-from-a-to-b-and-back-again">Andy Warhol’s career</a> demonstrated that artists often see things before others, and we can be the beneficiaries of knowledge offered through their vision. Warhol elevated the mundane to art. He also knew that what you see matters as much as being seen.We live in an intensely visual culture. Nearly everyone today has the tools to create and share their own images, while messages are relayed more rapidly and subject to the collective culture of ‘likes.’ It’s important to see art in person and for yourself – whether in a gallery, museum, or sculpture park – in order to take a break from the content bombardment and to participate in a deeper visual conversation.This is the fourth edition of our CGN Arts Guide, a 164 page invitation to go see art for yourself all year long, from Andy Warhol, to the artist who isn’t a household name yet.Maybe admiring that fire alarm – whatever form it takes – means I am not a fool, I am just slowing down to notice something in an every day detail. After all, everyone is a work in progress.&nbsp;</body></html>

Publisher's Letter: 2020

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418641/ewlbth4efylfweudhzit.gif"><figcaption>Visitors to Addington Gallery during a busy fall opening night</figcaption></figure>By CGN StaffArt walks have long been popular, since they are an inviting and manageable way to visit galleries and art spaces, usually in a single evening.&nbsp;In 2020 there are once again lots of local openings and open studio nights happening throughout the city, in the suburbs and beyond. Some events take place monthly and are named accordingly, while other events take place bi-monthly or quarterly. In every case it is good to <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events?filter=openings">check in with CGN</a> or with individual organizations in advance of your visit in case a certain regular event happens to coincide with a holiday weekend, for instance.&nbsp;2020, because of the leap year (and a presidential election year! And a summer olympics year!) means that some dates which normally would be 'First Friday' are actually on the Second Friday, which is why it's so important to <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events?filter=openings">check the CGN calendar</a> before heading out. Some date change-ups to note: galleries are mostly closed on Friday, January 3 and opening instead on January 10; the same goes for being closed July 3 but opening July 10; closed September 4 but opening on September 11, and so on!With galleries not quite as geographically concentrated as they once were, openings are sometimes spread out too, which can actually makes seeing all the shows a little easier, since you can have your pick of new shows on any given weekend throughout the year. Go to one district one evening and then to another one the following weekend. When there are clusters of openings happening, CGN will often share previews so you know what not to miss.Check out our updated list of regularly occurring walks and open houses below, and plan ahead to enjoy a night (or Saturday morning) out with art. Events are listed in order of when they take place (First Friday, 2nd Friday, 3rd Friday, Saturdays, Monthly, Quarterly and so on) and they take place all over: Chicago, the suburbs and beyond.&nbsp;Contact CGN to add a new event: info@chicagogallerynews.com–&nbsp;&nbsp;CHICAGO &nbsp;• Flat Iron – First Fridays&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 6–10pm. 1579 N. Milwaukee&nbsp;&nbsp; <a href="http://www.wickerparkbucktown.com/">Wickerparkbucktown.com</a>&nbsp;• River North Friday Openings&nbsp;&nbsp; 5–8pm. New shows generally open Jan 10, Mar 6, May 1, Jul 10, Sept 11, Nov 6&nbsp; &nbsp;<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events?district=river-north&amp;filter=openings">CGN District Calendar</a> &nbsp;• Chicago Arts District – 2nd Fridays&nbsp; &nbsp; 6–10pm. S. Halsted/18th St. (Pilsen East)&nbsp; &nbsp; <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/chicago-arts-district--2">Chicagoartsdistrict.org</a> &nbsp;• Fine Arts Building – 2nd Fridays&nbsp;&nbsp; 5–9pm. 410 S. Michigan&nbsp;&nbsp; <a href="https://fineartsbuildingstudios.com/open-studios">Fineartsbuildingstudios.com</a>&nbsp;• Bridgeport Art Center – 3rd Fridays &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Open Studios, 7–10pm&nbsp;&nbsp; 1200 W. 35th St.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/bridgeport-art-center">Bridgeportart.com</a> &nbsp;• Bronzeville Arts District Trolley Tour&nbsp;&nbsp; 3rd Fridays, June–September&nbsp;&nbsp; <a href="https://www.bronzevilleartdistrict.com/">Bronzevilleartdistrict.com</a>&nbsp;• Zhou B Art Center – 3rd Fridays&nbsp;&nbsp; 7–10pm. 1029 W. 35th St.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;<a href="http://www.zhoubartcenter.com/3rd-fridays.html">Zhoubartcenter.com</a> &nbsp;• River North Design District Gallery Walk&nbsp;&nbsp; Friday, September 11.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;Select showrooms and galleries&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;<a href="https://rivernorthdesigndistrict.com/fall-gallery-walk/">Rivernorthdesigndistrict.com</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418642/tyvvtzyatuad1t6p239m.gif"><figcaption>Gallery nights, like Evanston Made’s member mixers, are an ideal way to gather with friends to see art, to meet artists and to tour creative neighborhoods</figcaption></figure>SUBURBS&nbsp;• First Saturdays and Evanston Made&nbsp;&nbsp; Check website for dates and times. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Open studios and more on Chicago’s North Shore.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;<a href="https://evanstonmade.org/">Evanstonmade.org</a>&nbsp;• Oak Park Arts District (OPAD) – 3rd Fridays&nbsp; &nbsp;6–10pm. On Harrison St.&nbsp;&nbsp; <a href="http://oakparkartsdistrict.com/">Oakparkartsdistrict.com</a> &nbsp;MILWAUKEE &nbsp;• Gallery Night and Day MKE&nbsp;&nbsp; Milwaukee, WI – Historic Third Ward&nbsp;&nbsp; Jan 17–18, April 17–18, July 17–18, October 16–17.&nbsp; &nbsp;<a href="https://gallerynightmke.com/">gallerynightmke.com</a>&nbsp;</body></html>

