• From the print edition of the May-August 2013 issue of Chicago Gallery News

Chicago artists are always up to something new. Below we’ve picked out highlights we think you shouldn’t miss this season.  New picks will be posted in the upcoming months.  If you have your own picks to recommend, please leave them in our comments section. We are always proud to promote what Chicago artists are up to here and around the world. - CGN

Theaster Gates - 

Musuem of Contemporary Art (MCA)

Above: Top: Theaster Gates, 12 Ballads for the Huguenot House, 2012. Performance view, Documenta 13, Kassel, Germany. Bottom: Installation View, Documenta 13, Kassel, Germany. Images courtesy of Kavi Gupta CHICAGO I BERLIN

13th Ballad, an installation by Chicago-based artist Theaster Gates, is an extension of the artist's 12 Ballads for Huguenot House, which was co-produced by the Museum of Contemporary Art for dOCUMENTA (13), the international art exhibition in Kassel, Germany. For 13th Ballad, Gates creates a new large-scale installation in the MCA's Kovler Atrium that comprises objects and materials from the Huguenot House, along with a monumental double cross sculpture and carved wooden pews which create an ecclesiastical ambience to suggest that art museums, like churches, are sites of pilgrimage and thoughtful contemplation. 13th Ballad is accompanied at the MCA by a series of collaborative performances and is on view May 18-October 6, 2013. www.mcachicago.org

• Artistic notecards by Tony Fitzpatrick

For the first time, you can buy eight of artist Tony Fitzpatrick’s drawing collage images at a time for under $20!  Packs of four images printed on eight notecards are now being sold through Chicago’s The Found, a handy source for all things printed. The No. 9 Birds series is created from Fitzpatrick’s original art. $16.50 at www.thefound.com

Fitzpatrick's notecards feature a series of four birds from his drawing collages

• The Chicago Project (various artists)

Catherine Edelman Gallery

2013 marks the ten-year anniversary of The Chicago Project, started in 2003 as an online-only gallery devoted to unrepresented photographers in the Chicagoland area. In an effort to promote local talent, Catherine Edelman put out a call for submission to all local photographers to submit work on an ongoing basis, in an effort to expose local artists to an ever-increasing worldwide audience. This summer CEG presents The Chicago Project V: Selections from our Online Gallery. Artists in the exhibition are Clarissa Bonet, Eddee Daniel, Juan Fernandez, Justin Chase Lane, Peter Hoffman, Paul Marquardt, Jessica Tampas, Anthony Vizzari and Jacob Watts. The entire show can be seen online at www.edelmangallery.com

Above: Top: Clarissa Bonet: Paths, 2011, from the Chicago Project at Catherine Edelman Gallery; Bottom: Jacob Watts, Celebration, 2012

• Vivian Maier’s photographs

Bridgeport Art Center and Russell Bowman Art Advisory

Vivian Maier's striking photographs of people and scenes around Chicago were discovered in a thrift shop here in 2007.  Maier worked in Chicago as a nanny for 40 years, and this summer two spaces feature her photographs: 

• May 30: Vivian Maier: Out of the Shadows: slide presentation by Rich Cahan + Ron Gordon. At Bridgeport Art Center.

www.bridgeportart.com

• June 21-August 17: 

Vivian Maier, Summer in the City, at Russell Bowman Art Advisory

www.bowmanart.com

Vivian Maier, Untitled (Vivian's Shadow with Flags), July 1970, Edition 4/15. At Russell Bowman Art Advisory June 21-August 17

Have you ever wanted to try out an art studio class, such as wheelthrowing, screenprinting, or jewelry design, but haven’t had the time or money? Lillstreet Art Center is giving all of those interested in classes a free chance to come and try their hand at some different artistic trades this Saturday, March 2. From 12-4pm Lillstreet will invite visitors to try various classes for 1-2 hours to experience what a 5-10 week class would be like. Visitors are also welcome to check out all the different classrooms, galleries, studios and the Artisan Gift Shop. They will also tour Lillstreet’s brand new Lillstreet Loft from 12-4pm. This private 2,000-sq ft loft is designed to feel like an artist’s studio and is available for private rental and team building programs. So come check out all of Lillstreet’s facilities and try out a class! The schedule of events are as followed:

