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

The Evanston Art Center (EAC) is excited to announce our Call for Art for our 24th Annual Winter Arts &amp; Crafts Expo.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;	&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;The <a href="https://www.evanstonartcenter.org/events/winter-arts-craft-expo-applications" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Winter Arts &amp; Crafts Expo</a> includes original, handmade works of jewelry, ceramics, fiber, metal, glass, painting, photography, mixed media, and more. All proceeds from the Expo will benefit the ongoing exhibition, education, and outreach programs at the Art Center.&nbsp;

24th Annual Winter Arts & Crafts Expo

<h2>An exhibition of artist matchboxes.</h2> December 4-December 23, 2026

General Strike 2

Opening reception:&nbsp;&nbsp;Friday, November 6th -&nbsp;4pm to 7pm Main / South Galleries

David Kroll

Curated by Julie Patarin-Jossec4th Floor Gallery November 20 – December 30, 2026 This anniversary exhibition aims to celebrate four decades of visual sociological practice while fostering dialogue about the future of research, creativity, and social engagement. Through photography, film, mixed media, installation, performance documentation, digital works, and other experimental forms, the exhibition seeks contributions that question established canons and imagine new ways of seeing, knowing, and creating. The exhibition will be presented at Bridgeport Art Center as part of IVSA’s 40th Anniversary celebration, bringing together an international community of artists, researchers, and scholars dedicated to expanding the role of visual practice in understanding social life. Opening receptionFriday, November 20th from 7-10pm&nbsp;

Reflections, Distortions, Subversions: International Visual Sociology Association Exhibition 2026

Exhibition Tour and Discussion with Curator Janine Mileaf and Artist Ann Toebbe: September 14, 6:00–7:00 pm. For more than six decades, Mernet Larsen has been painting. Her representational, yet idiosyncratic, compositions exist largely outside mainstream trends, drawing from 15th-century Italian painting, wide-ranging arts of Asia, media, art theories, and her own memories and photos. Larsen’s subjects range from cafes and cafeterias to bedrooms and meeting rooms, and they capture a sense of the mundane as they nod to pictorial antecedents. By merging various perspectival systems, Larsen generates figures that appear as geometric solids in disorienting contexts. The scenes lack horizons and they refuse to center a viewer. As the artist has written, “I want nonspecific viewpoints, a sense of vertigo, so that you are holding each situation in your mind almost as if you are wearing it.” As a result, her figures can be disproportionately large or small, flattened, or even upside down, allowing them to exist believably in space. Larsen has been the subject of more than 30 solo gallery and museum exhibitions. The current focused retrospective highlights many of her greatest works, emphasizing Larsen’s subjects from everyday life. It includes about 20 paintings made from 1986 to the present belonging to private and public collections, as well as a number of recent works that have yet to be exhibited. The exhibition is scheduled to run from September through December 2026. The exhibition is curated by Janine Mileaf, Executive Director and Chief Curator at The Arts Club of Chicago. Publication: To accompany the exhibition, a fully illustrated catalogue will be published with prose poems by award-winning novelist Lauren Groff and a scholarly essay by New York Times contributor Blake Gopnik.

Exhibition Tour and Discussion with Curator Janine Mileaf and Artist Ann Toebbe

The Museum’s four floors are filled with extraordinary artifacts, as well as paintings, illustrations, and sculptures that interpret the pre-modern&nbsp;and modern healing practices of human civilization. From early practices to today’s revolutionary techniques, the Museum’s collections and exhibits&nbsp;portray the mysteries, breakthroughs, failures, and milestones that have shaped modern surgical science.

Health in Space: Daring to Explore

November 20, 2026 – January 1, 2027 4th Floor Gallery Opening Reception: Friday, November 20, 6:00–9:00 p.m. concurrent with Bridgeport Art Center’s monthly 3rd Friday event! CAVA artists bring their unique perspectives to this juried exhibition, exploring multitudinous contemporary issues through every imaginable artistic method and material. Don’t miss this outstandingand thoughtful showcase of fine art. <a href="https://www.wearecava.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);" target="_blank">www.WeAreCAVA.org</a>

Chicago Alliance of Visual Artists: 2026 Year-End Exhibition

The immersive outdoor light experience&nbsp;ENLIGHTEN at Meijer Gardens Presented by PNC Bank&nbsp;returns with a one-mile illuminated pathway that weaves innovative light displays, music, interactive elements, and the Sculpture Park into a bespoke multisensory outdoor winter experience.