2020 Art Walks

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418641/a1ettp8ald624pzqp1qd.gif"></figure>By CGN STAFF VIA PRThe Chicago Parks Foundation has completed the first phase of the new AIDS Garden Chicago with the unveiling of a specially-commissioned 30-foot-high sculpture,Self-Portrait, by iconic HIV/AIDS activist and artist, the late Keith Haring. AIDS Garden Chicago will be the city’s first public monument to memorialize the early days of Chicago’s HIV epidemic and to honor those who continue to fight against the disease today.&nbsp;The new 2.5-acre public lakefront garden will be located along Lake Michigan just south of Belmont Harbor, at the original location of the ‘Belmont Rocks,’ a space where the local gay community gathered between the 1960s and 1990s.&nbsp;"The fight against HIV/AIDS represents more than a health epidemic: it symbolizes a time in our history when the LGBTQ+ and ally communities came together in the face of tragedy,” said Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot. "We lost countless neighbors and friends and relatives over the years, but we have made significant strides in combatting the virus. What was one of the darkest moments of the 20th&nbsp;century has given way to a blooming garden of hope and love; this new AIDS Garden Chicago will serve as a permanent reminder of how far we have come and as a way to honor those who continue the work of getting to zero new HIV infections.”“The Chicago Parks Foundation is so honored to be a part of this historic and legacy project for the city and all the communities and individuals who have been affected and still are living with HIV/AIDS.&nbsp; We are far from eradicating the disease, but this garden and iconic Keith Haring sculpture will serve as a beacon of hope and unity for all.&nbsp;This is truly a park with a purpose and a message,” said Chicago Parks Foundation Executive Director Willa Lang.<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418642/pbsulmnaz4eluixrkenh.gif"></figure>“We have worked closely with some of our longtime community leaders, held meetings with various community groups and are now excited to start phase one of this overdue project,” said Alderman Tom Tunney (44). “Self-Portrait’s new home at AIDS Garden Chicago, in the 44th Ward, is a small but powerful way to continue talking about the epidemic as we fight to bring both HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths to zero.”Bold, bright green and nearly three stories high, Self-Portrait will be the largest iteration of this popular sculpture that has ever been fabricated, and the Chicago Parks Foundation expects it to be the Garden’s signature anchor and gathering point.&nbsp;Working with the Chicago Park District and designed by landscape architects Design Workshop, AIDS Garden Chicago is set to be complete in 2020 and will include unique areas designed for reflection, education, honor, and pride.&nbsp;Visitors will be guided with markers and milestones through a variety of intimate and collective garden spaces to be coordinated and maintained by community gardeners still in formation. The garden will provide a sensory nature experience, including a grove of Gingko trees and a perennial garden of natural plantings at the entrance. A serpentine path will be the site for future temporary art installations organized by community partners.<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418643/hltjutaf6cc5w4urxs8d.gif"></figure>Self-Portrait is provided to AIDS Garden Chicago through a generous gift from the Keith Haring Foundation with personal financial support from Alderman Tom Tunney that was matched by the Alphawood Foundation Chicago. Chicago's Rosenthal Fine Art facilitated the conversation with the Haring Foundation.Keith Haring (1958-1990) generously contributed his talents and resources to numerous causes. In 1989, Haring established a foundation to ensure that his philanthropic legacy would continue indefinitely. The Keith Haring Foundation supports arts and educational institutions by funding exhibitions, educational programs, and publications that serve to contextualize and illuminate the artist’s work and philosophy.More information on AIDS Garden Chicago can be found at <a href="https://www.aidsgardenchicago.org/">AIDSgardenchicago.org</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;Sculpture credit: Keith Haring Foundation</body></html>

