Iconic Chicago artist Tony Fitzpatrick has created an installation piece for the reputable steakhouse Keefer’s Restaurant in downtown Chicago.  The piece will be showcased on the large illuminated cove in the main dining room of the restaurant, and unveiled tomorrow, during the restaurant’s open house celebrating their ten-year anniversary.  

Keefer’s prides itself on being a local and independent restaurant with local and independent art, and it’s a place we, as Chicagoans should be proud to call our own.  Over the years, Keefer’s has drawn attention and praise for its fine cuisine of fresh steaks and seafood from food critics and associations all around including The Food Network (Best of Chicago for Steak), The Michelin Guide and Playboy Magazine, just to name a few. 

When the owners decided to add a mural to their space, there couldn’t have been a better artist for the job.  Fitzpatrick is a childhood friend of Chef John Hogan - Keefer’s original Chef since their opening a decade ago.  Though the initial idea was for a mural that would depict a more literal, graphic portrayal of Chicago’s history of stockyards, butchers and the working class, Fitzpatrick envisioned something different that would highlight Keefer’s unique brand.  

Fitzpatrick’s piece, The Necklace of Stars, was conceived as an adornment to the circular dining room wall, which he associated with a woman’s neckline.  Each star holds a different meaning, such as The Fire Star, which depicts an image of fire – more specifically, the Chicago fire.  Fitzpatrick says its about the rebirth and rebuilding of Chicago Burnham and Sullivan in several short years; “since Chicago never gives up, it rolls up its sleeves and gets to work.” 

Tony Fitzpatrick, Star for Red Bird; Naked City Star

Tony Fitzpatrick is a Chicago artist whose works are in numerous public collections, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, The Art Institute of Chicago, and the Museum of Contemporary Art.  He began as a printmaker, and now focuses on drawing and collage pieces, loaded with Chicago references.  Read more here.  Fitzpatrick’s association and inspiration from the city makes this piece special for the restaurant and can be appreciated by all Chicagoans, or at least Chicagoans at heart.

The installation is a fitting addition to the restaurant for their ten-year anniversary, and will be unveiled at the anniversary party being held on Tuesday, November 1st.  Join Keefer’s for their open house, which will include complimentary champagne, small bites, and great music.  Space is limited, so please RSVP to 312.467.9525.

Keefer’s will continue celebrating their ten years in Chicago with month-long deals for lunch and dinner all through November.  Click here to learn more about Keefer’s, their November specials, and their anniversary event.

Now that we are well into October, we’re sure most of you have been able to get out and go to some of the amazing events that are being offered in honor of Chicago Artists Month. And, there are still two weeks left full of artwalks, open studios, opening exhibitions, and more. Plan ahead for a few events, such as the Ruth Horwich Award to a Famous Chicago Artist, being given at the end of the month to sculptor Richard Hunt. Here are our other highlights for this third week of CAM.

October 21-23: Artwalks, Tours, and Open Studios

 Artview in Lakeview Trolley Tour

On Friday October 21^st trolleys will run from 5-9pm to help you explore the Lakeview area galleries easily. The tour starts at The Leigh Gallery and stops at 11 other locations, including galleries and alternative art spaces. Start at The Leigh Gallery on Halstead and then you’ll make your way on the trolley to Slaymaker, Art de Triumph/Artful Framer Studios, and M & D Gallery. The seven remaining alternative art spaces are ID Chicago (a place that combines modern home-wear, eyewear and art), Gallery Swarm (an alternative space with varying styles of art), Loose Leaf Lounge (stop in and enjoy a cup of hot tea while viewing the local art show), Foursided (“Chicago’s most creative framework and art boutique”), Spare Parts (a place that showcases unique local designers), Real Art (artist owned custom framing gallery) and Spex (combines art and vision). The complimentary trolley tour also includes samplings of local food and beverages -  a perfect start to the weekend.