ENLIGHTEN

Free and open to all Sep 10, 2026–Jan 02, 2027 At the Newberry – Hanson Gallery <a href="https://www.newberry.org/calendar/collecting-stories" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Collecting Stories</a>&nbsp;provides a glimpse into the Newberry's collection by exploring how our collection is built. This exhibition will pair&nbsp;recent acquisitions alongside pre-existing items from the collection to&nbsp;show&nbsp;how collecting at the library both enhances our collection and allows us to expand the scope of stories the Newberry&nbsp;can tell.&nbsp;The pairings create their own dynamic that speaks to how this increasingly&nbsp;diverse collection continues to evolve, generating new stories over time. Explore how the new acquisitions add dimension to the Newberry's major collecting areas: American History and CultureAmerican Indian and Indigenous StudiesChicago and the MidwestGenealogy and Local HistoryHistory of the BookMaps, Travel, and ExplorationMedieval, Renaissance, and Early Modern StudiesModern Manuscripts and ArchivesPerformance ArtsPostcardsReligion <h3>CURATORS</h3> Jill Austin, former Vice President of Public Engagement, The Newberry Library.Jo Ellen McKillop Dickie, Reference Services Librarian and Selector for Reference.Jill Gage, Custodian of the John M. Wing Foundation on the History of Printing and Bibliographer for British Literature and History.Will Hansen, Roger and Julie Baskes Vice President for Collection and Library Services, and Curator of Americana.Alison Hinderliter, Lloyd Lewis Curator of Modern Manuscripts and Selector for Modern Music.Analú López,&nbsp;Ayer Librarian and Assistant Curator of American Indian and Indigenous Studies.Matthew Rutherford, Curator of Genealogy and Local History.Suzanne Karr Schmidt, George Amos Poole III Curator of Rare Books and Manuscripts.David Weimer, Robert A. Holland Curator of Maps and Director of the Hermon Dunlap Smith Center for the History of Cartography. <h3>MORE ABOUT THE SPACE</h3> The Hanson Gallery is a small, intimate space. Exhibitions mounted there typically include 12-24 items, allowing visitors a glimpse of what the Newberry’s vast collections have to offer. Hanson exhibitions are often modest thematic presentations that draw from a range of the library's collections or interpretive explorations that are built around single items. Examples of past exhibitions include:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newberry.org/calendar/wheels" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(91, 92, 87);" target="_blank">Wheels</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newberry.org/calendar/indigenous-unbound" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(91, 92, 87);" target="_blank">Indigenous Portraits Unbound</a>. Click&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newberry.org/uploads/files/Wheels_002-1.JPG" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(91, 92, 87);" target="_blank">here</a>&nbsp;to view a photo of the gallery.

Collecting Stories: New Acquisitions at the Newberry

Resisting the Long War: A Revolution of Values

Resisting the Long War: A Revolution of Values

Abbott Pattison: The Figure Forward is an event scheduled from September 12 to January 3. Further details about the event are not provided in the text.

Abbott Pattison: The Figure Forward

Member previews:&nbsp;Sep 4–5, 2026 Sep 6, 2026–Jan 3, 2027 Uncompromising and fearless, Mary Cassatt (1844–1926) traversed a breathtaking artistic path.&nbsp; After training in Philadelphia in the early 1860s, Cassatt traveled to Europe largely on her own to study with noted teachers and experience the continent’s traditional and modern art firsthand. In 1877 she made the daring decision to join the French Impressionists—the only American to exhibit with them. It was in the years following the eighth and final Impressionist group show in 1886 that Cassatt produced some of her most innovative—and now celebrated—compositions.&nbsp;

Mary Cassatt: After Impressionism

New Encaustic Paintings.Late Fall Gallery Walk, 5-8pm.Image: Ocher Skyline 21 x 21, encaustic (wax, oil)

