<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/dcweoa5hhlkd19kyjajr.jpg" copy.jpg=""><figcaption>Artist and educator Theaster Gates pushes flat the bound copies of magazines on display in “When Clouds Roll Away: Reflection and Restoration From the Johnson Archive,” as he prepares for the exhibition’s opening reception Sept. 12, 2024, at the Stony Island Arts Bank in Chicago. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/2024/09/19/how-the-offices-of-ebony-and-jet-became-the-latest-theaster-gates-exhibition/">How the offices of Ebony and Jet became the latest Theaster Gates exhibition</a>Theaster Gates stared hard at a room full of furniture.There were credenzas, chairs, desks, chests, a cube resembling an office refrigerator. Behind them, framed correspondence, photographs. Much of it came to him in 2010 after Johnson Publishing Co., home of Ebony and Jet magazines, vacated South Michigan Avenue. An office tower’s worth of furnishings, loose magazines, books, art and history needed a new home, and fast. Johnson Publishing was going through the final pains of watching its traditional place on newsstands vanish. So Columbia College stepped in and bought 820 S. Michigan. Johnson had occupied it since the early 1970s. It was the first building in downtown Chicago owned by a Black man. It’s still the only downtown skyscraper from a Black architect (John Warren Moutoussamy).Via Chicago Tribune&nbsp;<a href="https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/story/2024-09-30/ucla-hammer-museum-new-director-zoe-ryan">Former AIC Curator Zoe Ryan Named Hammer Museum new director</a>One of the highest profile jobs in L.A.’s art world has officially been filled: The UCLA Hammer Museum in Westwood announced Monday that its next director will be Zoë Ryan, who arrives from the Institute of Contemporary Art at the University of Pennsylvania.Via LA Times&nbsp;<a href="https://news.artnet.com/market/the-top-10-most-searched-artists-which-stars-are-rising-which-are-dimming-2546195">The Top 10 Most Searched Artists: Which Stars Are Rising? Which Are Dimming?</a>Over the last decade, there haven’t been many dramatic shifts among the most frequently searched artists in the Artnet Price Database. Compared with 10 years ago, mainstays like Pablo Picasso, Gerhard Richter, and Andy Warhol even maintained the exact same spots on the new list, and Jean-Michel Basquiat, Alexander Calder, Marc Chagall and Joan Miró are close enough. But the Yayoi Kusamajuggernaut is newer, reflecting her meteoric rise in the market and the public consciousness.Via Artnet&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

What We're Reading: 10/3/24

<html><head></head><body>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/ls0zbabgvpmqjkjilfpf.jpg" copy.jpg=""></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/elefante-leopoldo-gout">Elefante: Leopoldo Goût</a>Opening: Thursday, October 3, 6 – 9&nbsp;pmPovos – West Town&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/eoid3isdc0qkn5ajqszd.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/departed-a-patrick-jilbert-solo-show">Departed: A Patrick Jilbert Solo Show</a>Opening: Friday, October 4, 5 – 8&nbsp;pmChicago Truborn&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092760/prlqiffmxevur9yt7bb3.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/blake-jones-solo-show">Blake Jones ‘B-Sides’ Solo Show</a>Opening: Friday, October 4, 5 – 7&nbsp;pmVertical Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092761/nqmpi9hilidb8optrfxv.jpg" design="" (13).jpg=""></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/beneath-the-surface-spirituality-in-art">Beneath The Surface: Spirituality in Art</a>Opening: Friday, October 4, 5 – 8&nbsp;pmARC Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092762/yrtkkmwvxcx8vyjsvg7o.png" jacoby="" hidden="" cove.png=""></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/susan-jacoby">Susan Jacoby: Quietude</a>Opening: Friday, October 4, 5 – 7&nbsp;pmVivid Art Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092763/cilsmlbgysx1prjnhpkq.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/susan-isaacson-and-katsy-johnson">Susan Isaacson and Katsy Johnson: The Power of Place: Geographical Memories and Identity</a>Opening: Saturday, October 5, 5 – 7&nbsp;pmPerspective Photo Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092764/tnyz4ilyljmngzjhizxa.png" stories.png=""></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/from-dakar-street-stories">From Dakar: Street Stories</a>Opening: Saturday, October 5, 5 – 9&nbsp;pmT. Mari Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092765/hwpjldivajztarbyh210.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/phyllis-brodny-the-secret-life-of-gourds">Phyllis Brodny: The Secret Life of Gourds</a>Opening: Sunday, October 6, 1 – 3&nbsp;pmGallery Seven&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

