<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419077/xdomwrqycwykhaetwiiw.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/3rd-friday-open-studios-f387f00d-2836-43c5-b9d2-4e7435319267">3rd Friday Open Studios</a>Friday, June 17, 7 – 10&nbsp;pmBridgeport Art Center&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419078/ndesb1zzoljhnmx4n9ia.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/diversity-inclusivity-celebrating-20-years-with-monique-meloche-gallery">moniquemeloche presents…</a>Exhibition begins June 18Lubeznik Center for the Arts&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419079/v7bz4yg6aou4vgbuyosx.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/michel-andreenko-revisited">Michel Andreenko: Revisited</a>Opening: Saturday, June 18, 4 – 8&nbsp;pmUkrainian Institute of Modern Art (UIMA)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419079/wdi5xxnkund9abcktp6t.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/skin-masks-decolonizing-art-beyond-the-politics-of-visibility">Skin + Masks, Decolonizing Art Beyond the Politics of Visibility</a>Opening: Saturday, June 18, 5 – 9&nbsp;pmKavi Gupta - Elizabeth St.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

New Exhibitions June 15-18 (Part II)

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419077/kzbkwtnkonxpc0grhcfg.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/racine-art-guild-juried-competition-2022">Racine Art Guild Juried Competition 2022</a>Exhibition begins June 15Racine Art Museum&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419078/kf7vtgbswo5ofisgctr8.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/nature-s-blueprints-biomimicry-in-art-and-design">Nature’s Blueprints: Biomimicry in Art and Design</a>Exhibition begins June 17Elmhurst Art Museum&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419078/z1adnwlovgpqalxbef9v.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/visceral-solo-exhibition-by-tamara-wasserman">Visceral: Solo Exhibition by Tamara Wasserman</a>Opening: Friday, June 17, 5 – 9&nbsp;pmOliva Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419079/xlb0iqlh5rugjv9aheec.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/famil-e">famil-E</a>Opening: Friday, June 17, 5:30 – 8&nbsp;pmThe Art Center Highland Park&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419080/dg073kfxz8fmtrfyfdiy.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/roman-villarreal-south-chicago-legacies">Roman Villarreal: South Chicago Legacies</a>Opening: Friday, June 17, 11&nbsp;am – 8&nbsp;pmIntuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

New Exhibitions June 15-18 (Part I)

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419077/wleeadgmgybqvy28hxz1.jpg"><figcaption>Detail views of works by Rebecca Zaragoza, Diane Thodos, James McNeill Mesplé, and Elena Diadenko for Greektown’s Lyre public art exhibit.</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Via PR<a href="https://greektownchicago.org/">Greektown Chicago</a> has opened its new outdoor art exhibit My Painted Lyre: Seeing music in Chicago’s Greektown, with 26 vibrant three-dimensional artworks lining Halsted Street from Monroe to Van Buren Streets now through spring 2023.A map showing the locations of the artworks in Greektown is available <a href="https://acrobat.adobe.com/link/review?uri=urn:aaid:scds:US:7d707423-a3bd-3732-9e3a-ae951aa390f4">HERE</a>. Visit <a href="https://greektownchicago.org/">greektownchicago.org</a> for more information.A diverse group of Chicago artists is celebrating music with personal interpretations of the “lyre,” an ancient Greek instrument reimaginedin a modern-style sculpture. The lyre speaks of music, song, poetry and dance. It also brings to mind the heavens where the constellation Lyra appears in the northern sky. Inspirations for the 26 magnificent artworks come from multiple sources including Greek mythology, history, science and memories of special places. My Painted Lyre is sponsored by Greektown SSA #16, the neighborhood’s business improvement district, in partnership with the Chicago Greektown Educational Foundation.&nbsp;Title of Lyre Artworks &amp; Artist StatementsLyrical Spirit by Arturo Barrera: Inspired by Albin Polasek’s Spirit of Music in Grant Park, Lyrical Spirit is a celebration of music and Greek history. Spirit of Music depicts a tall, bronze, muse holding a lyre. Lyrical Spirit is an abstract approach with simplified geometric figures, representing two different people holding a lyre. The colors used are traditional Greek colors. Many people associate Greek culture with only blue and white because of their country’s flag, and Greek statues with a lack of color. However, many of the ancient Greek sculptures were originally painted colorfully. After years of harsh weather and other effects on Grecian sculptures, the polychromatic finishes fade significantly, if not fully, which gives them a white, or bland, appearance. Lyrical Spirit connects the history of the Greek palette with a celebration of Greek culture in Chicago.&nbsp;Chicago’s Lyre by Juan A. Cano: Inspiration: Love for our city and diversity in music.&nbsp;Day and Night by Elena Diadenko : Two women, Day and Night, are each dressed in traditional Ukrainian outfits and surrounded by the fields of wheat and poppies. They represent the beauty and rich folklore of Ukrainian culture. One of the women (Day) holds a bundle of wheat that represents prosperity and life in Ukraine. Another woman (Night) holds a dove of peace and poppies that speak to the beauty of the land.Symbolic Gestures of the Goddess by Malika Jackson: This work is to honor several of the Greek Goddesses with their symbols: Aphrodite, Hera, Artemis.My Polish Summer by Bonnie Loboda: There is music and movement in the natural world. And it stays long in our memories. I recall the buzzing of insects, the flutter of birds, the dancing of butterflies and the soft sway of flowers (poppies, daisies, cornflowers, dandelions, etc.) in a gentle wind.Three Celestial Hierarchies by Victoria Martin: The Celestial Hierarchies were famously put in order during the fifth century by the theologian Pseudo-Dionysus the Areopagite. The highest level, i.e., the first, contains the beings around the throne of God. My thesis is that these were premonitions for actual objects &amp; shapes discovered in Deep Space 1920 - now. In the second level down are the creator deities. They are explained symbolically but seem to depict what we now know to be true via creation science and evolution. In the third level are the angels that watch over the earth and its inhabitants well known to us via biblical stories.Sun Dance by James McNeill Mesplé: Apollo teaches Orpheus to play the Lyre as Terpsichore (the Muse of Dance) plays her own lyre while dancing!&nbsp; Marsyas challenges Apollo to a music contest, playing sensual Earth Music on his flute for Eurydice’s Sunflower Dance.&nbsp; Apollo plays the classical Music of the Spheres, the heavenly planets themselves, thereby winning the contest.The Grapes of Generosity by Molly McGrath: The grapes of generosity relate to the Greek people. They like the fruit that grows on the vine, help them stay alive and be healthy.Daughter of Athena&nbsp;Κόρη της Αθηνάς by Mark Nelson: Angela Paterakis nurtured many student artists at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Many of her students become teachers and educational leaders embedded throughout the Chicago Public Schools, higher institutions and beyond. Angela’s students greatly appreciated her wisdom, compassion and commitment that often continued into their professional life long after they graduated. Her impact on the world of arts education exponentially grew as she witnessed her network of leaders energize arts in early education and expand equitable opportunities for Chicago’s inner-city kids and beyond.They All Played by Patricia Owsiany: Apollo, as the myth goes, received his lyre from Hermes, the messenger God. It was one of his power symbols. As Apollo played, the Greeks also played. The lyre was one of the most common instruments of Ancient Greece.&nbsp;Now, Henry the 8th was also an accomplished musician who played many instruments, and the lyre was just one of them. In the heavens, the constellation Lyre is composed of Vega, Gamma Lyre, R Lyre, Mu Lyrae Eta and Delta….so even the stars played!!Apolo Ohno by Percent: 500 m: 41.327 (2009) 1000 m: 1:24.500 (2009) 1500 m: 2:11.280 (2003) 3000 m: 4:32.975 (2003)String Theōros by Terry Poulos: The artist draws first upon the Pythagoreans' love of beauty and symmetry in relation to resonance, proportion and certain pleasing melodic tones concerning specific spacing of string instrument ratios (a fifth, a third, etc.).&nbsp; Modern physics redirected that knowledge in the form of String Theory, asserting particles themselves are the emergent product of vibrations of 'quantum threads of interaction' which create what humans perceive as condensed matter (fermionic particle-waves) and light (bosonic particle-waves). The conjecture being that this illusory physical world we inhabit is dependent on the frequency and angular momentum at which said strings resonate and interact.Lyrical by Diane Thodos: This work is inspired by the many lyrical and moving images of lyra players from classical ancient Greek pottery. The emotion and movement of the musicians shows an immediacy created centuries ago that is just as lyrical and expressive in our times.The Castaway by Miss Alex White: Inspired by the 1965 Castaways song, "Liar Liar," this lyre piece is an amalgamation of psychedelia. Oozing with Peter Max pop sensibility, this colorful work echoes mid-century imagery and messages that still resonate today.The Color of Music by Kiki Whitehead: There are few art forms more enchanting than the collision of music and art.&nbsp; Both can be felt deep within your soul. This piece is an abstract form of that beautiful combination beginning with the origins of the lyre.A Woman's Touch by Rebecca Zaragoza: I've depicted a series of women joyfully playing the lyre. Of course, anyone willing can play the instrument. And doing so, they can bring music to our ears and color to our world through harmonious notes and other relationships.&nbsp;Artist BiosArturo Barrera is an educator in the Chicago Public School system.&nbsp;He has been a school Assistant Principal for four years and has enjoyed a career in art education for over 30 years (always encouraging his students to new ways of seeing and thinking). Barrera has a B.F.A. from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago in Art Education; a M.F.A. from Northern Illinois University in printmaking and painting; and a M.A. in&nbsp;Education Administration from Governor State University.Juan A. Cano is a contemporary graffiti artist from Logan Square.&nbsp;He is well-known for his “shattered glass” style. Cano participates in several art exhibitions each year and is an art philanthropist to charitable causes. He especially enjoys working on public art projects. Instagram: @Juan_A_Cano&nbsp;Elena Diadenko was born and raised in Ukraine and immigrated to the United States in 1992. She received her first art degrees from Myrgorod Ceramics College and Lviv National Academy of Arts in Ukraine. Later, Diadenko received two masters’ degrees in interdisciplinary art and art education from Columbia College in Chicago.&nbsp;&nbsp;She has lived and worked in Chicago for 30 years and is currently an art teacher Schurz High School. Diadenko has participated in more than 60 art exhibitions, including solo and group shows, both internationally and in the Chicagoland area. &nbsp;&nbsp;Malika Jackson has exhibited her works widely in both group and solo shows.&nbsp; She currently has a solo show at the Hyde Park Art Center. Jackson received the SPARK Award-2020, completed a six-month residency at the Hyde Park Art Center ‘THE CENTER PROGRAM’ and received commissions for the Ronald McDonald Houses’&nbsp;tribute to the Ryder Cup Tournament. She has shown at the Howard Brown Center, Black Clay at Chicago State, Fast Forward, Rewind: Play, HPAC, Woman Made Gallery, Gallery D’Estees, Noyes Gallery, Museum of Science and Industry, Artropolis at the Merchandise Mart, The Cliff Dwellers and many other venues. She was featured in the film Curators of Dixon; Producing Local Color: Art Networks in Ethnic Chicago, a book by Diane Grams; and South Shore Current magazine with her art on the cover. Jackson has a MFA &amp; BFA from the School of the Art Institute, and further studied at Illinois State University, Normal, IL.&nbsp; She did an Artist tour of France and Italy and completed a ceramic workshop in Tuscany, Italy.Bonnie Loboda began painting as a young child in Poland. Soon after, she learned to embroider and was creating intricate pieces for export. Art remained her passion even after she moved to Chicago in 1994.&nbsp; Over the years, Loboda has stretched her imagination and taught herself new techniques. Today, she paints on glass, canvas, wood, walls and more. Many times, Loboda works well into the night shaping and re-shaping each new artwork.Victoria Martin is a large-scale mystical painter.&nbsp; She combines symbols from new science with illustrations of ancient magical texts. (FYI some of those prayers really work!). She also teaches art as a spiritual praxis at workshops and events. Martin holds a BA in Art Education and an MFA in Performance from the School of the Art Institute, Chicago.James McNeill Mesplé’s art focuses on classically inspired images viewed through the lens of contemporary life.&nbsp; As a child, Mesplé was told stories by his maternal grandfather, drawn from his Osage (Native American) heritage.&nbsp; These other-worldly narratives sparked an interest in Classical Greek myths because both cultures are animistic, seeing Spirit not only in animals and flowers, but in all aspects of life on Earth (Gaia). For 10 years, Mesplé taught art at Francis W. Parker school and spent 10 years teaching at the School of the Art Institute studio program.&nbsp; And he plays the flute. Mesplé was represented for over thirty years by Printworks Gallery in Chicago and is currently with Jackson/Junge Gallery.&nbsp;Molly McGrath has an extensive body of work:&nbsp;collages,&nbsp;children’s (and other) album covers, drawings of Chicago transit system signs, fiber art, painted bottles, portraits of dolls–and Sesame Street memorabilia. Her work directly responds to her environment, with her everyday experiences becoming a starting point.&nbsp;McGrath is an artist at “Project Onward,” a nonprofit studio and gallery in Chicago dedicated to the career development of visual artists with mental and developmental disabilities. Learn more at <a href="http://projectonward.org/">projectonward.org</a>.Mark Nelson was raised in a Navy family overseas and began his formal arts education in the Republic of Panama where he was mentored in painting and live theater. On return to the continental USA, Nelson studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago for a BFA and received an MFA at the University of Illinois in Chicago. His artwork can be found in private and public collections, including a mural at the US Embassy, Republic of Panama. &nbsp;Nelson was&nbsp; awarded many grants and fellowships as an artist and educator from the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs-Office of Fine Arts,&nbsp;Illinois Arts Council, the Golden Apple Foundation, and the Oppenheimer Family Foundation. A resident of Chicago's historic Pilsen neighborhood and arts community, his Gringolandia Studio and home is open annually to the public in participation with the 18th Street Pilsen Open Studios.Patricia Owsiany earned a BA in Fine Arts at Southern Illinois University. She has participated in many shows in Chicago and New York City. Her last solo exhibit was a mini retrospective at Space 900 in Evanston. She was born in Chicago and continues to live and create here.Terry Poulos is a writer, artist, archaeological historian, fractal geometer, and more generally autodidact scientific investigator. Two of his sculptures have been exhibited at the National Hellenic Museum (NHM), and his Net Zero Coin numismatic is in the permanent collection of the British Museum and NHM. His works can be seen at <a href="http://scientiquity.com/">Scientiquity.com</a>&nbsp;PERCENT is a group of artists who are somewhat Asian. Their work is strictly collaborative—no piece created by an individual can bear the collective’s name. Their approach is an attempt to acknowledge the falsehood of purity.Diane Thodos is a Chicago-based artist with a forty-year career in painting and printmaking that emphasizes both abstract expressionism and German expressionism.&nbsp;&nbsp;This comes from her study with Jackson Pollock’s teacher Stanley William&nbsp;Hayter in 1984, and study of the Speck’s German Expressionist print collection at the Milwaukee Art Museum over a 20-year period. Diane's work&nbsp;combines&nbsp;figure&nbsp;and abstraction to create a fertile ground for ever-new compositional and emotionally expressive possibilities.&nbsp;She is a 2002 Pollack-Krasner Grant&nbsp;recipient, has exhibited internationally, and has work in&nbsp;the collections of the Milwaukee Museum of Art, The David and Alfred Smart Museum, the State of Illinois Museum in Chicago, The Illinois Holocaust Museum and The Block Museum of Northwestern University, &nbsp;among many others.Miss Alex White is a&nbsp;Greek American,&nbsp;native Chicagoan, DePaul University MBA, and front woman of the rock'n'roll duo White Mystery. In addition to her career as a full-time musician, Miss Alex White is a multidisciplinary artist whose work spans painting, film, video game design, and drawing.&nbsp; Kiki Whitehead is a first-generation Greek American. Her parents immigrated to Canada before coming to the United States in the 1960’s. She is most recently recognized as the National Chairman of the United Hellenic Voters of America (UHVA), a non-partisan political organization representing the Greek American community where she resides over an Executive Board.&nbsp;Kiki recently illustrated two children’s book “How Does My Mama Know?” and “Ollie Under It.” With a book of her own on the way, Kiki hopes to continue this work into her twilight years.&nbsp;She is currently the Marketing Director for Olympik Signs, Inc., one of the largest sign companies in the Chicago area. But her greatest achievement will always be her beautiful, blended family.Rebecca Zaragoza is an artist engaged in poetry, painting and sculpture. Art in all its varieties, she says, is an expression of feelings.&nbsp; Since we all have them, we can all be artists.Along with an exciting group of professional and emerging Chicago artists, the following ten Chicagoland Greek schools are participating in the Lyre exhibit: Guardian Angel Orthodox Day School, Holy Apostles Greek School, Holy Cross Sophocles Greek School, Koraes Elementary School, Plato Academy, St. Demetrios Pythagoras Children’s Academy, St. Demetrios SOLON Greek School, St. George Greek School, St. John the Baptist Pythagoras Greek School, and St. Spyridon Plutarchos Academy.&nbsp;About Greektown ChicagoGreektown is a dining, nightlife and cultural district located on the Near West Side of Chicago. A popular destination for tourists and Chicago residents alike, Greektown offers the best sampling of Greek heritage outside of Athens—from authentic restaurants, cafes and shops to the National Hellenic Museum and annual Taste of Greektown festival. Greektown Special Service Area #16 is the business improvement district for the neighborhood, administered by sole service provider the West Central Association and guided by a volunteer commission of local business owners, property owners and residents. For more information, visit <a href="https://greektownchicago.org/">greektownchicago.org</a>.Top image: Detail views of works by Rebecca Zaragoza, Diane Thodos, James McNeill Mesplé, and Elena Diadenko for Greektown’s Lyre public art exhibit.&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

