West Town, Wicker Park, Ukrainian Village, Kinzie Corridor, Humboldt Park

West Town

Wisconsin

IL • MI • IN

West Loop, Fulton Market, East Garfield Park

West Loop and West Side

Evanston, The North Shore, Northern, Western and Southern Suburbs

Suburbs

Old Town, Lincoln Park, Lakeview, Roscoe Village, Bucktown, Wicker Park, Logan Square, Lincoln Square, Ravenswood, Uptown, Edgewater, Andersonville, Rogers Park

North Side

Michigan Avenue, Streeterville, The Gold Coast, The Loop, and South Loop

Michigan Avenue

Pilsen, Bridgeport, Chinatown, plus Hyde Park, Jackson Park/Dorchester, and Bronzeville

South Side

Superior and Franklin streets, West Chicago Ave, and down to Merchandise Mart and the River

River North

This exhibition of watercolors by John David Mooney captures the quiet power of the Irish landscape. Rooted in observation, Mooney's works evoke the elemental qualities of Ireland.

Irish Watercolors by John David Mooney

Join Heritage Auctions for an exceptional reception of American Art, featuring a gallery talk with Director of American Art, Aviva Lehmann, starting promptly at 6 p.m.RSVPs &amp; Inquiries:&nbsp;<a href="mailto:AngelaG@HA.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">AngelaG@HA.com</a>

American Art 

Appraisal Days with Heritage Auctions Specialists

Gallery VICTOR is proud to present&nbsp;Bruno Surdo, a major exhibition of new work by one of Chicago’s most accomplished contemporary figurative painters. Opening April 11 and continuing through May 16, 2026, the exhibition begins with a public reception on Saturday, April 11 from 12–6 PM.For nearly three decades, Gallery VICTOR has represented Surdo, whose work occupies a rare space where the discipline of Old Master painting meets the urgency of contemporary life. Trained in the atelier tradition, Surdo’s practice is rooted in rigorous draftsmanship, anatomical precision, and the technical lineage of Renaissance and Baroque painting. Yet his subjects are unmistakably of our time, charged with psychological intensity and shaped by the social, emotional, and cultural realities of the present.This exhibition offers a sweeping and immersive view into Surdo’s current direction, bringing together monumental multi-figure narratives, intimate portraits, allegorical compositions, and exquisitely rendered anatomical studies. In works such as&nbsp;Crossroads of Time&nbsp;and&nbsp;The Union of Different Skies, Surdo constructs densely populated urban scenes that function as contemporary stages, spaces where anonymity and intimacy collide, and where individuals exist both together and profoundly alone. These compositions recall the grandeur and complexity of historical painting while confronting the fractured nature of modern experience.Alongside these expansive narratives, Surdo turns inward, exploring vulnerability, desire, and emotional exposure through more focused imagery. Paintings such as&nbsp;Daydreamer,&nbsp;Dreams of Hope, and&nbsp;Guardian&nbsp;capture fleeting yet deeply human moments, while works like&nbsp;Martyrdom of Freedom&nbsp;and&nbsp;Venus of America&nbsp;introduce a sharper, more confrontational edge. In these pieces, Surdo engages directly with contemporary cultural tensions, using symbolism and allegory to probe issues of identity, power, and societal fracture.Equally compelling are Surdo’s mythologically inflected works on paper and canvas, including&nbsp;Ganymede’s Seduction,&nbsp;The Harpies, and&nbsp;The Riddle. Drawing from classical sources, these works reframe archetypal narratives through a contemporary psychological lens, collapsing distinctions between myth and lived experience. Here, Surdo’s ongoing dialogue between past and present becomes especially vivid, revealing the enduring relevance of ancient forms in articulating modern consciousness.Throughout the exhibition, Surdo’s technical mastery remains unwavering, but the emotional tenor of the work pushes into increasingly personal and unguarded territory. The paintings reveal an artist deeply engaged with memory, identity, and the complexities of the human condition, unafraid to confront both beauty and disquiet with equal intensity.A second, more intimate presentation,&nbsp;Bruno Surdo: Unfiltered, will take place at the artist’s studio in Evanston on Saturday, May 2 from 12–4 PM. This special event will offer rare insight into Surdo’s process, with a focused exploration of his work centered on the human body and the raw immediacy of direct observation.Bruno Surdo was born in Chicago and has exhibited widely across the United States, with work held in numerous private and public collections. He is also a dedicated teacher and lecturer, recognized for his commitment to sustaining and advancing the tradition of figurative art.Later this year, Gallery VICTOR will present a special exhibition marking the 25th anniversary of 9/11, centered around Surdo’s monumental painting&nbsp;Tragedy, Memory, and Honor. First exhibited at Chicago’s Daley Center, the work stands as one of the artist’s most powerful and unflinching achievements, a deeply moving meditation on collective loss, remembrance, and national identity. Its return to public view offers a rare opportunity to encounter a work that confronts history with both gravity and humanity. <a href="https://galleryvictor.us15.list-manage.com/track/click?u=5e6a1ed366983a0ba9bbe21e1&amp;id=d0c86e304f&amp;e=c95ff8b063" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Off the Wall: In Conversation with Bruno Surdo | April 25, 10 AM - 12 PM</a>

