This week is all about eating, but next week will be all about the holiday frenzy and plans to make before 2012 comes to a close.  For a change of pace, especially on a Monday evening, we recommend that you check out Fear No Art's The Dinner Party on Monday, November 26 at the Mayne Stage. The Dinner Party is a creation dreamed up by the ever-enthusiastic Elysabeth Alfano, who brings together a dynamic group of creatives to sit together and eat and chat while a live audience listens in and looks on. Monday's event features several of my own favorite local personalities: the witty host of NPR's "Wait, Wait...Don't Tell Me!", Peter Sagal, will be there, along with star violinist Rachel Barton Pine - a talent I saw perform just this past Friday night at a Scottish extravaganza called the Feast of the Haggis.  Also around the table will be SNL alum, actor and screenwriter Tim Kazurinksy, and the dinner will be created by Jared Van Camp of Nellcote (I still havent' managed to get reservations there at a decent time.) There will also be wine pairings and chocolate (by Vosges!).  There's more: Lynne Jordan, of the super fabulous Lynne Jordan and the Shivers, will be the opening act (she performed at my wedding, plus I never miss a chance to see her perform at the Drake) and artist/cab driver Dmitry Samarov will be sketching live. Seriously - this is too good to miss! If you can't make it there in person (which is the best option, since you get to taste the food!) you can watch live online while the show streams at TimeOutChicago.com/dinnerparty

Bon Appetit!  And Happy Thanksgiving from CGN!  

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Join host Elysabeth Alfano at the Mayne Stage the last Monday of every month for a live filming of THE DINNER PARTY, a completely new and different kind of show. Alfano invites 3 cultural luminaries and a celebrity chef to join in food, art, wine, Twitter, performances and conversation during this 90 minute show which also streams live on the internet. Can't make the Mayne Stage? Watch THE DINNER PARTY live on TimeOutChicago.com/dinnerparty and www.FearNoART.tv and tweet in (and win prizes) to be a part of this fantastic, new multi-dimensional show.

When & What & Where: November 26th live dinner, conversation, performances at the Mayne Stage and streaming live on TimeOutChicago.com/dinnerparty and www.FearNoArt.tv

Price: $25 Buy tix to Mayne Stage including food, wine and chocolate tastings, or free on-line viewing.

Mayne Stage: Doors open at 6:30 pm. Starts at 7PM, including dinner sampling. No late seating. Post show party at the Mayne Stage's Mezz Gallery.

Streaming On-line: starts at 7:30 pm CST on FearNoART.tv and TimeOutChicago.com/dinnerparty

More Information, click on Fear No ART presents THE DINNER PARTY.

Logan Launch Festival is happening this weekend, an appropriate time for joviality considering October is Chicago Artist’s Month (CAM). The three-day festival is a celebration surrounding the opening of the Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts at the University of Chicago.  The Center will serve as a hub for the vibrant arts scene at the University and a destination for the South Side and greater Chicago area.  This weekend's festivities are free, open to the public and happening now through Sunday, October 14.

Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts
Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects
Photos by Tom Rossiter
© The University of Chicago

Numerous events are occurring throughout the weekend ranging from site-specific sound installations, multiple performances, plays, films, orchestra ensembles, discussions, lectures, readings, workshops, a live broadcast, as well as visual artworks. There are a few ongoing installations, such as Sonic Environments: The Work of Richard Lerman: Sound Installation Piece, as well as exhibits MFA: On Display, and Wall Text both presented from the Department of Visual Arts, as well as Self-Guided Tours.
 
Multiple performances are shaking up this evening, Friday, October 12, so be sure to check out the full schedule. Ricardo Basbaum’s “Would you like to participate in an artistic experience?” addresses complex social transformations through the circulation of a deceptively simple object, one of his “New Bases for Personality (NBP)” which is ongoing all day Friday. Music Department Piano Showcase, Los Cenzonties with David Hidalgo, Monk and Mingus: Performance by University Jazz X-Tet, Uballet, Deeply Rooted, The Ransom Notes, Student Performance of Tony Award-Winning Play “Proof”, and Spektral Quartet are all exciting events ranging from music to performance to dance, or some combination of the above. There will also be a chance for you and your friends to participate in informal performances at the Logan Cabaret Series Kick-Off at the Performance Penthouse from 9-11pm, Friday, October 12. More performances will be held throughout the weekend, including the Turtle Island Quartet concert on Sunday at 3pm.
 