My Painted Lyre: Seeing music in Chicago’s Greektown now on view along Halsted Street

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419077/uouhuioksfr8jt7gpdez.jpg"><figcaption>Adam Brooks; 'Freedom Wall'; 1994; enamel on vinyl, publicly-sited installation, Chicago, IL, USADimensions: 72 feet x 15 feet 6 inches.</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.facebook.com/AdamBrooksIOTO">River North Freedom Wall by Adam Brooks Will Soon Disappear</a>Artist Adam Brooks posted on Facebook last week about the coming disappearance of his public work of art that perhaps millions of Brown Line commuters have viewed and wondered about for decades: "Nothing lasts forever, and thus the 28-year run of my ‘Freedom Wall’ project, on the side of the 325 W. Huron building in Chicago, will soon be coming to an end, as the parking lot in front of the building is being developed, and once this building is constructed, ‘Freedom Wall’ will be entombed between this new structure and the existing one. These are the final weeks to see it in person while it is gradually obscured by the impending construction."&nbsp;He thanked Rhona Hoffman, Buzz Ruttenberg, and Henry Landan for their critical roles in realizing the project back in 1993-94 and offered to share a booklet he produced in conjunction with this project in 1994 and send a PDF version, which includes an essay by Susan Snodgrass, as well as a complete listing of all of the names collected, and those who submitted them. E-mail <a href="mailto:adambrooks9@gmail.com?subject=Freedom%20Wall&amp;body=Via%20CGN">adambrooks9@gmail.com</a>The artist says he's looking at ways to create an updated version.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419078/qockfzs4olze1bsokxdx.gif"></figure><a href="https://mailchi.mp/northwestern/studentacquisition2022?e=64540e863b">Block Museum Student Associates select work by Michael Koerner as 2022 Student Acquisition</a>The Block Museum of Art and the 2021-2022 Block Museum Student Associates (BMSA) cohort are pleased to announce the acquisition of photographic prints&nbsp;Blue DNA#1205L – #1201R (2021), Worlds #0318 (2020), and The Beast Diagnosis #8942 (2019) by Illinois-based interdisciplinary artist Michael Koerner.&nbsp;Koerner’s work&nbsp;explores his family history and genetics through small tintypes, using photographic chemistry to assimilate the bursts and biochemical fallout from the atom bomb. The selection is the third annual Block Museum student-led acquisition to the collection, succeeding the 2021 selection of Leonard Suryajaya’s <a href="https://northwestern.us9.list-manage.com/track/click?u=904f932038284b4d9eea69636&amp;id=e2e5470d92&amp;e=64540e863b">Quarantine Blues</a> (2020) and the 2020 selection of Myra Greene’s <a href="https://northwestern.us9.list-manage.com/track/click?u=904f932038284b4d9eea69636&amp;id=3f32fc0cf4&amp;e=64540e863b">Undertone #17, #23, #51</a> (2017-2018). Over the 2021-2022 academic year, BMSA researched potential acquisitions with the&nbsp;primary goal of collecting around the theme of “Earth” while also seeking work that would complement the museum’s collection, connect to the mission, and coincide with curriculum across Northwestern University.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419079/d5mxhplfsacc9bbrwe5l.jpg"><figcaption>Inspired by the city’s St. Patricks’s Day traditions as well as notable sites and sights like Chicago’s Lakefront Trail, baseball fields and the oldest L line , Color Factory's &nbsp;custom green ball pit is a joy whether you’re 2 or 200.</figcaption></figure><a href="https://colorfactory.co/chicago/">Color Factory Opens in Chicago Soon</a>Within each Color Factory location, visitors are invited to experience the joy of color through interactive installations, immersive rooms, and carefully curated moments. The website describes that Color Factory collaborates with artists, art institutions, nonprofits, and brand partners to tell compelling stories that make life just a little more joyful. In Chicago Color Factory will be located on the lower level of Willis Tower, inspired by (some well known) aspects of the city. Edra Soto is one locally-based artist who will be participating.&nbsp;<h3>&nbsp;</h3></body></html>