 Bridgeport Art Walk and Open Studios

The Bridgeport neighborhood is one of the city’s fastest growing communities of artists, and this weekend’s artwalk will have many of their groups and galleries teaming together to raise awareness of that. The event kicks off on Friday October 21^st with an opening reception from 6-10 pm hosted by the Artists of East Bank at the Bridgeport Art Center. On October 22^nd from 1-6pm and October 23^rd from 1-5pm there will be an array of activities to enjoy, including two guided tours, media festival events, panel discussions and open art spaces. Iron Studios, Zhou B Art Center, Bridgeport Museum of Modern Art and numerous other art centers are among those joining in the fun-filled weekend of special events. You may also simply grab a map and explore at your own pace. Click here to viewmap and list of events. Going on in conjunction with the artwalk is the Bridgeport Art Center Open Studios. The opening reception will also be on Friday October 21^st from 5-10 pm, and studios will be open for the artwalk from 1-5pm on Saturday and Sunday. The Artists of East Bank are an in-house community, and over 40 of them will be opening their creative spaces to the public. The current show includes installation, wood working (with a live demo from a very nice gentleman in a utili-kilt) jewelry, painting, and more.  The gallery space is relatively new, and the artists are eager to show it off.  This explosion of art and art-filled activities will give you an idea of why the Bridgeport neighborhood has grown so rapidly, and reinforce the Chicago Artists Month theme of Artful Networks.

  Art Connections: Zhou B Art Center

The Zhou B Art Center, located in Bridgeport on 35^th Street just down from where the White Sox play, is owned by the artistic duo the Zhou Brothers and offers a variety of galleries, artist’s studios and special events. Zhou B is participating in the Bridgeport Artwalk, hosting various events throughout the weekend. The eclectic space coordinates monthly 3^rd Friday openings with all of their in-house artists. The art center hosts 3^rd Fridays every month, and this Friday Oct 21^st from 7-10pm come to the 4Art Inc Gallery for 3^rd Fridays Open Studio’s 5 Floors of Artist Studio’s and Galleries. Zhou B is home to dozens of artists, ranging from established to emerging and varying in mediums and style. Also check out the JAWAchic jewelry show, featuring Christine Simpson Forni, one of Chicago Artists Month’s chosen artists.  As you can tell this place is jam packed with fun things to do. Click here for a list of artists and their studio numbers.

Presentations and More

 October 21: Ethics of Conservation

This panel discussion at Intuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art will have you pondering a variety of long-debated issues at Ethics of Conservation. The discussion, on Thursday October 21^st from 6-8pm is open to everyone, and fueled by Henry Darger’s written and visual work In the Realms of the Unreal. It deals with the idea that though he may not have wanted to ever have this work seen by the public, now that he is deceased conservationists have been torn by the decision to show his work or to not show it, as he is not here to cast his opinion. This captivating and debatable issue is one that has puzzled art historians and conservationists for centuries and is still prevalent in today’s art world.

October 25: Ruth Horwich Award to a Famous Chicago Artist: Richard Hunt

 A Conversation with Richard Hunt, held on October 25 from 5:30-7:30pm at The Cliff Dwellers, will honor the Chicago sculptor Richard Hunt.  The award is given each year to spotlight the enduring career of a Chicago artist for Chicago Artists Month. This event at Cliff Dwellers includes the presentation of the award to this year’s recipient, and a conversation between Richard Hunt and dealer Tom McCormick of McCormick Gallery. Enjoy the lively conversation, meet the artist and enjoy refreshments against the backdrop of Lake Michigan from high above Michgan Ave. Mingle with members of the art community and take part in supporting one of Chicago’s greatest while reveling in an art-enlightening experience.

Fall brings about many changes: changing of the leaves, the cold weather, and as you all guessed by last week’s busy opening schedule, of course new exhibitions for galleries. One art destination not far from the city is the Elmhurst Art Museum, an architecturally significant facility that focuses on contemporary art in the suburb of Elmhurst. Starting on September 16, and currently showing until December 31^st, the museum is presenting four new exhibitions for the fall. Three artists represented by Chicago galleries, artist Matt Woodward (Linda Warren Gallery), Glenn Wexler (Zolla/Lieberman Gallery), and Firat Erdim (Roy Boyd Gallery) are exhibiting their new works, with architecture as a lose but underlying theme. The Art Center is also concurrently presenting their new collection additions in a separate exhibition.

Matt Woodward’s The Tremendous Alone is a collection of immense drawings about architecture and the way in which it becomes a powerful memory, which creates a perception of how we view a given time and place. Six vast drawings fill the gallery space in an intuitive view of the artist’s personal memory. Woodward’s intent to push past the architecture into a suggestive place of life and death creates an overall thought provoking and visually stimulating experience.

Glenn Wexler’s multi-media exhibition Stillness in Motion is based on the in-between spaces of nature and the developed world, all seen through the lens of an urban setting. The collection includes structures lit from within, wall text, and photographic images that all pertain to the close proximity of architecture and its relationship to land and cityscapes.