Robin Denevan: From the River

New England…has recently posited itself as a grand signifier in my existence as a jewelry artist. It is learning about New England’s seminal history as the seat of the American Industrial Revolution, the undeniable gravity to the founding of this nation, its growth and ultimate dissolution, and the remnants and detritus that are informing my current work. My formative years were spent in southern California where cultural imprints positioned me in a liminal existence between prejudice and privilege. I am half Black and half White. Living in a middle-class suburb of Los Angeles and visiting my father in socio-economically and racially divided South Central Los Angeles impacted my identity as a young person searching for which culture to occupy and how. Ultimately, I realized the choice itself provided me with a tool of social leverage.&nbsp;—Tanya CraneResponding to her own biracial background, Tanya Crane imbues her enamel, metal, and found object jewelry with reflections on history, resiliency, migration, community, adornment, humanity, identity, family, and heritage.&nbsp;As she considers how traditions shift across space or through time, Crane creates patterns that echo designs of global Indigenous makers. This exhibition features jewelry inspired by historical adornment in RAM’s permanent collection—specifically, incised metal bracelets and neckpieces from West Africa that were used as currency. Objects like this were exchanged within trade or barter networks, not only for local agricultural and luxury products but also in transatlantic slave trade negotiations. This potential compelled Crane to cautiously move forward with her explorations.As she states, “The research for my jewelry encompasses both a response to my immediate landscape and my family stories relative to the impacts of the Great Migration. It is through this lens that I interact with and respond to the museum’s collection, contextualizing that historical work through a contemporary lens and providing a dynamic framework to investigate the past in the present.”Crane’s artwork metaphorically embodies the many layers of human existence—specifically, history, race, class, and culture. Through her practice, she reaches into the past to better understand the present and, potentially, the future. As a contemporary jeweler, Crane centers mark-making, patterns, and material choice to build the content in her individual pieces, and doesn’t shy away from using scale to create bold statements. The sgraffito technique she often employs means she carves through one layer of information to get to another—literally uncovering and exposing what has come before.In 2022, RAM invited Crane—who was teaching at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University, and has since moved back to her home state of California—to consider making work in response to a small selection of historical African pieces in the museum’s collection. Crane’s personal investment in using jewelry to make connections and her stated interest in the history of adornment made her a good candidate for this provocative project—she was ready to consider tackling the metaphorical weight of these metal historical objects that once functioned very differently than they do in a museum collection.<h5> </h5>Tanya Crane received her MFA in Metalsmithing + Jewelry from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and her BFA in Metal from the State University of New York at New Paltz. Crane is an Assistant Professor of 3D Foundations, Jewelry and Sculpture at Long Beach City College. Named a 2024 United States Artist Fellow in Craft, she was selected in 2023 to be an inaugural recipient of the Center for Craft’s Teaching Artist Cohort. Crane was also a recipient of The Doris Prouty Foundation Artist Grant—offered to BIPOC/AAPI women artists in Massachusetts and North Carolina to further their artistic activity and practice. She was the 2018 Society of North American Goldsmith’s Emerging Artist and selected to present at SOFA Chicago, as well as the 2017 winner of the Society of Arts and Crafts–Boston Artist Award.Crane’s work is in the collections of the Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts, Little Rock, AR; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; National Ornamental Metal Museum, Memphis, TN; Philadelphia Art Museum; Springfield Museum of Art, Springfield, OH; Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, CT; and Racine Art Museum.