CGN Art World Recap: 6/7/22

<html><head></head><body>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419077/wbappxynbyon7agcthcx.jpg"><figcaption>Installation view, works by David Klamen</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By ANNA DOBROWOLSKIEnter Gray Gallery’s echoey warehouse on Chicago’s west side. As you approach three rows of stalagmitic sculptures on pedestals, you begin to recognize common objects–a deflated doll head, shoes, frogs, and vaguely familiar tchotchkes–intersecting each other as the sculpture visually tapers to a point.&nbsp;At first glance, David Klamen’s Life Trophies may seem like a departure from his painting practice (or meta-painting practice, for the initiated). However, these ‘sculptures made of sculptures’ bring to the forefront the philosophical questions recurring throughout most of Klamen’s work: “How do we know what we know?” His Life Trophies ask a new question: of what stuff is life made?&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/zEk5I2JVyBUeJchp2iUsOdk8XQeDZRJ0NtBni_lVFiEqy2uQN3IU2SME-qcMYr4T4TGXQ4FuK08RBSD33s0DAjWEgpLD7bEhVyrC2QH-Ei2_qEfAmUq5UFtBr3p0595694MIjMMcnQXQNA5zEA"><figcaption>David Klamen</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;About five years ago Klamen sketched the first prototype for Life Trophies. “When I was making these sketches I was thinking of myself as an accumulation of experiences, memories, and forgotten incidents.” The process of transforming his ‘sketches of heaps of ambiguous elements’ to life is what he ascribes to ‘overflowing gumption’, knowing which artistic rules to break without jeopardizing the structural integrity.&nbsp;From the beginning, he knew that these drawings required a third dimension. “I envisioned them as made out of ceramics. I also knew that they needed to not be found objects.” Though ceramics was terra incognita for the painter at the time, Klamen soon found himself hiring a U-Haul to lug back tons of mostly unused slip cast molds to a COVID–vacated ceramic studio. There, using a combination of slip-casting–a technique of pouring liquid clay into plaster molds–and hand throwing, he began creating individual ceramic objects that he would later stack, fuse, or pitch like a ball. “They are formed in many ways by chance and gravity and contingent relationships,” he says. If a piece did not fit in a regular kiln, Klamen would modify a garbage can and unrestrainedly throw in slip cast pieces for bisque firing.&nbsp;Because he was able to reuse some of the molds, we can recognize the same shape (ie. sparrow, asparagus, worm; one visitor remarked that the gaping frog crowning one of the sculptures was also a soap-dish) in a different piece, a new iteration, severed, reattached and so on–an artistic experiment of assembly akin to young Frankenstein fabricating his creature. “I'm not premeditating. I’m discovering it as it’s being made. I allow them to be constructed out of all of these broken and bent elements,” Klamen says. Sometimes it seems like the only thing fusing the objects together is the glaze, which ranges from a highly reflective chrome to painted greenware.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/CN1Iw4XwY0lDy-k96MDV5iI9E9VLRcXeqObVlW9D7YeGIblDiX73uRIWydTsKgMGrBG9c6zCicEkRyh0fd12D5N6EIb4WMCJDOEOWbbrCVzzk7k4rAgHZh-Kf50ifb1l9S9r96dFGa9vgtsLMQ"><figcaption>David Klamen, Untitled, 2021–22, Glazed stoneware, Dimensions variable</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;“The final resolution of these pieces takes place with trying to find the right answer to what goes on top,” he continues. “It’s usually something that has a sense of appreciation and commemorates the present moment of finishing the piece.”&nbsp;Lodged in one of the sculptures, a candle drips wax over the sculpture's royal-icing glaze. At exactly 7pm on the night of the opening, a member of the gallery’s staff swiftly blows it out, a universal signal that the party is over.&nbsp;**&nbsp;CGN: Can you tell me more about your sketches for Life Trophies. How did they evolve into this new body of work?DK: The first sketches were made 5 years ago, and the first piece was made somewhere around 4-5 years ago. Most of the works were made in the last two years when I had complete access to a vacant ceramics department in Indiana. Throughout this time I’ve continued my painting practice, but this has really grown into a meaningful part of my creative effort.&nbsp;In my painting practice, I have experience visualizing things without needing to make sketches, but this was far enough outside of my artist vocabulary that they required me to sit down and sketch the idea. They solidified what was in my head and made sense. Once that happened I knew that I needed to make something.CGN: You mention that your paintings tend to be more meditative, ‘almost quiet,’ whereas these sculptures require some degree of collaboration, spontaneity and looseness. What links the two practices together for you?DK: In my mind all of my work revolves around this consistent interest I have in exploring answers to the question of ‘how we know what we know’ and then testing different historical answers. Some of my paintings have been linked to empiricism or Eastern methods such as daimoku that suggest that we gain wisdom and enlightenment through repetitive chanting or memory and introspection. Even Op-art, which might suggest that some knowledge is a purely optical experience. These sculptures derive from that, of me trying to answer the question: how do I reconcile the complexity of my thoughts with this one moment that appears in my brain and consciousness?&nbsp;CGN: You take great care into what goes on top of the sculpture. What do we know about Trophies?&nbsp;DK: I think of Life Trophies as a metaphor for accumulated experiences and memories that are incomplete—at times cherished, at times regrettable, at times uncertain—that coalesce in some ways together to create a sense of self. [With the trophy,] there's a sense of recognition for past accomplishments and a way to solidify something of your life for the future. It’s something that you can share with the people around you. In these cases it is the bittersweet absurdity of them—the humor of the past attempts and the shared optimism of the current moment.&nbsp;CGN: A serious question: what was the strangest thing you found yourself doing or including in this body of work?DK: I find myself laughing and smiling and feeling a sense of ridiculous accomplishment when I add something like this frog, which in some ways seems so kitschy and naïve and in other ways is destined to be one of the future elements to pile on top of. There is a sense of spontaneous discovery—I take whatever I have I put on top and then I walk away. Then there’s a sense of capturing it when it is right that isn’t a narrative, it doesn’t finish a story but it has a certain sense of hopefulness and appreciation and maybe naïveté.&nbsp;*When I ask Klamen about current projects that he is working on, he shows me some recent sketches with more Borg-like, or atomic, flourishes. “I would say I am a workaholic, but that sounds too disciplined. It’s more that I get up and do what I want to do–and what I want to do to work on my next piece.”&nbsp;Even when we don’t know what’s next–in art, in life, in a sentence–it's reassuring to think that we can compound everything that is imperfect and uncanny into art. “I think that aesthetic experience and visual experience are one of the most profound things that convinces us that the things that we know are what we know.” Lately, he tells me I find myself wondering what a consolation prize would look like–the visual equivalent of ‘Congratulations, you’re here.”&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/david-klamen-life-trophies">David Klamen’s Life Trophies is on view until June 24th</a>&nbsp;</body></html>

Out of the Mold and into the New: David Klamen’s "Life Trophies"

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419077/mbnnmyqx7h9xbjjde0ei.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/joey-africa">Joey Africa</a>Opening: Saturday, June 11, 5 – 8&nbsp;pmStola Contemporary Art&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419078/b0utywlshqdoisxlto3s.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/cheryl-pope">Cheryl Pope: Variations on a Love Theme</a>Opening: Saturday, June 11, 4 – 7&nbsp;pmMonique Meloche Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419079/uw3v9yedl8nlhiuksj5n.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/brad-novak-hybrid-2-0-solo-show">Brad Novak: Hybrid 2.0</a>Opening: Saturday, June 11, 12 – 5&nbsp;pmVertical Project Space&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419079/uqc0tzv6zqrl5yqo9pud.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/generations">Generations: 30 Years of Woman Made Gallery</a>Opening: Saturday, June 11, 4 – 7&nbsp;pmWoman Made Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419080/va8pugnlz8hfdfpzsvyj.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/woomin-kim-doo-jip-salim">Woomin Kim: Doo Jip Salim</a>Opening: Sunday, June 12, 12 – 4&nbsp;pmGoldfinch&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419081/qie0bzd76xzihssmrlox.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/brandon-chavis-for-colored-queers">Brandon Chavis: for colored queers</a>Opening: Sunday, June 12, 12 – 4&nbsp;pmGoldfinch&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

New Exhibitions June 8-12 (Part II)