12-4  Kids Activities

12-1 Screenprinting of Paper

12-1 Handbuilt Slab Trays

1- 2Handbuilt Mugs

1- 3  One Bead at a Time

1:30-2:30 Band Rings

2-3 Wheelthrowing

2-3 Monotype Mania

2-3 Sewn Drawstring Bags

2-3 Printed Tote Bags

2-4  Throwing Big 

3-4 Sewn Drawstring Bags

3-4 Printed Tote Bags

3-4  Wheelthrowing

3-4  Bracelets 

Those interested can RSVP on Facebook.

If art classes do not catch your interest, Lillstreet is also excited to host the 6^th annual Empty Bowls Project to benefit First Slice, a local hunger-fighting organization. On Friday March 1 Lillstreet welcomes anyone to join them for a modest meal of soup and bread, served in a bowl donated by a ceramic artist. Each meal is $25 dollars, and the buyer can take the bowl home afterward. The sales of the bowls are first come first serve starting at 5:00pm. There will also be a silent auction of artist-crafted items during this time.

March begins with two days of fun at Lillstreet Art Center. From The Empty Bowls Project on Friday starting at 5:00pm, to the free art classes on Saturday from 12:00-4:00pm, you won’t want to miss out on these exciting events!

Lillstreet Art Center

4401 N. Ravenswood

Chicago, IL 60640

773-769-4226

www.lillstreet.com

2013 is off and running.  We’re eleven days into the new year, and tonight we’ll celebrate the opening of the winter gallery season along with a few dozen local galleries.  Have you seen the openings list yet?  If not, check it out and make a list of places to go and people (and art) to see.  Exhibition details can be found on our site and in individual gallery listings; here are a few highlights opening tonight…

Our January – April 2013 cover feature gallery, Thomas Masters Gallery presents Melody Saraniti, Drips+Grids.  The gallery is celebrating its 20^th anniversary this year; read more about Thomas’ memories and the history of the gallery here.

Melody Saraniti, Drag Oh La, acrylic on panel, 54" x 56"

River North’s Roy Boyd Gallery opens tonight with a refreshing display of paintings by Andrew Graham. 

Andrew Graham, D15, 2012, oil on linen over wood panel, 26” x 46”

The Art Center Highland Park will showcase work by over 150 teachers and members of the Art Center community with In View: Annual Member & Faculty Exhibition.; opening tonight from 6:30-9pm. 

Packer Schopf Gallery has four separate exhibitions opening tonight: Andrea Stanislav’s Wilderness of Mirrors (sculpture, glitter constructions and video);  Bruce Riley’s Psychedelic (mixed media paintings);  Lauren Levato’s Wunderkammer (drawings);  and Deborah Baker’s Zodiac (embroidery).  Pictured below is a drawing from Lauren Levato’s exhibition Wunderkammer.  Levato’s new collection of work delicately combines wonder and the artist’s memory, elaborating on the idea of how the body can become a Wunderkammer (a place where a collection of curiosities and rarities is exhibited).

Drawing by Lauren Levato

Tonight is just the start of a full, fresh season of art to look forward to.  New openings and events are added to our site each week, so be sure to visit us often – and enjoy!

This past weekend I had a chance to check out Andrew Rafacz Gallery’s current group show Lake Effect/ Nor’easter: Part I in the West Loop. An exhibition of two parts collaboration with LAMONTAGNE, a gallery located in Boston. Each gallery will feature works represented by the other. Part II will take place at LAMONTAGNE opening in Boston on December 15. Featured artists in Part I include: Tory Fair, Jeff Perrott, Daniela Rivera and Joe Wardwell.
 
The aim of the show is to give Chicago a unique glimpse of the vitality of the work created by artists working and living in the Bay State.
 
