Welcome to Pandemic Aesthetics: How the Health Crisis Is Reshaping Contemporary Art—and Changing the Way We Look at It, Too

The first two exhibitions I visited in person after 409 days of seeing art only through my computer screen were Jill Magid’s “Tender: Balance” and William Pope.L’s “My Kingdom for a Title,” both in Chicago. Apart from being a fan of the artists and curious to see their new work, I chose these shows for pragmatic reasons: Their venues were located near one another and both were scheduled to close soon. 

What I did not expect was how these installations would speak to one another, and to me, about the pandemic. 

Via Lori Waxman, Artnet News

First monument in Chicago to honor a Black woman will be unveiled and dedicated to Ida B. Wells in Bronzeville on Wednesday

After a seven-year crowdfunding quest and three years of building, the first monument in Chicago to honor a Black woman will be unveiled and dedicated this week in Bronzeville, where civil rights icon Ida B. Wells lived for much of her life.

On Wednesday, the Ida B. Wells Commemorative Art Committee, a subcommittee of the Oakwood Shores Working Group, will host a dedication ceremony for the Light of Truth Ida B. Wells National Monument, on the site of the former Ida B. Wells public housing development.

Via Maya Mokh, Chicago Tribune

A Florida Man Is Threatening to Sue an Artist Whose Invisible Sculpture Sold for $18,000, Saying He Came Up With the Idea First

Earlier this month, an Italian artist named Salvatore Garau went viral when his “immaterial sculpture”—that is, a work of art made of literally nothing—sold for €15,000 ($18,300) at auction.

Articles about the sale was shared widely, often accompanied by captions of the “I could have done that” variety. Users posted pictures of blank spaces—their own invisible sculptures which could surely be had for a fraction of Garau’s price. Many bemoaned the fact that they didn’t think of it first. 

Via Taylor Dafoe, Artnet