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419077/qzbuhrmy5kaxcxaaelom.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/almudena-rodriguez-pygmalion-effect-d6f1219a-8ef7-436f-8949-22762e6c84d9">Almudena Rodriguez: Pygmalion Effect</a>June 8PAGODA RED&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419078/eg6n35go34gxcyubcznn.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/women-of-the-blues-a-coast-to-coast-collection">Women of the Blues: A Coast to Coast Collection</a>Opening: Wednesday, June 8, 7 – 10&nbsp;pmEpiphany Center for the Arts&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419079/s4gleer2qrfzks6hqlr8.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/some-parts-of-us-depaul-university-s-graphic-design-senior-capstone-show">Some Parts of Us: DePaul University’s Graphic Design Senior Capstone Show</a>Opening: Thursday, June 9, 6 – 9&nbsp;pmEpiphany Center for the Arts&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419080/ffeykpchlupi3oczygyg.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/magalie-guerin">Magalie Guérin: hard green</a>Opening: Friday, June 10, 5 – 7&nbsp;pmCorbett vs. Dempsey&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419081/gkvcq5iiemzj3efh6gq9.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/inscription">Inscription</a>Opening: Friday, June 10, 5 – 9&nbsp;pmMu Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419082/hcr2eqtovp2eqwx0r6ny.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/frank-spidale-paintings-and-drawings">Frank Spidale: Paintings and Drawings</a>Opening: Friday, June 10, 7 – 10&nbsp;pmFirecat Projects&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419083/yt7gacgbkkyusawjkvet.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/the-shape-of-light-contemporary-painting-and-studio-glass">The Shape of Light. Contemporary painting and studio glass.</a>June 10Rockford Art Museum&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

New Exhibitions June 8-12 (Part I)

&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://mcusercontent.com/9e4250b7536dc23e9352b28ee/images/651e5d75-c102-8bb3-7480-5be5e57d2356.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>Barbara Crane, From the Beach on Fire Lane #10&nbsp;from Repeats Series</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;The Museum of Contemporary Photography held their benefit auction party last week on June 2 &nbsp;is still open online! Bid on many exciting works and help support the MoCP. The auction will remain open through&nbsp;June 10, 2022 at 3 p.m. CT.&nbsp; &nbsp;<a href="https://mocp.us5.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9e4250b7536dc23e9352b28ee&amp;id=4463761c87&amp;e=58cea278c7">Enter the Auction</a>&nbsp;

MoCP's Benefit Auction Open Through June 10

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419067/p14cdgbnzrhttzo0t1hd.jpg"><figcaption>Self-Portrait, Keith Haring</figcaption></figure>By CGN Staff via PRThis week the AIDS Garden Chicago officially opened. It is 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.This 2.5 acre “park with purpose” is built along Lake Michigan just south of Belmont Harbor at the original location of the historic Belmont Rocks gathering spot – a space where the local gay community gathered between the 1960s and 1990s. “The Rocks” were about claiming the right to be out of the shadows and out of the closet.The Garden’s first phase was completed in late 2019 with the installation of its anchor piece, ‘Self-Portrait,’ a 30-foot sculpture by iconic late artist and activist Keith Haring. Ground was broken on the Garden in June 2021, and a ribbon cutting one year later on June 2, 2022, marked the Garden’s official public opening.‘Self-Portrait,’ Haring's sculpture, is the only one of its size in existence, and is a welcome addition to Chicago’s collection of public art in the parks with a prominent Lakefront location. It was provided through a generous gift from the <a href="http://www.haring.com/">Keith Haring Foundation</a> with the support of <a href="http://www.rosenthalfineart.com/">Rosenthal Fine Art, Inc.</a>Visitors are guided with markers and milestones through a variety of intimate and collective garden spaces all providing a sensory nature experience, the most notable being a memorable grove of Gingko trees and a perennial garden of natural plantings at the entrance. A serpentine path is the site for future temporary art installations and programming organized by community partners. &nbsp;To learn more about the garden and how you can share your own stories of the HIV/AIDS epidemic please visit <a href="https://44thward.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=4e8236e6b2b1af8fa8eaa3f9f&amp;id=d94ac1ee59&amp;e=619d2d2b1d">AIDSGardenChicago.org.</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419068/bhaqutpltlbqepc63eb3.png"></figure>&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

Chicago's AIDS Garden Finally Complete in Time for Pride Month

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419067/ud99vojxkdnrvibym988.jpg"><figcaption>VHT Studios &nbsp;</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.chicagobusiness.com/residential-real-estate/look-inside-gold-coast-home-sale-after-rehab-antiques-importers">Golden Triangle Owners Selling Rehabbed Gold Coast Home</a>Doug Van Tress and Chauwarin Tuntisak, owners of the Golden Triangle, are asking $2.7 million for their roughly 4,000-square-foot four-story home on Division Street, which comes on the market June 6.Via Crain's&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://news.artnet.com/art-world/cezanne-show-through-the-artists-eyes-2121490?utm_content=from_newscta&amp;utm_source=Sailthru&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=Saturday%20AM%205%2F28&amp;utm_term=Daily%20Newsletter%20%5BALL%5D%20%5BMORNING%5D">A Once-in-a-Generation Cezanne Show Asks Us to Look Through the Artist’s Eyes: Slowly, Deliberately, and at Every Brushstroke</a>“Why Cezanne? Why today?”&nbsp;These were the questions the curators of a new, once-in-a-generation retrospective of the French painter at the Art Institute of Chicago asked themselves as they went to work a few years back. When it comes to Cezanne, who, perhaps more than any other artist, laid the groundwork for the 20th-century avant-garde, how do you say something new—and how do you say it in a way that can be understood by someone who’s never picked up a brush?&nbsp;The curators, Gloria Groom and Caitlin Haskell, decided to look closely at Cezanne’s canvases for their answers—examining, through advanced imaging techniques, how the artist confronted his own questions about the urgency of painting through every brush stroke he ever made.Via Artnet&nbsp;<a href="https://news.artnet.com/art-world/artle-the-new-wordle-2123784?utm_content=from_artnetnews&amp;utm_source=Sailthru&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=Tuesday%20PM%205%2F31&amp;utm_term=US%20Daily%20Newsletter%20%5BAFTERNOON%5D">Artle Is the Art-Historical Version of Wordle You Didn’t Know You Needed to Play</a>If you’re an avid museum-goer who’s been swept up in the recent craze for the word game Wordle, we’ve got exciting news.This month, the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC released a new art-historical, image-based version of the game it calls <a href="https://www.nga.gov/artle.html">Artle</a>. And it’s already a hit, the museum reports, driving an increase in web traffic of over 40 percent since the game’s launch.Via Artnet&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2022/05/31/louvre-launches-civil-action-as-part-of-art-trafficking-case-connected-to-former-director-jean-luc-martinez">Louvre launches civil action as part of art trafficking case involving former director Jean-Luc Martinez</a>The Louvre Museum has decided to become a civil party in the wide-ranging <a href="https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2022/05/26/former-louvre-director-jean-luc-martinez-charged-in-connection-with-antiquities-trafficking-investigation">criminal investigation</a> into the alleged trafficking of ancient objects from the Middle East. The decision was made in connection with “the purchase of Egyptian antiquities by Louvre Abu Dhabi”, according to a statement from the institution.Via The Art Newspaper&nbsp;<a href="https://classicchicagomagazine.com/david-adler-alert-2/">David Adler Alert!</a>David Adler: Great House Architect, a four-part documentary highlighting the life, clients, and classical architecture of the man often known as “Chicago’s society architect”, will be broadcast each Friday night in June on PBS Chicago’s WTTW Prime channel thanks to the vision of Kristin Noelle Smith, producer and host. This series features interviews of experts on location at four separate Adler estates, including two in Lake Forest, one in Lake Bluff and another in Ipswich, Massachusetts.Via Classic Chicago&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

What We're Reading: 6/1/22

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419067/mwtrucc1wjjfgc6gr4t7.jpg"><figcaption>Jennie C. Jones</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/jennie-c-jones">Jennie C. Jones: Nocturnes</a>Opening: Saturday, June 4, 5 – 7:30&nbsp;pmPATRON&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419068/xatyhy9iptlffhfyjkpj.jpg"><figcaption>Suzanne Metzel</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/suzanne-metzel-still-life">Suzanne Metzel: Still Life</a>Opening: Saturday, June 4, 5 – 7&nbsp;pmPerspective Photo Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419069/nu2epruzuvcytcr9oep6.jpg"><figcaption>Joseph Renda Jr.</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/joseph-renda-jr-larger-than-life">Joseph Renda Jr.: Larger Than Life</a>Opening: Saturday, June 4, 12 – 6&nbsp;pmVertical Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419070/diah2bbspwf8qsvoq94o.jpg"><figcaption>Via Pistachios</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/from-these-hands">From These Hands</a>Opening: Saturday, June 4, 3 – 5:30&nbsp;pmPistachios Contemporary Jewelry Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419071/abzpxhhtw6rtezvjiokx.jpg"><figcaption>Joe Cimino</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/ephemeral-history-when-light-takes-form-by-joe-cimino">Ephemeral History: When Light Takes Form by Joe Cimino</a>June 4Saint Kate – The Arts Hotel&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419071/hz1zdgy5ipr2xrpmid1a.gif"><figcaption>Sherman Beck</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/sherman-beck-solo-exhibition">Sherman Beck: Solo Exhibition</a>Opening: Saturday, June 4, 5 – 7&nbsp;pmKavi Gupta Gallery - Washington Blvd.&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

New Exhibitions June 3–4 (Part II)

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419067/jx3o1brq3yur26kgx6ho.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/kambua-chema-postcards-from-morocco">Kambua Chema: Postcards from Morocco</a>Opening: Saturday, June 4, 5 – 7&nbsp;pmPerspective Photo Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419069/uuqnxxi8nochpgele9uz.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/layer-mark-repeat">Layer, Mark, Repeat</a>Opening: Friday, June 3, 5 – 8&nbsp;pmChicago Artists Coalition (CAC)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419069/zaz9yzzdtgx68fuplafd.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/alberto-aguilar-seeing-thoughts-through">Alberto Aguilar: Seeing Thoughts Through</a>Opening: Friday, June 3, 6 – 8&nbsp;pmENGAGE Projects&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419070/pwtf8vmpjaundhschtkb.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/nature-and-imagination-the-thin-line-between-figuration-and-abstraction">Nature and Imagination: The thin line between figuration and abstraction</a>Opening: Friday, June 3, 5 – 9&nbsp;pmLily Pad | West&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419071/t8up5v1blaurml8iqaim.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/evanston-made-bipoc-members-group-show">Evanston Made BIPOC Members Group Show</a>Opening: Friday, June 3, 5 – 8&nbsp;pmEvanston Art Center&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

