What We're Reading: 10/4/21
The Art Institute's Docent Firing Drama in two parts (so far)
• Original editorial from the Chicago Tribune: Editorial: Shame on the Art Institute for summarily canning its volunteer docents
• Response Op-ed from the Chair of the Board of Trustees: Op-ed: The Art Institute — and its critics — must embrace change
Old Town Developers Tap David Adjaye to Design Projects In The Neighborhood
Developers have recruited architect David Adjaye to overhaul several properties in Old Town, including the site of the old Treasure Island Grocery Store.
Adjaye, known for projects like the National Museum of African American History and Culture, was selected to design buildings owned by Fern Hill and Moody Church, a historic non-denominational Christian Church at 1635 N. LaSalle Drive.
Via Block Club
When the filmmaker George Lucas announced his plans to build the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art nearly a decade ago, the idea of “narrative art” seemed as flimsy as a makeshift Hollywood stage set. To many, it simply seemed like a superficial way of grouping the comics, illustration art and Norman Rockwell paintings that Lucas has long collected along with some beloved Star Wars art, costumes and other artefacts from the extensive Lucasfilm Archives.
But these days, with construction of the museum in Los Angeles well under way (the projected opening is in 2023) and a string of recent acquisitions, the museum’s interest in visual storytelling and mythmaking—as well as myth-busting—is evolving. The focus is extending well beyond the fantasy of an innocent white America featured in Rockwell’s work to include art by major Black and Latino artists.
Via The Art Newspaper
Thumbnail image: A docent and tour group consider "American Collectors (Fred and Marcia Weisman), 1968" by David Hockney, in the Modern Wing at the Art Institute of Chicago on Aug. 25, 2014. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)