I enjoy the idea of a two part collaborative show in different cities, functioning as a sort of artist swap, giving the other city a friendly glimpse of different work. The works themselves were lighthearted. Tory Fair’s cast resin sculptures Sculpture From Above and Pink Crate Sculpture struck me as innovative and a little strange, in an unexpected way. Fair’s palette utilizes a soft pink - a color I’m not typically drawn to - in a satisfying manner along with bright yellow and metallic silver. The way the sculptures are positioned casually on the hardwood floor instead of formally on a pedestal, adds to their contemporary air. These sculptures have a presence of being honest, and give off the idea of hope that art can connect to the viewer without being too serious.
 
Daniela Rivera’s oil paintings are arranged with some hung on the wall in a grid, and others trailing off into two stacks onto the floor. All twelve canvases are painted varying shades of green, reminiscent of summertime grass. Rivera’s paintings are easy to relate to, giving an intriguing mix of nostalgia and that refreshing, forbidden feeling of not wearing sandals in the summer while sipping on homemade lemonade.
 
Fair’s sculptures and Rivera’s paintings stood out to me in the group show. Jeff Perrott’s abstract large paintings and Joe Wardwell’s graphic paintings were both interesting, unfortunately I didn’t relate to them as much as I would have liked. Overall, the show was refreshing, contemporary, and the works were playful.
 
Be sure to check out the exhibition for yourself - the show runs until Saturday, December 22. Andrew Rafacz Gallery is located at 835 W. Washington Blvd, Chicago.

Tory Fair, Sculpture From Above, cast resin, 18” x 14” x 12”, 2012 and Tory Fair, Pink Crated Sculpture, cast aluminum and resin, 15” x 15” x 14”, photographer: Erin McGuire

Daniela Rivera, Growth, oil on canvas on panel, 24” x 24” x 2 ½ ”, 2011, photographer: Erin McGuire

Daniela Rivera, Growth, oil on canvas on panel, 24” x 24” x 2 ½ ”, 2011, photographer: Erin McGuire

Día de los Muertos (Day Of the Dead) is one of Mexico’s most important celebrations.  Taking place on November 1st, friends and family gather to pray for and remember loved ones who have passed.  The celebration includes paying homage to the dead through the construction of altars, which traditionally include flowers, sugar skulls, candles, food, and drink.    

The National Museum of Mexican Art celebrates Dia de los Muertos with its 26^th annual exhibition, featuring works of art by both Mexican and Mexican-American artists, four of whom are Chicago locals (James Larralde, Salvador Vega, María Villarreal, and Román Villarrea).  This year’s theme--curated by Dolores Mercado--is titled Hanal Pixán: Food For the Souls, inspired by the Maya regions of Yucatan, Quintana Roo and Campeche.  Visitors have the opportunity to celebrate life by glimpsing death through vibrant works of art.  The exhibition runs through Dec. 5; more details here.  

Fernando Castro Pacheco, The Offering-Hanal Pixán / La Ofrenda-Hanal Pixán, 1975, oil on canvas, 50 1/8” x 70 1/2”, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo Ateneo de Yucatán, photo: Edgardo Arredondo, Courtesy of MACAY

For those of us who are more hands-on, Self-Help Graphics & Art is hosting a Día de los Muertos Community Art Workshop this Saturday, October 27 from 12 PM – 3pm.  The workshop includes Flores de Papel/Paper Flower Making, Papel Picado/Mexican Cut Paper, Dia de los Muertos Mascara Decorating/ Paper Mache Mask, Paper Mache Procession Calaveras and Calacas.  Supplies and teachers are included; more details here.   

Self-Help will also be hosting its 39^th Annual Dia De Los Muerto celebration on Friday November 2 from 5-11pm.  Through the leadership and initiation of local artists, Self-Help graphics’ celebration is unique to the East Side artistic community it represents.  It will include a traditional ceremonial blessing, musical performances, food and craft vendors, face painting, and children’s workshops.

Ricardo Linares G., A Dream / Un sueño, 1989, polychrome papier-mâché, 23 ½” x 11” x 9”, National Museum of Mexican Art Permanent Collection, 2006.69, Gift of John D. Meeks, photo: Michael Tropea