New Exhibitions June 3–4 (Part I)

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419067/rdjyqunknml4he6zjsn7.jpg"><figcaption>BOP! Adventures in American Collage at Satchel Projects</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.satchelprojects.com">Artist Tony Fitzpatrick Curates an Exhibition of Collage in New York</a>Tony Fitzpatrick has curated BOP! Adventures in American Collage at Satchel Projects, running May 26–June 26. The exhibition brings together 15 artists whose work represents a range of styles but they share a common improvisational approach to image-making. Artists include Lisa Barcy, ou Beach, Fitzpatrick, Swoon, Danny Torres and others.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419068/xdeh7ucgtyksauhwcccb.jpg"><figcaption>Jonathan Muecke</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.artic.edu/exhibitions/9581/jonathan-muecke-objects-in-sculpture">Designer Jonathan Muecke Opens Art Institute Exhibition&nbsp;</a>Volume Gallery shared that gallery artist Jonathan Muecke: Objects in Sculpture is on view at the Art Institute of Chicago from May 26–Oct 10, 2022.Designer Jonathan Muecke (American, born 1983) challenges and redefines relationships between form and functionality, spatial perception and materiality. Objects in Sculpture, the designer’s first solo exhibition at a major museum, presents a selection of his most experimental works from the past decade.&nbsp;This is the fourth edition of the Franke/Herro Design Series, which highlights the work of important emerging talent and is curated by Irene Sunwoo, PhD (John H. Bryan Chair and Curator, Architecture and Design), and was conceived by Zoë Ryan, Daniel W. Dietrich, II Director at the Institute of Contemporary Art, University of Pennsylvania."&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419069/wqqom3wcffd8xp3am49j.jpg"><figcaption>Cat Crotchett</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Addington Gallery Artist Cat Crotchett Selected for Golden Foundation of Art Residency in New Berlin, NYThe Sam and Adele Golden Foundation for the Arts received over 320 applications from artists around the world for the <a href="https://www.goldenfoundation.org/residency/current-residents/">2022 Residency Program</a>. Addington Gallery artist Cat Crotchett was selected along with 17 other artists. The 2022 Residency Program began in March and will run through mid-November. Residents live and work in a completely renovated barn for 4 weeks and have access to an unlimited supply of acrylics, oils, watercolors and custom materials.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

CGN Art World Recap: 5/30/22

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419067/c4w63qsx6pc8l5gso2dz.jpg"><figcaption>Left to right: Breanna Robinson (Photo: Jacob King)&nbsp;and Ireashia M. Bennett</figcaption></figure>Via PR&nbsp;$10,000 in Unrestricted Funds Given&nbsp;to&nbsp;Breanna Robinson and Ireashia M. BennettChicago Artists Coalition (CAC) announces the 2022 Coney Family Fund awardees&nbsp;<a href="https://news.chicagoartistscoalition.org/t/i-l-qljkujd-ftuikdrju-y/">Breanna Robinson</a> and <a href="https://news.chicagoartistscoalition.org/t/i-l-qljkujd-ftuikdrju-j/">Ireashia M. Bennett</a>, who will&nbsp;each receive $5,000 in unrestricted funds. The funds are intended to support&nbsp;outstanding Chicago visual artists who identify as Black or African-American.The Coney Family Fund is committed to holding up exceptionally talented and driven Black artists by helping to&nbsp;sustain their studio practice and artistic career development through direct funding.This grant is made possible by the generosity of our sponsor Chanel Coney. Launched in 2017, the award recognizes the Coney Family and Chicago Artists Coalition's mutual commitment to supporting a more inclusive arts community and creative economy in Chicago. Since 2017, the Coney Family and CAC have administered $40,000 in unrestricted funds to eight artists over six years.Thanks&nbsp;to the jury for their valuable time and input. Brett Swinney, cultural affairs coordinator, Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events&nbsp;&amp; Tracye A. Matthews, curator, filmmaker, historian, and executive director, Center for the Study of Race, Politics, and Culture at the University of Chicago&nbsp;About the Coney FamilyThe Coney Family Fund Award is stewarded by Chanel Coney. Chanel is the Director of Marketing for Chicago Fundamental Investment Partners, LLC, the board chair of Congo Square Theater, and she has a personal background in theater performance. &nbsp;About Chicago Artists CoalitionChicago Artists Coalition is a non-profit organization that supports contemporary Chicago artists and curators by offering residency programs, exhibitions, professional development and resources that enable them to live, work and thrive in the city. CAC is deeply committed to advancing the cause of art and its importance in Chicago’s culture and economy by cultivating a wide-reaching civic, philanthropic and public support network.<a href="https://news.chicagoartistscoalition.org/t/i-l-qljkujd-ftuikdrju-t/">chicagoartistscoalition.org</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

2022 Coney Family Fund Award Recognizes Breanna Robinson and Ireashia M. Bennett

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419067/xvtglj9snvufo54koe2b.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/norman-teague">Norman Teague</a>Exhibition Begins May 26The Art Center Highland Park&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419068/ipgbu02mtswoelxoeud2.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/zoe-beaudry-deep-time-garbage-minutes">Zoe Beaudry: Deep Time, Garbage Minutes</a>Exhibition Begins May 26ARC Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419069/bktmnowthmhmf3cidmob.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/art-is-a-private-room-recent-works-by-isabelle-gougenheim">Art Is A Private Room: Recent Works by Isabelle Gougenheim</a>Opening: Thursday, May 26, 5:30 – 7:30&nbsp;pmIsabelle Gougenheim Designs&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419069/uan9q6otpfhplsry4ax6.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/a-is-for-albano-artists">A is for Albano Artists</a>Opening: Thursday, May 26, 4 – 7&nbsp;pmJean Albano Gallery&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419070/o4zoaiqfghmfwufhkmzp.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/rick-sindt-skin-remembers">Rick Sindt: Skin Remembers</a>Exhibition Begins May 27Gallery Victor Armendariz&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419071/bznpchoh5imeclpeid8i.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/art-from-here">Art from Here</a>Opening: Friday, May 27, 5 – 8&nbsp;pmTarble Arts Center&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419072/ke4rfyowqyuwgiypxjnl.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/phil-gayter-maskeraid">Phil Gayter: MASKERAID</a>Opening: Friday, May 27, 6 – 8&nbsp;pmInternational Museum of Surgical Science&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419074/vavij8hatpyo2hiljqnj.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/junli-song-solo-exhibition">Junli Song: Body Rhythms</a>Exhibition Begins May 28Chicago Printmakers Collaborative&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419075/luuesnefo54dfz3l1crv.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/nature-spirits-photo-montages-by-kristin-ashley">Nature Spirits: Photo Montages by Kristin Ashley</a>Opening: Saturday, May 28, 6 – 9&nbsp;pmBlue Moon Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419076/mbpr58ystaoer881wthm.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/circuition">Circuition</a>Closing reception: Saturday, May 28, 6 – 9&nbsp;pmMu Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

New Exhibitions Start May 26–28

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419067/kld4fvgfaynb7e4oy6zp.jpg"><figcaption>Photo courtesy of the MCA</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By CGN StaffIn case Nick Cave's recently opened mega exhibition <a href="https://mcachicago.org/exhibitions/2022/nick-cave-forothermore">Forothermore</a> isn't reason enough to get you to the museum right away, the MCA announced that a summer time favorite returns in June. You're invited to make plans and then reserve (free!) tickets to Tuesdays on the Terrace beginning May 25, at noon.Summer Tuesdays come alive on the MCA’s Anne and John Kern Terrace Garden, with free music highlighting artists from Chicago’s internationally renowned jazz community. Enjoy two sets of live music beginning at 5:30 pm and running until 8 pm. Plan a picnic outside as the MCA offers light refreshments and a full bar. Again this year guests may bring picnics and spread out on our lawn (they ask that you buy your booze at the museum cafe and not bring it in.)Free tickets to the 2022 Tuesdays on the Terrace season will be available May 25 at noon and walk-up tickets are always available day-of; all seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis.&nbsp;11 concerts are planned June through August. See the whole lineup online.&nbsp;<a href="https://mcachicago.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=c24ba7c5a91cefd699dc985e1&amp;id=11d0136d30&amp;e=95b957c616">Learn more.</a>&nbsp;</body></html>