Tanya Crane: Embodied Histories—Exploring the Legacy of African Jewelry

<a href="https://nmprac.org/exhibitions/three-generations-intertwined-by-lace/" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(13, 13, 13);" target="_blank">Details</a> An Intergenerational Fashion Exhibition Tracing the Evolution of Lace in Puerto Rican Design This March, in celebration of Women’s History Month, the&nbsp;National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture (NMPRAC)&nbsp;proudly presents&nbsp;Three Generations Intertwined by Lace, a spectacular exhibition honoring the artistry, innovation, and global impact of three generations of Puerto Rican designers. Opening to the public on Saturday, March 14, 2026, the exhibition pays tribute to the late&nbsp;Mili Arango, alongside celebrated designers&nbsp;Lisa Cappalli&nbsp;and&nbsp;Cecilia Fernández Cappalli, whose work collectively traces the evolution of lace in Puerto Rican fashion. Curated by&nbsp;Joseph Da’Ponte, President of the Puerto Rican Fashion History Council, the exhibition features more than 50 extraordinary garments that illuminate how lace—long a symbol of elegance, femininity, and craftsmanship—has been preserved, transformed, and reimagined across generations. From Mili Arango’s iconic mid-century silhouettes to Lisa Cappalli’s refined and timeless collections, and now to Cecilia Fernández Cappalli’s contemporary leadership as Creative Director of Cappalli New York, the exhibition tells a powerful story of lineage, mentorship, and innovation. Together, these women have elevated Boricua design onto international stages while remaining rooted in cultural tradition. “This exhibition is a tribute to the beautiful Puerto Rican tradition of lacework—lovingly preserved, reimagined, and carried from our island to the world,” said Veronica Ocasio, Director of Education, Exhibitions, and Programming at NMPRAC. “During Women’s History Month, we proudly honor the artistry, vision, and resilience of the remarkable family of women featured in&nbsp;Three Generations Intertwined by Lace. This exhibition celebrates not only exquisite craftsmanship, but also the enduring, intergenerational power of Puerto Rican creativity that continues to shape homes, fashion, and runways around the world.” For curator Joseph Da’Ponte, the exhibition is both historic and deeply personal. “This exhibition is a testament to three generations who have preserved and transformed the tradition of lace in fashion,” he noted. “Through their work, lace becomes more than fabric—it becomes memory, heritage, and artistic evolution.” As the only Puerto Rican museum in the diaspora, NMPRAC continues its commitment to uplifting Puerto Rican artists, cultural leaders, and creative pioneers.&nbsp;Three Generations Intertwined by Lacepositions fashion as both fine art and cultural archive—an embodiment of resilience, preservation, and legacy.

Three Generations Intertwined by Lace

One of only two Chihuly exhibitions in the world in 2026,&nbsp;CHIHULY at Meijer Gardens Presented by Macatawa Bank&nbsp;is a major exhibition of international significance. The experience spans both the outdoor gardens and indoor Sculpture Galleries, creating a dynamic dialogue between glass, landscape, and architecture.&nbsp;Outdoors, guests will encounter monumental glass sculptures, vibrant&nbsp;Reeds, and striking site-responsive installations that appear to grow from the landscape, amplifying color, light, and form throughout the gardens. Indoors, the separately ticketed gallery exhibition&nbsp;Chihuly: Radiant Forms&nbsp;traces more than 40 years of Dale Chihuly’s creative journey. The exhibition features work from many of his most celebrated series, including&nbsp;Baskets,&nbsp;Macchia,&nbsp;Seaforms,&nbsp;Putti,&nbsp;Ikebana,&nbsp;Persians,&nbsp;Venetians,&nbsp;Cylinders, and&nbsp;Rotolo, along with original drawings that offer insight into his creative process and sources of inspiration.&nbsp;Designed for visitors of all ages,&nbsp;CHIHULY at Meijer Gardens&nbsp;invites both long-term admirers and first-time viewers to experience the work of one of the world’s most influential artists in a setting where art, culture, and nature meet. See&nbsp;<a href="https://u7061146.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.gqh-2BaxUzlo7XKIuSly0rC-2Fc4ce2SDpH5WBMhYM8Lg3vMPQs5XAbZCZ0FrT4y8DV5IAx5_a1zzESVdmgLIQ4rlql6kbXT9QXaGGWYBxHAPtO1QqWO5GLp4idxebnEhHBD62Papsj-2FEMdnG4nN1Qo796g0RxGgCD6tZhe9AwtUHIFq1tAylqDj842HkNV4wYVNY4xw2XiPRSDLBolCKLsmz4mAfXyTKdAWEBNXMZS2HPTyW9tzh76eJPxtoS3TeCfWde-2FWTR36oITD8AJ2o16OioU6rZzSVhUtY-2FQMgnv00UizvWdkF-2F6vDGFX8RjYZ6VxGE9RjaFP3GxOchTBy9JEhqw0aRDSSQKKZ9o5ocAwD09kINSqSLHBx-2FwnUgD-2BEf05TldTsoQY4IIsvjRN-2FDK-2FrtXNjUU2iL2upL7H53VA7YA-2BwQHU-3D" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);" target="_blank">website</a>&nbsp;for related exhibition programming. Tickets go on sale in February.

CHIHULY

Frank Buffalo HydeCourtney M. LeonardNeepa Hyde

Pocket Full of Shells

Fireworks in the Rain explores the coexistence of apparent opposites: fragility and&nbsp;strength, luminosity and weight, monumentality and delicacy. The exhibition seeks to reveal the poetry of contradiction and the beauty found in&nbsp;nuance. Image: Eunseok Han,&nbsp;Necklace, recycled aluminum, sterling silver, copper, agate, 2026.