Bruno Surdo: An exhibition in two parts

Zolla/Lieberman Gallery is proud to announce&nbsp;Golden Vision: Zolla/Lieberman Gallery Celebrates 50 Years, a landmark anniversary exhibition honoring five decades of commitment to contemporary art, collecting, and the enduring relationship between artist, audience, and community. Featuring works by 150 artists spanning the gallery's history, the exhibition offers a sweeping reflection on a legacy that has helped define Chicago's cultural landscape.&nbsp;Established through the leadership of Roberta Lieberman and Bob Zolla in 1976, the gallery was founded on the conviction that contemporary art should be publicly accessible and integral to the cultural life of the city. Over the decades, Zolla/Lieberman became one of Chicago's longest-running contemporary galleries and among the first to establish itself in Chicago's now-historic River North neighborhood, helping transform it into one of the country's most vibrant gallery districts.&nbsp;Golden Vision&nbsp;traces ZLG's remarkable journey through a wide-ranging presentation of painting, sculpture, drawing, photography, and mixed media by artists whose work has shaped the gallery's identity from its earliest years to the present day. Historic figures and long-standing gallery relationships appear alongside emerging voices, creating a dynamic conversation across time.&nbsp;Today, under the leadership of William Lieberman and Director Brian Gillham, the gallery continues to evolve while remaining rooted in the values that shaped its founding. As the gallery enters its next chapter,&nbsp;Golden Vision&nbsp;stands as both a celebration of what has been built and what is still to come. Explore The Exhibition: Golden Vision Read CGN's spring 2026 article about Zolla/Lieberman's 50th Anniversary <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/articles/zollalieberman-a-golden-vision-for-a-50th-anniversary" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>

Golden Vision: Zolla/Lieberman Gallery Celebrates 50 Years

The paintings of Chicago artist Joan Holleb occupy an exciting place between between process and image, between poetry and narrative. The material qualities of these&nbsp;works set them apart from most paintings, generating the unexpected effect of slowing down our gaze and causing us to look carefully at the interaction of copper, patina, and paint on the surface of the work.Holleb begins the act of painting by pouring a patina solution on the surface of the copper and letting it run in various directions and oxidize. Typically, this process dictates the direction the composition will develop, and the use of chance and spontaneous activity becomes the foundation for all that follows. Says Holleb: "I actually paint/draw with the patinas and splash them across the metal because I enjoy the uncertainty of what will happen - it creates a challenge as to how to paint the piece."As Holleb develops the work, the paintings become compelling and ambitious meditations on our relationship to the natural world. Holleb uses oil paint to seemingly coax a landscape from the surface of the painting. In some of the recent work, her focus has turned upward, and the light through leaves and branches in the forest has become her subject. "For me, the light in my paintings is not just the light we see with our eyes but is also an allegorical light, something I think we all need every day in our lives to give us hope." Holleb continues: "I want my paintings to vibrate on the wall and I want viewers to have to stop and wonder for a moment, 'What am I looking at?' - I want to encourage them to create their own interpretations."&nbsp;

Joan Holleb: Woodland Tales

Friday evening, July 10, 5 to 8 PM. “All Terrain”, a landscape group show featuring Brooks Anderson, Mark Flickinger, Paula Blackwell, and others. River North Mid-Summer Gallery Walk, 5-8pm. On view through Sept 2nd, 2026.

All Terrain, a landscape group show

Friday evening, September 11, 5 to 8 PM. Misha Goro - Images of the City. River North Fall Gallery Walk, 5-8pm. On view through October 28, 2026.

Misha Goro - Images of the City

Friday evening, November 6, 5 to 8 PM.&nbsp; Robin Denevan - “From the River”, New Encaustic Paintings. Late Fall Gallery Walk, 5-8pm. On view through January 5th, 2027. Image: Ocher Skyline 21 x 21, encaustic (wax, oil)

Calendar

Chicago Gallery News