It's Time for the Return of the MCA's Summer Tuesdays on the Terrace

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419067/c6r2ffjk2r9l2r4j1ntr.jpg"><figcaption>Candida Alvarez</figcaption></figure>Candida Alvarez receives Latinx Artist Fellowship AwardMonique Meloche announced that Candida Alvarez is the recipient of the Latinx Artist Fellowship—part of a multiyear initiative that provides $50,000 in unrestricted funds to 15 Latinx visual artists each year.Recognizing the systemic lack of support, visibility, and patronage of Latinx visual artists, this first-of-its-kind fellowship supports some of the most compelling Latinx visual artists working in the United States today. The Fellowship is codesigned and managed by US Latinx Art Forum in collaboration with the New York Foundation for the Arts, and cofounded by The Ford Foundation and the Mellon Foundation.Alvarez is also the&nbsp;recipient of the 2022 Arts and Letters Awards in Art, a $10,000 award given by the New York–based&nbsp;American Academy of Arts and Letters, and will be honored at the annual Ceremonial on Wednesday, May 18 at the Academy Galleries, NY.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.spudnikpress.org">Spudnik Press Updates</a>Spudnik Press recently welcomed a new Executive Director, Sara Emerson. An email shared that the remaining staff is ready and looking forward to work with her in continuously enriching &nbsp;programs, rebuilding &nbsp;community, and advancing their mission. Several 2022 Resident Artists, specifically Susy Bielak and Elizabeth Rose, have also begun their residencies at Spudnik, including a culminating virtual event with Cameron Mankin. Spudnik is also continuously seeking interested supporters who would like to serve in our Board of Directors.&nbsp;<a href="http://grahamfoundation.org/?mc_cid=9e34f44b07&amp;mc_eid=03ab2133a7">Graham Foundation 2022 Grants to Individuals</a> The Graham Foundation announced the award of 56 new grants to individuals exploring ideas—across disciplines—that expand contemporary understandings of architecture. Selected from an open call that resulted in nearly 500 submissions, the funded projects include research, exhibitions, publications, films, podcasts, digital initiatives, and other inventive formats that promote rigorous scholarship, stimulate experimentation, and foster critical discourse in architecture. The funded projects are led by 81 individuals, including established and emerging architects, artists, curators, designers, filmmakers, historians, and writers, based in cities such as Buenos Aires, Argentina; Beijing, China; Buffalo, NY; Cape Town, South Africa; Kathmandu, Nepal; Lagos, Nigeria; New York, NY; Porto, Portugal; Praia, Cabo Verde; Rotterdam, the Netherlands; and Chicago, where the Graham Foundation is based. The new grantees join a worldwide network of individuals and organizations that the Graham Foundation has supported since 1956. In that time, the Foundation has awarded more than 42 million dollars in direct support to almost 5,000 projects by individuals and organizations. Learn more about each grantee project by clicking the links below.&nbsp;<a href="https://lighthouseimmersive.com/immersive-shevchenko/">Immersive Shevchenko: Soul of Ukraine Raises $250,000 for Humanitarian Aid in Ukraine &nbsp;&nbsp;</a>Lighthouse Immersive announced it raised $250,000 to support Ukraine through IMMERSIVE SHEVCHENKO: SOUL OF UKRAINE showings in multiple North American cities. Emboldened to assist Ukraine with its ongoing crisis, Lighthouse Immersive, the producers of the Original Immersive Van Gogh, arranged to have an existing immersive exhibit celebrating the work of Ukrainian artist, poet, philosopher and public figure, Taras Shevchenko, brought to North America. &nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

CGN Art World Recap: 5/24/22

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419059/nhteqep6mt4frerr5spn.jpg"><figcaption>Nick Cave at the MCA. Photo: &nbsp;Manuel Martinez / WBEZ</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wbez.org/stories/artist-nick-cave-and-his-soundsuits-take-over-chicago-mca-dusable/ca18cf2c-3371-49d0-8068-5c2fc3b37a53">Nick Cave may be the artist we need right now</a>The question struck Nick Cave the moment he learned about the death of yet another Black man, Michael Brown, at the hands of police in 2014 in Ferguson, Missouri.“Is there racism in heaven?,” the artist asked himself in the Chicago studio where he employs several full-time art assistants but often works alone.He immediately started Until, a room-swallowing installation of kinetic wind spinners that is the first thing you see entering his new mega-show at the <a href="https://mcachicago.org/exhibitions/2022/nick-cave-forothermore">Museum of Contemporary Art.</a> From a distance, the spinners shimmer and sparkle like suncatchers you might see in a backyard garden. Up close, they are tear drops, bullets and guns.Via WBEZ&nbsp;<a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/museums/ct-ent-hope-poster-obama-sold-auction-20220520-v6vtim73ebfcpgrpksaxuzegoi-story.html">Iconic ‘Hope’ portrait of Obama sells at auction for $735,000</a>The original Shepard Fairey “Hope” portrait of former President Barack Obama has sold in an auction for $735,000.The iconic red and blue portrait <a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/ct-ent-obama-campaign-poster-expo-chicago-20220406-inmhh64u2fc7xj7nkrtxfbtzja-story.html">was displayed in April </a>as part of EXPO CHICAGO by Heritage Auctions (222 W. Hubbard St.), which reported the sale Friday. It was created in 2008 by the Los Angeles-based street artist as a form of grassroots activism to support then-Senator Obama’s first campaign. Fairey based the image on an Associated Press photograph by Mannie Garcia.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/contemporary-artists-rashid-johnson-sheree-hovsepian-ask-4-995-million-for-manhattan-townhouse-11652895955?mod=djemRealEstate_h">Contemporary Artists Rashid Johnson, Sheree Hovsepian Ask $4.995 Million for Manhattan Townhouse</a>A Manhattan townhouse owned by contemporary artists Rashid Johnson and Sheree Hovsepian is hitting the market for $4.995 million.Via the Wall Street Journal&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://news.artnet.com/art-world/beeple-phishing-scam-twitter-2119491">Hackers Took Over Beeple’s Twitter Account and Stole More Than $400,000 in NFTs and Crypto From the Artist’s Followers</a>A phishing scam targeting the Twitter account of the popular digital artist Beeple made off with over $400,000 in cryptocurrency and NFTs yesterday.According to on-chain analysis of the scam, hackers were able to gain access to Beeple’s Twitter account for approximately five hours, tweeting out two separate links to a malicious website that would, in turn, drain victims’ MetaMask wallets of Ethereum and high-value NFTs such as Mutant Ape Yacht Club, VeeFriends and Otherdeeds, among others.&nbsp;Via Artnet&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

What We're Reading: 5/23/22

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419059/onhk5zrset6gzr8dma67.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/meditations-on-shape">Meditations on Shape</a>Opening: Friday, May 20, 5 – 10&nbsp;pmOliva Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419060/hu0lymqpjzjkz5cxpyyt.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/transfiguration-paintings-ar-nfts-by-sergio-gomez">Transfiguration: Paintings, AR &amp; NFTs by Sergio Gomez</a>Opening: Friday, May 20, 7 – 10&nbsp;pm33 Contemporary Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419061/vald5olrvfplqfzpsnev.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/fantasia-ariel-solo-exhibition">Fantasía Ariel: Plucked</a>Opening: Friday, May 20, 6 – 9&nbsp;pmElephant Room Gallery&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419062/g0sxblhmtvtwgjxtmqyi.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/3rd-friday-open-studios-311f7cfd-8fa3-4d60-97f3-968e415f6162">3rd Friday Open Studios</a>: <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/bac-10th-annual-art-competition">BAC 10th Annual Art Competition</a> &amp; <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/ihsae-teacher-show">IHSAE Teacher Show</a>Opening: Friday, May 20, 7 – 10&nbsp;pmBridgeport Art Center&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419062/i5fpbnfc2xiii74fytpt.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/suzanne-rose">Suzanne Rose</a> &amp; <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/rene-romero-schuler-1a722069-a964-44ca-ad77-b690f8de9540">René Romero Schuler</a>Opening: Friday, May 20, 4 – 7&nbsp;pmZolla / Lieberman Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

New Exhibitions Start May 20

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419059/bij2zm7ylqt8jqnvtspu.jpg"><figcaption>Charmed – 2016, Featuring seven of the most important women artists working today: Laurie Simmons, Shirin Neshat, Barbara Kruger, Cindy Sherman, Rachel Feinstein, Mickalene Thomas, and Wengechi Mutu. Each was asked to conceive a charm that considers both her personal history, and her vision as an artist. 18k gold with 7 unique charms. 8 in diameter. Limited ed. of 50 bracelets. Price upon request. Photo by Victor Prado.&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By GINNY VAN ALYEAPrior to the pandemic, museums were popular high-end party venues. The money brought in by hosting exclusive events fattened the bottom line, but as we know, that bottom fell out during COVID. Extracting income from less volatile sources (art on the walls, or even in storage) gives museums new ways to sustain operations while also sending their brand home with visitors and patrons. No longer is the cheap canvas tote bag where culture-signaling ends. Today’s art retail can go decidedly high-end as well as on-trend. Anyone remember the rush for Kerry James Marshall’s MZ Wallace collaboration a few EXPOs ago? Nick Cave has done his own <a href="https://mcachicagostore.org/collections/nick-cave-forothermore/products/nick-cave-mz-wallace-tote">exclusive version</a> for his show that just opened at the MCA. Hebru Brantley and Virgil Abloh also did their own capsule collections and pop-ups at the museum.&nbsp;Museum gift shops are now just the beginning.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419060/mp14nzxmayzx13tgnbtu.jpg"><figcaption>The exclusive, limited-edition MZ Wallace × Nick Cave Truth Be Told Large Metro Tote Deluxe is inspired by Cave’s thought-provoking public artwork of the same name along with his immersive Soundsuit sculptures. The tote is rendered in his vibrant mixed-media prints and is accompanied by three accessory pouches in complimentary prints. 100% of the proceeds support educational programs at the MCA and Facility Foundation. $325 before member discount.&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419060/v33vfm9ahygwpygbhr4c.jpg"><figcaption>Swap out your ladies luncheon Hermès for the&nbsp; conversational Orkideh Torabi (Iranian, b. 1979) Peach House Scarf, $160.00 at the MCA&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419062/oetcifgu5fvsmkefvmdk.jpg"><figcaption>Edie Fake, Mural 2 Silk Scarf, $160 at the MCA</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;In Chicago the award-winning MCA Store offers a second floor for browsing 40-pound art tomes, but you may just leave out the ground floor with a cashmere and modal scarf exclusively designed by Orkideh Torabi in hand. Edie Fake, Mickalene Thomas and Christina Quarles all do scarves too.&nbsp;The Art Institute has <a href="https://shop.artic.edu">two gift shops</a> – one at each entrance, ensuring you really can’t escape without the temptation to buy some clever, classic museum-store find, like an Edward Hopper puzzle, a vibrantly hued flower vase, a cheeky t-shirt, socks, or, of course, posters, postcards and magnets featuring the museum’s famous bronze lions.&nbsp;<a href="https://shop.driehausmuseum.org">The Richard H. Driehaus Museum</a> offers period-specific and giftable items, like a tiny brass ornament featuring the Nickerson Mansion’s historic facade, as well as of course neck ties and other textiles reflecting the art, architecture and social mores of the period known as the Gilded Age.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419062/usvlhqttxrddz711ygog.jpg"><figcaption>Georges Seurat, A Sunday on La Grande Jatte—1884 Socks, the Art Institute of Chicago, $16.00 &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;*Something else entirely more attention-getting–and usually also exceeding your average gift shop tab–has been the increasingly prominent, and often very “must-have,” artist/brand collaboration. These partnerships, which are intentionally more creative kismet than department store sales, move what used to be a unique or editioned actual work of art into the wearable, retail realm.&nbsp;Artnet shared in a March op-ed that companies like Artistory, founded only in 2020, is both licensing museum designs and works of art to brands and creating the merchandise being sold, vastly scaling up the revenue institutions (largely nonprofits) can draw from their collections and exhibitions, both in the short and long term.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419063/l5r1viluckcqssi7zt9l.jpg"><figcaption>Anxious Men series. Gold Signet Ring by Rashid Johnson — 2020. 9k gold ring with 1 ruby and red enamel. Edition of 25. Size 19 x 24mm. $10,000. Photo by Thomas Kletcka.</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Though museums own most of the world’s most famous works of art, and therefore the most widely marketable, contemporary artists are also getting involved in the creation of new, commercial forms of their own art. <a href="http://www.lizworks.net">LIZWORKS</a>, founded by Liz Swig, lists 14 artist partners, from Laurie Simmons to Robert Longo and Cindy Sherman, each designing limited edition jewelry, from pendants and rings to cameos and charm bracelets. Swig, who has recently teamed up with Chicago-born Rashid Johnson on a line of jewelry based on his Anxious Men series, shared with CGN, “There does seem to be a lot of attention on creating shopping experiences in museum gift shops right now. What brought me to creating the collections I do is I see them as mini sculptures and an extension of the artist’s body of work.” These works also give back, in Johnson’s case, where 100% of the artist’s proceeds will be donated to The Black Mental Health Alliance and Prep for Prep.Whatever you think of art in its gift-shop form, or even as a contemporary costume jewelry, it’s clear that artists and museums are thinking outside the box in new and meant-to-be-seen ways. You never used to be able to take your Kruger (or Sherman or Johnson) out around your wrist or&nbsp; neck, but now art can be an accessory while still being art. The right partnerships can make pieces (more) accessible as well as appealing – in price and wearability – to new audiences in endless places.&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