Fireworks in the Rain

Sep 19, 2026–Jan 18, 2027 Jill Mulleady paints by breathing new life into unseen histories.&nbsp; Drawing from art-historical, cinematic, and literary sources, her memorable images can haunt the viewer long after encountering them. This exhibition—Mulleady’s first solo show at a major museum—brings together approximately 20 paintings by the artist. Mulleady uses various methods including staining, and at times incorporating materials such as copper, to achieve fragile, luminous surfaces that feel impossibly thin yet visually deep, holding tension between flatness and depth. Not limited to canvas or linen, she employs a range of supports, including glass and velvet. The resultant works balance different degrees of transparency and opacity and can be looked at and, sometimes, seen through. Mulleady’s paintings often depict scenes that are enigmatic and dangerous, showing figures at risk or under threat—from appetite, predation, or compulsion. While these ambiguous scenes may imply narratives, they likewise refuse tidy resolutions. Her imagery draws actively on painting lineages—allegory and the Baroque, Symbolist unease, the grotesque—recasting genres and canonical images for the present. In contrast to the purity and rationality of 20th-century modernism, Mulleady prioritizes a tradition in which chaos, instinct, and history drive art making. As Mulleady has said, she works with existing languages in order to invent a new one, and her staged tableaux are particularly resonant within the Art Institute galleries, as they&nbsp;rhyme with many works in the collection that have informed the artist.&nbsp; Jill Mulleady: The Passenger&nbsp;is curated by Giampaolo Bianconi, Dittmer Associate Curator, Modern and Contemporary Art. Image: Maldoror,&nbsp;2025Jill MulleadyCourtesy of the artist and Gladstone. Photography by Nicolas Brasseur

Jill Mulleady: The Passenger

Since the 1980s, the John Michael Kohler Arts Center has built a remarkable collection of Asian textiles, including works from Bengali kantha, Hmong-Miao paj ntaub, and Japanese boro traditions. While these practices developed in different regions and cultures, they share common themes of resourcefulness, care, and storytelling through cloth.<a href="https://us.list-manage.com/pnUEGGLwsr2?e=62e89a6c87&amp;c2id=edfb4aca6fcc01b3e5cc7350834d6f24" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" target="_blank">When Threads Meet, They Speak</a> brings these textile traditions into conversation for the first time, highlighting the connections and distinctions that emerge through their materials, techniques, and histories. Often created by women in rural communities, these works transform worn fabrics into objects of beauty and utility, carrying generations of creativity, resilience, and cultural knowledge within every stitch. <a href="https://us.list-manage.com/xDUrCcgR1W_?e=62e89a6c87&amp;c2id=edfb4aca6fcc01b3e5cc7350834d6f24" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" target="_blank">View the Exhibition</a>

When Threads Meet, They Speak

Bergman Family GalleriesKenzi Shiokava&nbsp;is the first museum solo exhibition dedicated to artist Kenzi Shiokava (b. 1938, Santa Cruz do Rio Pardo, Brazil; d. 2021, Los Angeles), gathering over fifty sculptures made across five decades, from the 1970s to the 2010s. A second-generation Japanese Brazilian, Shiokava departed São Paulo in 1964—narrowly evading the military coup d’état—and relocated to Los Angeles just months prior to the 1965 Watts Riots. After earning a BFA from the Chouinard Art Institute (now California Institute of the Arts) and an MFA from the Otis Art Institute (now Otis College of Art and Design), he spent the next fifty years working with found materials in Los Angeles while serving as a longtime artist-in-residence at the storied Watts Towers Arts Center, where his peers included assemblage artists John Outerbridge, Noah Purifoy and Betye Saar.Through intuitive acts of carving and arranging, Shiokava unearthed what he described as the “inner movement” of discarded objects, revealing their spiritual vitality and reinvigorating them with life. Deeply attuned to his materials, which ranged from telephone poles to plastic toys, Shiokava allowed them to guide his sculptural process, which he compared to archeology—both patient practices of excavation, recovery and revelation. Reflecting the artist’s career-long embrace of wood carving and assemblage, the exhibition is anchored by two core bodies of work: abstract totems meticulously sculpted from wood and enigmatic box installations animated by miniature figurines, dried plants and stones. The exhibition also underscores the transcultural nature of Shiokava’s practice, which melds the aesthetic sensibilities of wood carving in Japan, assemblage in South Los Angeles and multiple belief systems, including Candomblé, Catholicism and Zen Buddhism.Kenzi Shiokava&nbsp;is organized by Nolan Jimbo, Assistant Curator.