New AIDS Garden Chicago Unveils 30-foot-high lakeside Self-Portrait by Keith Haring 

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417808/ur3apkhiby7hlcadlkuf.gif"></figure><h3>&nbsp;</h3><h3>Franz Schulze, art critic, educator and biographer of Mies van der Rohe and Philip Johnson, dies at 92</h3>&nbsp;Franz Schulze, a prolific Chicago art critic and educator who chronicled the lives and work of two of the 20th century’s most consequential architects, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Philip Johnson, died Monday at the Radford Green assisted living facility in north suburban Lincolnshire.By Blair Kamin, Chicago Tribune<a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-biz-franz-schulze-obituary-kamin-20191210-zajfdzd42zc5rmax6svju4giui-story.html">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417809/qb4saorquudhjuwxlde3.gif"></figure><h3>&nbsp;</h3><h3>A Belgian Collector Is at War With the City of Gary, Indiana, Over a Picasso Model He Found in Their School Gym</h3>&nbsp;The tale begins with a sculpture created for the city of Chicago, and ends with some angry folks in both Brussels, Belgium and Gary, Indiana.By Brian Boucher, artnet news<a href="https://news.artnet.com/art-world/wooden-model-famous-picasso-sculpture-languished-years-school-gym-spurring-auction-drama-midwest-1728693?utm_content=from_&amp;utm_source=Sailthru&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=US%2010%3A40%20a.m.%20newsletter%20for%2012%2F11%2F19&amp;utm_term=New%20US%20Newsletter%20List">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417810/iwbi11tyqehxmmabodui.gif"></figure><h3>&nbsp;</h3><h3>Science illuminates art in Detroit’s celebration of Bruegel’s The Wedding Dance</h3>&nbsp;To mark the 450th anniversary of Pieter Bruegel the Elder’s death, the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA) is showcasing its painting by the Netherlandish master: The Wedding Dance of 1566, acquired in 1930 in a bout of ambitious collecting that helped to vault the museum into world-class ranks.By Nancy Kenney, The Art Newspaper<a href="https://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/science-illuminates-art-in-detroit-s-celebration-of-bruegel-s-wedding-dance">Read More</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

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