Gift Shop Coveting: Branded Artistic Collaborations Banish the Impulse Buy

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419059/gkhkshsv4p7ctvecpko1.jpg"><figcaption>Front cover and spine, THE CLIP-ON METHOD, 2021, Courtesy: Cady Noland, Rhea Anastas and Galerie Buchholz.</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By JASON PICKLEMANTHE CLIP-ON METHOD by Cady Noland is the most significant artist book to be published by a living artist within generations. If you want to know why, keep reading. If you don’t, unsubscribe.Measuring 8.5 by 11 inches, the standard size 2-volume book belies its complexity with a format that appears to be generic, but is in truth much more. Comprised primarily of black and white reproductions of Noland’s work and related texts selected by the artist, the book acts as archive, overview, reader and syllabus.&nbsp;THE CLIP-ON METHOD’s two volumes can be picked up and read in any order: back to front, front to back, start in the middle. Doesn’t matter. The net result is the same. The volume with the words “Cady Noland” on the spine is 306 pages; the volume with “THE CLIP-ON METHOD” on it’s spine clocks in at 290 pages. Both books commence their page numbering (their pagination) with the cover, an uncommon design-sleight-of-hand. Within the body of each book, page numbers appear only on the left hand pages, always in the lower left hand corner; 3/8-inch from the left trim and 1/2-inch above the bottom trim—an elegant proportion. They, along with most of the original body copy, are set in an innocuous typewriter-like font.&nbsp;THE CLIP-ON METHOD, simply put, is a book made from photographs of Noland’s artworks, often shown within their first installations and, one would assume, arranged by the artist—an important distinction that adds both subjective gravity and artistic personality to each page layout. Noland’s primary materials are on display throughout the book (fencing, pipes, poles and rails; aluminum walkers, crates, and metal baskets; newspaper clippings, flags and beer cans) and are seen aggregated, arranged and assembled, equally menacing and left akimbo. Leafing through these pages feels like viewing Noland’s work through her eyes alone, on the artist’s terms: resolutely displaying the way her abject materials add an unnerving energy to the rooms in which they are installed. There is an experiential energy to the reproductions and texts, as scale and placement on the pages shift with a seeming disregard for rules or grids. The layout sings of an artist’s voice, not a designer’s voice.&nbsp;Physically, the two soft cover volumes feel hefty, weighty in the hand and lap. The body of each book is printed on a dull-finished paper, most likely an 80# text weight sheet with decent opacity that appears to be around 94%. The covers of each book utilize what feels to be an 18pt C1S cover weight sheet. The front cover has a soft, supple feel compared to the uncoated feel of the inside-front and inside-back covers. Both back covers are blank—indicative of an elegant reserve common to both volumes.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419060/qiqv3th2x0jkqypphmzs.jpg"><figcaption>Cady Noland, Untitled, 1994, as reproduced on pages 208-209 in THE CLIP-ON METHOD, 2021. Courtesy: the artist, Rhea Anastas and Galerie Buchholz.</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;As Noland’s artwork can sell in the millions, and as this book is presumably an artist/publisher-funded venture, the production team could have afford anything in terms of printing: case bound hard cover, head and tail bands, pasted end sheets, fly sheets, inserts, fold outs, die cuts—you name it, they could have afforded it, and yet all such bibliographic extravagances are not to be had in THE CLIP-ON METHOD. Still, the book is luxurious.One of the most interesting stylistic decisions of the books’ design is that artwork reproductions exist without an image caption near them. All caption citations are combined at the back of each book, and are listed across a 2-page spread in vertical columns delineated by date, title, page number, and location—in that order. All artwork titles are presented in ALL CAPS, with any lengthy two-line title indented 1/2-inch on its second line. The same indentation rule applies to the location citation when needed. As this list traverses across the gutter of the book and onto its facing page, horizontal alignment is of paramount importance. To wit, the printing and bindery by Graphius in Ghent Belgium is second to none. If you need an art book printed, call them, but be prepared for no response, as my inquiries to them regarding certain printing specifications of THE CLIP-ON METHOD went unanswered. &nbsp;It’s not unusual for an art book to note its print run within its colophon. My inquiries into this number also proved futile, thwarted by the publishers’ democratic impulse to remove the idea that the books’ print run become precious. Released in 2021, THE CLIP-ON METHOD is already on its second printing and costs $65 USD; the same price as the sold-out first printing. My guess is the second printing may not even note “second printing”: a move to deincentivize re-sale, price hike, or covetousness. Kudos to the publishers Rhea Anastas, Robert Snowden, and the artist herself.The meat of any art book are the reproductions of the artwork, and THE CLIP-ON METHOD delivers with abundance. In total, 168 images of Nolands’ art are reproduced; but uniquely only 9 are printed in color. Again, for an artist that can presumably afford anything, this can only be read as a conceptual hedge, like hiding a royal flush with only a single card showing. Instead of this appearing as a deficit, the black and white reproductions come across as original testament. I’m told the black and white images were printed with two black inks, giving them a depth and tonal evenness despite their apparent economy of reproductive means. When a color reproduction is introduced, it’s almost startling.Over her exhibition career, Noland participated in the photography of many of the works, and a considerable number in THE CLIP-ON METHOD are shown in-situ. Many are shown multiple times, from various angles, and not necessarily placed chronologically within the book(s). Noland’s work at the legendary New York gallery American Fine Arts is, for example, presented 17 times. Had this number been doubled I wouldn’t have minded, nor probably noticed. Each photograph bears witness to sculpture as historic documentation while acting as forensic evidence. Some of the photos are “bad”: blurry or off center. A few are turned 90-degrees. Some of them are a bit dark and with an excessive grit or grain. Some of the images are reproduced to show their physical source: 35mm slide, 4x5 transparency, lab print, or existing offset reproduction. The sequence of the images was arranged by Noland and, since they unfold devoid of strict chronology, rely on an intuitive visual rhythm wherein graphic or conceptual presence supersedes annual sequentiality. An image from 1989 might, for example, be followed by one from 1995 and then followed by one from 1988, then 1999, then 1993, then 1989 etc. What is strange is that this bouncing chronology is generally unnoticeable: that is, unless like me, you find yourself psychotically flipping to the back of each book to reference dates and locations. With scant regard for chronology, the layout invites an experiential immersiveness. The sequence and scale of the reproductions rely on few design rules: relying instead on the artist’s intuition to guide the reader through an encounter with the materials which, as mentioned, are often shown in their first presentation. I’ve been told the layout was done analog, by hand, by Noland herself. Only in the late stages of the layout was the project given to the designer Will Holder for re-composition within Quark Express, an unusual, and now uncommon, choice in digital layout software for book production.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419060/dkpg4k6tjzuruewjwwlw.jpg"><figcaption>(Left) Cady Noland, Press Czar, 1990; (Right) Untitled 1991-92, as reproduced on the covers of THE CLIP-ON METHOD, 2021. Courtesy: the artist, Rhea Anastas and Galerie Buchholz. &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;One of the most extravagant design gestures within THE CLIP-ON METHOD is the unconventional use of blank pages as frequent pauses to the design narrative. Not only might an image on the left-hand page face off with a blank right-hand page, but a subsequent 2-page spread might contain no text, no image, no page number whatsoever: nothing at all. This is the sort of design move that only an artist can get away with. Designers may try to rationalize the use of “negative space”, but only an artist can in negating space create drama and reprieve in service to the framing and focus of image and content. Thank you for nothing.Beyond the images, both volumes contain significant re-prints of existing texts: some by Noland, like her “NOTES FOR 1989 SHOW” and her “Towards a metalanguage of Evil” (the latter in both English and Spanish); and others reproduced via full page scans that look as though the books &nbsp; from which they came were plopped down on a photocopier, with any grime on the glass transferred and repeated. Along with the many installation reproductions, the nine reprinted sociological essays cast a shade of paranoia, manipulation, and since this is Noland, the despoiling of the American project—from corporate industries’ disregard for product safety (the explosive Ford Pinto) to the administrative blind spots of minority recruitment in higher learning (Stephen N. Butler, to whom, along with Noland’s mother Cornelia Ries, this book is dedicated). Texts entitled “Night as Frontier”, “Freak Shows and Talk Shows”, and “Paranoid Style”, might even act as surrogate titles to Noland’s artwork. Truth be told, these essays are a heavy slog, and require a concentration in direct proportion to the immediate gut-punch of Noland’s artworks. The reproduced book covers for each essay might even be construed by some as de facto Nolands.It’s been well noted that Cady Noland’s artworks exude an unrelenting cavalcade of menace from what appear to be store bought or cast-off items. The artworks invoke a sense of violence, deviance, and degeneracy; power, control, and manipulation; anxiety, paranoia, and aggression—not always in that order. Yet, the artist states that the works are not risky or subversive. To my mind, if they are anything, they are uniquely American. We get what we deserve: aluminum walkers as sculpture; metal railings as prison bars; walls of Budweiser as a stand-in for America herself and the arenas of her spectacle. The 2-volume collection is the perfect vehicle to contain such an inventory: an artist’s archive more than a catalog raisonné. And for those of us with our ears to the ground, the inclusion of three images dated 2021 reproduced on pages 182-83, 196-97, and 208-09 of the “Cady Noland” volume offer a ground shift for those unaware of any work from Noland dating post-1999. When I inquired, I was told “these are drawings reproduced in the books’ pages, their published form is a work.” Which brings me back to why THE CLIP-ON METHOD is such a remarkable book. Not only does the work present an archive of materials, but it notes that the archive is alive and growing, as every living artist’s work should. Few artists within the last fifty years have so poignantly dreamed, and damned, the United States of America as vociferously as Noland. THE CLIP-ON METHOD is a great book because it is true to itself. The book does not try to be like other art books by other artists; it is a book about Cady Noland, by Cady Noland, and it looks like a Cady Noland. Artists: take note.&nbsp;</body></html>