Kenzi Shiokava

Explore the many roles animals have played in artistic expression for millennia. Through diverse media, artists depict animals as subjects of labor and companionship, symbols of the natural world, and figures of imagination that blur the boundaries between reality and myth. Organized into three thematic sections—domesticated, wild, and fantastical—Among the Beasts traces how cultural values, environmental perspectives, and storytelling traditions shape these representations.

Among the Beasts: Wild, Tamed & Imagined

<h3>October 31, 2026 – January 31, 2027</h3>Among the Beasts&nbsp;explores the many roles that animals have played in artistic expression for millennia. Through diverse media, artists have depicted animals as subjects of labor and companionship, symbols and recordings of the natural world and spiritual beliefs, and figures of our imagination, traveling between reality and myth. Organized into three thematic sections—wild, domesticated, and fantastical—Among the Beasts&nbsp;traces how cultural values, environmental perspectives, and cultural traditions shape these representations.&nbsp;Drawing entirely from the permanent collection of the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts,&nbsp;Among the Beasts&nbsp;spans centuries, continents, and vast/varied artistic traditions. Ancient pre-Columbian gold pendants, Japanese netsuke, Chinese scrolls, African sculpture, European and American prints, and contemporary paintings and photographs reveal the remarkable diversity of ways animals appear in art. Together, these works demonstrate that animals are far more than artistic subjects—they are a mirror of human beliefs, identity, wonder, and creativity. Across time and place, artists continue to use animals to understand both the world around us and the stories we tell. <a href="https://www.kiarts.org/exhibition/among-the-beasts-wild-tamed-imagined/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Details</a>

Among the Beasts: Wild, Tamed, & Imagined

Cutting and Pasting a World: The Paper Craft of Henry Darger&nbsp;April 22, 2026 to January 31, 2027&nbsp;IAM joins in the celebration of the 250th anniversary celebration of American craft, Handwork 2026, organized by Craft in America, with an exhibition exploring the connection between Henry Darger’s art and traditional American paper crafts. Drawing on research by guest curator and art historian Dr. Mary Trent(College of Charleston), the exhibition illustrates how the turn-of-the-century practices of making paper dolls and paper dollhouse scrapbooks may have influenced Darger’s evolution as an artist and maker. By showcasing both finished artworks and original source materials, the exhibition demonstrates how Darger adapted these humble pastimes into sophisticated methods for constructing large-scale, mixed-media narratives. The exhibition provides context for these crafts within the early 20th-century movement to instill middle-class American "taste" in a burgeoning immigrant population. Likely exposed to these practices within social welfare institutions as a child, Darger ultimately subverted them—transforming decorative domestic crafts into a profound and complex commentary on the vulnerabilities of marginalized children.&nbsp;&nbsp;IAM joins in the celebration of the 250th&nbsp;anniversary celebration of American craft,&nbsp;<a style="color: rgb(70, 120, 134);" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.handwork2026.org/" target="_blank">Handwork 2026</a>,&nbsp;organized by&nbsp;<a style="color: rgb(70, 120, 134);" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.craftinamerica.org/" target="_blank">Craft in America</a>, with an exhibition exploring the connection between Henry Darger’s art and traditional American paper crafts. Drawing on research by guest curator and art historian&nbsp;Dr.&nbsp;Mary Trent (College of Charleston), the exhibition illustrates how the turn-of-the-century practices of making paper dolls and paper dollhouse scrapbooks may have influenced Darger’s evolution as an artist and maker. By showcasing both finished artworks and original source materials, the exhibition demonstrates how Darger adapted these humble pastimes into sophisticated methods for constructing large-scale, mixed-media narratives. The exhibition provides context for these crafts within the early 20th-century movement to instill middle-class American "taste" in a burgeoning immigrant population. Likely exposed to these practices within social welfare institutions as a child, Darger ultimately subverted them—transforming decorative domestic crafts into a profound and complex commentary on the vulnerabilities of marginalized children.&nbsp;

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