Several discussion panels, lectures, and conversations will develop this weekend including a few this evening.  Beware the Stairs Are Always Moving: A Conversation with architects Tod Williams and Billie Tsien takes place tonight from 6-7:30 pm.  Later on, from 8-9pm in the Café, Café Scientifique sessions invite the public to explore and debate current issues and interesting topics in science research at the University, for the price of a cup of coffee or a glass of wine.
 
Family programming will take place all day Saturday including Family Telling Workshop; Barrel of Monkeys, “That’s Weird, Grandma”; Animation Workshop; and StoryTelling with the Ase Youth Ensemble. There will also be Arts Trolley Rides from noon - 5pm where guests can visit museums and cultural institutions across the University of Chicago campus including the Oriental Institute Museum, Renaissance Society, and Smart Museum of Art.
 
Open House Chicago (OHC) organized by the Chicago Architecture Foundation is an annual weekend festival providing free behind-the-scenes access to many of Chicago’s greatest places and spaces. The Logan Center, selected as one of OHC’s “Top Twenty Sites to Visit,” will offer self-guided tours for OHC participants that feature “backstage” areas of the performance spaces as well as private studios on Sunday from 10-5pm. Logan Center presents Scheduled Tours on Sunday to explore the Logan center with a knowledgeable guide. Hear about the building’s history, architecture, and role within the University with visits to the performance hall, blackbox theatre, digital media center, classrooms, gallery and more.
 
Look for more detailed information and a full schedule of events on the Logan Center for the Arts website, so you can participate in this dynamic community with its intriguing, intellectual, and enjoyable events.
 
Festival hours:
Friday: Noon – 11pm
Saturday: 10 am – 11pm
Sunday: Noon- 5pm

Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts
915 East 60th Street
Chicago, IL 60637

Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts
Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects
Exterior construction view from the north
Photo by Tom Rossiter
© The University of Chicago

Navy Pier, Chicago, IL; View from above

With three weeks until Exposition Chicago debuts at Navy Pier, planned programming and special events continue to build anticipation for the opening of the fair.   

Vernissage kicks it all off on Wednesday, September 19 from 4-9pm.  Organized by the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago and made possible with support from the MCA Trustees and the Women’s Board, Vernissage is the opening night benefit event that offers a first look at the fair during an evening of food, drinks and entertainment.  For more details and to purchase tickets online, click here.

Expo Chicago will showcase 100 of the top contemporary and modern art galleries from around the world and will be open to the public from Thursday, September 20 – Sunday, September 23.  In addition to the impressive exhibitor list, there are several programming highlights and special events to look forward to, including:

COMPLIMENTARY SHUTTLES, organized by Chicago Gallery News and EXPO Chicago, will run during the fair (Thursday – Saturday) providing transportation between Navy Pier, the MCA, River North and the West Loop.  Shuttles will be provided complimentary as a way for fair visitors to more easily explore Chicago’s art destinations and galleries.  Stay tuned to CGN for more details on shuttle information, receptions, galleries with extended hours and more! 

EXPOSURE exhibitors include an additional twenty young galleries that have been in business up to five years.  Visitors, curators and collectors will have the chance to see fresh, emerging work from Exposure exhibitors.

IN/SITU exhibition spaces will be arranged throughout the fair, providing exhibiting galleries the opportunity to showcase large-scale installations, site-specific and performative works by leading international artists.  Organized by writer and independent curator Michael Ned Holte, IN/SITU will feature work by Robert Barry, Fiona Connor, Theaster Gates, Tony Feher, Roy McMakin, Sarah Rara, Steve Roden and Jan Tichy. Additional pieces by Jaume Plensa, Dzine and Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle will also be on view.

Other special exhibitions and programming will be on view around the show floor from art organizations including the International Sculpture Center, Marwen, Chicago Sculpture Center, The Renaissance Society, the Museum of Contemporary Photography, Bad at Sports, the Aperture Foundation, among others. 

DIALOGUES is a series of panel discussions and conversations with leading artists, curators, designers and arts professionals, presented in partnership with The School of the Art Institue of Chicago (SAIC).  Highlights include a talk by art critic Jerry Saltz on Thursday, September 20;  a conversation between artist Sterling Ruby and art advisor Todd Levin on Friday, September 21; a panel discussion between curators Michael Darling (MCA), Lisa Dorin (Art Institute of Chicago) and Dominic Molon (Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis); a conversation between artist Byron Kim and critic / SAIC professor James Elkins.  See the full schedule and more details here. 

EXPO Chicago is produced by Art Expositions, LLC, under the leadership of President and Director Tony Karman.  Studio Gang Architects, led by MacArthur Fellow Jeanne Gang, is designing the interior environment for the fair.  For additional details and ticket/visitor info, click here.