Book Report: THE CLIP-ON METHOD

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419059/esq2azgaazjf0aqxijjr.png"></figure>Via PRChicago Artists Coalition is thrilled to announce the recipients of the 2022 MAKER Grant for Chicago-based visual artists <a href="https://news.chicagoartistscoalition.org/t/i-l-cukuthd-dledja-r/">D. Denenge Duyst-Akpem</a> and <a href="https://news.chicagoartistscoalition.org/t/i-l-cukuthd-dledja-y/">Ashley Houghton</a>.&nbsp;Duyst-Akpem and Houghton have each been awarded an unrestricted grant of $3,000 for their commitment to socially-conscious work and working outside of traditional forms. MAKER Grants are funded by Chicago Artists Coalition and OtherPeoplesPixels.CAC would like to thank the jurors for their work in this year's MAKER Grant review: <a href="https://news.chicagoartistscoalition.org/t/i-l-cukuthd-dledja-j/">Anthony Stepter</a>, Assistant Director of MUSE, University of Illinois at Chicago, <a href="https://news.chicagoartistscoalition.org/t/i-l-cukuthd-dledja-t/">Emilio Rojas</a>, Multidisciplinary Artist, and <a href="https://news.chicagoartistscoalition.org/t/i-l-cukuthd-dledja-i/">Mary Patten</a>, Visual Artist and Associate Professor at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. CAC is also grateful to the <a href="https://news.chicagoartistscoalition.org/t/i-l-cukuthd-dledja-d/">OtherPeoplesPixels</a>for their generosity in supporting Chicago artists.&nbsp;Image Credit: D. Denenge Duyst-Akpem (left), and Ashley Houghton (right)&nbsp;</body></html>

Chicago Artists Coalition Announces 2022 MAKER Grant Recipients

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419059/nl9hrlyasrtigzkfihfa.jpg"><figcaption>Pictured: <a href="https://www.americansforthearts.org/by-program/networks-and-councils/public-art-network/public-art-year-in-review-database/14-movements-a-symphony-in-color-and-words">“14 Movements: A Symphony in Color and Words”</a> by lead artist Mat Tomezsko, commissioned by Mural Arts Philadelphia. Photo by Steve Weinik.</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.americansforthearts.org/news-room/art-in-the-news/new-study-highlights-how-the-arts-make-streets-safer">New Study Highlights How the Arts Make Streets Safer</a>Can art improve roadway safety? A report released in March by Sam Schwartz Consulting in partnership with Bloomberg Philanthropies examined the impact of art in the streetscape by comparing historical crash rates and real-time behavior of motorists and pedestrians at 22 “asphalt art” sites before and after the projects were installed, with illuminating results.The <a href="https://nam02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fbit.ly%2F3uzQXLF&amp;data=04%7C01%7Cdandersson%40bloomberg.org%7Ccb6088e9da594986173908da207dc64a%7C411991d20760424f9834fb81e52d7293%7C0%7C0%7C637858021848833231%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000&amp;sdata=6zEPf4QGPZTL5JnfRg97mLJdvRbQWbZV6EO%2FECMOs7k%3D&amp;reserved=0">Asphalt Art Safety Study</a> is the latest addition to Bloomberg Philanthropies’ <a href="https://asphaltart.bloomberg.org/">Asphalt Art Initiative</a>, which began in 2019 with a how-to guide for communities to install artwork in streetscapes, sidewalks, and crosswalks. The safety study aimed to research the safety impact of public art installed in streets. Examples of asphalt art include intersection murals, crosswalk art, painted plazas, and sidewalk extensions.Via Americans for the Arts&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2022/05/10/warhols-blue-marilyn-195m-christies-new-york-ammann-collection">Warhol's Blue Marilyn sells for record-smashing $195m at Christie's auction of Swiss dealers' collection</a>Powered by an iconic, dazzling and record-breaking Andy Warhol portrait of screen siren Marilyn Monroe, which sold to the US dealer Larry Gagosian for $195m, the collection of the late Swiss art dealing siblings Thomas and Doris Ammann reached $273m ($317.8m with fees) at Christie’s New York on Monday night. Pre-sale expectations ranged from $284m-$420m, indicating in part the tumbling effect of a brutal day on Wall Street and across other financial markets.Via the Art Newspaper&nbsp;<a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/theater/ct-ent-kinetic-light-disability-dance-wired-mca-20220428-mzpgaobsqfgy5lkkdqjmiqaqyy-story.html">Wheelchair aerial dance at center of ‘Wired’ at the MCA, a performance that centers disability</a>Alice Sheppard does not shy away from a challenge. In devising her latest dance, “Wired,” she and her Bay Area disability arts company Kinetic Light had to first write the rule books for wheelchair aerial dance.Kinetic Light’s mission is to create art that centers disability. Sheppard and the rest of the company are disabled artists who make work for disabled performers. Key to that vision are questions and advocacy around access — who “gets” to dance and who “gets” to watch or experience art? Since the company’s founding in 2016, Sheppard’s work consistently explores the intersections of disability, race and gender. “Wired,” premiering May 5-8 at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, is no exception, though it’s the first of Kinetic Light’s growing catalog to incorporate aerial dance.Via Chicago Tribune&nbsp;<a href="https://www.milwaukeemag.com/this-documentary-is-going-to-change-the-way-we-look-at-art-criticism/">This Documentary Is Going to Change the Way We Look at Art Criticism</a>After a decade of work, local&nbsp;art critic, journalist, filmmaker and occasional&nbsp;MilMag writer* Mary Louise Schumacher is just months away from completing her documentary exploring the ever-changing world of art criticism.&nbsp;With the interviews and research for the most part done, the finish line is in sight – it’s just final touches and <a href="https://seedandspark.com/fund/outofthepicture#story">fundraising</a> from here forward.&nbsp;Schumacher started her documentary out of a place of concern, because when newsrooms started seriously slashing budgets in the 2000s, art critics were among the first to go.&nbsp;Via Milwaukee Magazine&nbsp;</body></html>

What We're Reading: 5/11/22

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419053/axppk9wyfxivlu6uvrfo.jpg"><figcaption>Paul Cézanne. Bathers (Les Grandes Baigneuses), about 1894–1905. The National Gallery, London, purchased with a special grant and the aid of the Max Rayne Foundation, 1964. &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By JACQUELINE LEWISPaul Cézanne has been widely considered the father of modern art, perhaps the G.O.A.T. of his accomplished peer group, as Claude Monet and Camille Pissaro called him the “greatest of us all.” Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse later affirmed the sentiment.&nbsp;An upcoming retrospective of Cézanne’s art at the Art Institute of Chicago will delve into the 19th century artist’s mind, dissecting his creative practices and highlighting why they remain so vital more than 100 years later.Cézanne’s artistic process sought to answer the question of whether or not an artist could create art by utilizing only one sensation at a time – sometimes color, then technique or subject. He wanted to understand what happened by working in a singular focus. Was the art truer, more visceral? These were novel considerations that led Cézanne to develop his own deliberately nonlinear process, which led to the birth of the Modern Art movement and also gained him the eternal reputation as “artist’s artist.”&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419054/bzkyxfss86nxdp5iaidk.jpg"><figcaption>Paul Cezanne. Still Life with Apples, 1893–94. The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles. &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Curated by the Art Institute of Chicago’s Gloria Groom and Caitlin Haskell, with the Tate Modern’s Achim Borchardt-Hume and Natalia Sidlina, the exhibition features an astounding 90 oil paintings and 40 watercolors acquired from public and private collections, and it’s the first major Cézanne retrospective in the U.S. in more than a quarter century. It’s the first exhibition on Cézanne organized by the Art Institute in more than 70 years. To support this staggering presentation, Cézanne includes a technical distillation of the artist’s process, supported by a collaboration amongst current Art Historians, artists and conservators, illuminating Cézanne’s position as a giant of art history for our own time.May 15–Sept 5, 2022&nbsp; •&nbsp; <a href="https://www.artic.edu/exhibitions/9288/cezanne">The Art Institute of Chicago</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721419054/pkc9wiqc9f8gvrrblzm1.jpg"><figcaption>Paul Cezanne.&nbsp;Montagne Sainte-Victoire with Large Pine, about 1887. The Courtauld Gallery, London, © Courtauld Gallery / Bridgeman Images. &nbsp;</figcaption></figure></body></html>

News

Chicago Gallery News