 The architectural and sculptural work in Firat Erdim’s The Arbor looks at the transformation of objects and places between states of nature, raw material, construction and ruin. Erdim takes standard wood planks and uses them to create structures that comment on the states of arrangement and deterioration.

Collection Highlights: New Acquisitions is made up of the new 18 works that are being added to the Museum’s collection. The generously gifted works add to the contemporary art collection and speak to the current culture. The exhibition includes works from Jerry Cargill, Helen Maurene Cooper, Mark DeBernardi, and many more. Come check out these four fabulous exhibitions and revel in their creative excellence.

When: September 16- December 31, 2011

Where: Elmhurst Art Museum

http://www.elmhurstartmuseum.org/current-exhibitions.html

This Sunday, September 11, the Evanston Art Center will present an opening reception for Dimensional Lines: Art + Dress.  The exhibition features eight Chicago-based designers, and follows them as they expose the beauty of decay while utilizing the 82-year-old Evanston Art Center’s aged condition as the perfect environment to showcase their work. 

Curators Gillion Carrara and Fraser Taylor (Taylor is also a contributing artist), extended an invitation to eight local artists to respond to the mansion’s crumbling façade, “architecturally, historically, and emotionally,” Taylor says.  Participating artists include Abigail Glaum-Lathbury, Conrad Hamather, Anke Loh, Beata Kania, Kristin Mariani, Katrin Schnabl, Kristina Sparks, and Fraser Taylor.

The artists all have a hand in the fashion world as well as in some other artistic medium, and each created a distinct work for the show.  Carrara and Taylor enlisted the help of freelance theatre designers Mary Griswold and Geoffrey Bushor to play with and transform the space using light, sound effects, and the installation of temporary walls to disorient the viewer.

Fraser Taylor speaks about his work and interest in building three-dimensional drawings - part of what his work is based on.  His installation lies between being “constructed and destroyed all at once.”  Taylor previously worked in fashion and textile designs, but has since experimented with other mediums.  In his featured work, he covers materials in black to “manifest the decay, erosion, and revolution of Evanston Art Center.”

Kristin Mariani, who is know for repurposing 80’s and 90’s leather coats, focuses on deconstructing her work while also building upon it.  Her piece is an evolving “grid of various elements associated with dressmaking” that will transform throughout the course of the exhibit.  Mariani explains how it is “about addressing the different layers of a building’s various facades.

Katrin Schnabl is a fashion designer and professor at The School of the Art Institute Chicago, who most often works as a costume designer.  Her reuse of cotton and linen pieces has created an intertwineable structure linking the interior and exterior of a space.  “The garments will be exposed to the elements.  It is deliberate in a sense that as the place is decaying, and my idea of how the memory is changing, the structure is invited to react and change.”

Insight from these three featured artists helps highlight the meaning of the exhibition and its homage to the Evanston Art Center, a home to the arts for many decades.

The exhibition opens to the public this Sunday, September 11, with a reception from 1-4pm.  Admission is free and the exhibition will run through November 6.

Where: Evanston Art Center, 2603 Sheridan Rd, Evanston, IL 60201

There’s a LOT happening in Chicago on September 9 – dozens of gallery openings, receptions, special events of all shapes and sizes, and Kimpton’s Palomar Chicago Hotel is adding another event to the mix this year with their second Sleeping with the Artist installation series. 

In partnership with Chicago art curators, Revolving Collections Gallery, Palomar will offer guided tours of three gallery floors at the hotel in addition to an art salon hosted by the three featured local artists, Veronica Bruce, Jamie Lynn Henderson and Deanna Krueger. 

The event will also include live performance art by Patrick C. Cunningham, and an auction of an original piece from the participating artists with proceeds benefiting Chicago Arts Partnership in Education (CAPE).  Complimentary refreshments will be provided. 

Swing by this River North hotel event before making the rounds at the galleries later in the night! 

When:

Palomar’s fall event series kicks off September 9 from 5:30 - 8 pm.

5:30-6:30 pm: Artist guided tours

6:30 pm: Performance art, art auction and gallery talk, 5^th floor foyer

7 pm: Raffle (prizes include getaways to Chicago Kimpton Hotels!)

Where:

Kimpton’s Hotel Palomar Chicago  |  505 N. State Street, Chicago (60654)

The event is free and open to the public; hotel gallery is located on floors 14, 15 + 16. 

* A suggested donation of $10 benefits the Chicago Arts Partnership in Education (CAPE)

PLEASE RSVP to Christy Nolan: Christy.Nolan@hotelpalomar.com or 312-985-0736