New Exhibitions Open October 3–6

<html><head></head><body>A tip from a friend during a spring trip to Cambridge introduced us to a collection of everlasting flowers.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/u0iutjlvr87gy4a5m2sa.jpg"><figcaption>An apple blossom detail. Photo from HNHM website</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By GINNY VAN ALYEADuring a trip to Boston earlier this year, my family and I knew that since April can be a harsh month on the East Coast, we would do well to sightsee indoors. While visiting Cambridge friends suggested we make Harvard University’s Museum of Natural History our first stop. Even with the clear preview of what we were going to see – “the Glass Flowers” – we had no idea that this sprawling antique collection, located on the second floor of a quiet academic museum, would be a spring explosion that would trick the senses and also give us a science lesson. The floral models on display looked so realistic that my husband asked the security guard where the glass ones were. She responded that at least half of visitors to the exhibit ask the same thing.&nbsp;The internationally acclaimed Ware Collection of Blaschka Glass Models of Plants was made by Leopold (1822-1895) and Rudolf Blaschka (1857-1939), a father and son team of Czech glass artists over a period of 50 years, from 1886 through 1936. During that time the Blaschkas produced 4,300 glass models that represent 780 plant species of flowering and nonflowering plants represented by nearly 850 life-sized models and over 3,000 highly accurate enlargements that detail plant anatomy and morphology, including many paper-thin crosssections, each with a label indicating the magnification level. A single hair of a Butterfly Flower from Chile, the “Schizanthus pinnatus”, was magnified 600 times, with the model measuring a couple of inches.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092760/mqenhakbdxleq3kkvz2d.jpg"><figcaption>The collection is displayed in rebuilt, original historic wood and glass display cases. Photo by CGN</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Today the models make up one of Harvard University’s most famous treasures, equal parts artistic marvel and gift to science. We spent around 45 minutes peering through the exhibition’s display cases, and after we left, despite now trusting my eyes to believe the flowers were in fact glass, I wanted to know a little more about how these crystalline botanical studies were created. The Blaschkas, first working in the 19th century, came from a Czech family of jewelers and glassmakers that could trace their profession as far back as the fifteenth century. To create the models the Blaschkas, working out of their studio near Dresden, Germany, would usually heat the glass to soften it and then shape it into a particular flower. In other cases they would blow glass into hollow shapes or components. To add the correct pigments, colored glass was used for many, while other early creations were “cold painted” – a process that uses a thin wash of colored ground glass or metal oxide(s) and heated until the material fused to the model. Later versions created by Rudolph after his father’s death used glass enamels for color instead of paint.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092760/ntx3eqow22lq78xnpipe.jpg"><figcaption>Several examples of both life-sized models alongside magnified plant sections. Photo: CGN.</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;A Harvard Professor and founder of the Botanical Museum, George Lincoln Goodale, saw a need for life-like, long-lasting representatives of the plant kingdom for teaching botany. Mrs. Elizabeth C. Ware and her daughter Mary Lee Ware financed the creation of the collection and presented it to Harvard University as a memorial to Dr. Charles Eliot Ware, Class of 1834. The synthesis of a gifted family of artists as well as professor’s vision and a benefactor’s generosity ultimately cultivated a marvelous historic collection of plant models that have significantly contributed to scientific study and to an appreciation for art and science. There is much to behold and to learn for all ages during a visit to the Glass Flowers.&nbsp;&nbsp;Harvard Museum of Natural History • 26 Oxford St., Cambridge, MA 02138<a href="https://hmnh.harvard.edu/glass-flowers">hmnh.harvard.edu/glass-flowers</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

Harvard’s Glass Flowers

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/v8y6rus1frklsyjfcgq8.png"></figure>&nbsp;By CGN StaffCPS Lives announced their 2025 Artist Residency Cohort, featuring 20 talented artists, including 9 returning residents and 11 new residents bringing fresh perspectives. This year’s cohort promises an inspiring journey of creativity and collaboration with Chicago Public Schools!Founded in 2018 by Chicago photographer, Suzette Bross, CPS Lives is a 501(c)(3) non-profit arts organization that pairs Chicago artists, designers, creatives, thinkers, makers, and educators with a Chicago Public School during the academic year to collaborate on a project, sharing the unique and individual story of each Chicago Public School. Each story will be celebrated and exhibited through local Chicago Public Library branches, as well as existing on the CPS Lives website as an accessible digital archive of history for students, families, community members, educators, administrators, policymakers, and the general public.CPS's mission builds on Chicago's long history of being an incubator for various industries: manufacturing, theater, architecture, music, science, literature. As a classic urban center, this city has provided opportunities and support for an array of industries. Now, as we enter the 21st century, this library of industrial and creative venues is transforming into a new range of digital industries. Providing educational resources to help develop an educated society is not a new issue, but one that changes and develops as the urban environment transforms itself. Public schools are key. If a city is to continue to develop and prosper, it must provide superior public services including schools and libraries.<a href="https://cpslives.org/artists?utm_source=CPS+Lives&amp;utm_campaign=7878f54125-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2024_09_26_04_52&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_term=0_-7878f54125-%5BLIST_EMAIL_ID%5D">Details</a>&nbsp;</body></html>

CPS Lives! Announces 2025 Artist Residency Cohort

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/db4v6x7hfc1znzqmxuir.png"></figure>&nbsp;Via PRCongratulations to <a href="https://t8j4tqkab.cc.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=0016uP_BbuIpNfrdySlTiXGXFRejiRecC-J-uP4YtCodvdB2hta6e2Rbfsq67ppW3eiPHz4ybab6rTy0ZSibhFXKBb9UiWvel7s1oxl1N6bHdmet0thrgW5zzueYXkXB3pMOwSZD4yslNt9FcMV66O3G22VXqIAfiZceL8Ja1Q1kkFjRq5O_Cvxgs5NPEbT7Xc1HzE-n2fbRP-w2OTIUEDYMosnBzLIv4An&amp;c=NzXn9j3APTOa30ZmH7z0vnDJlduKON8EVnRmgMbI3bXYPIaY2YsDFg==&amp;ch=Hbu8S_kA3RbrlON8-dQxTAfTLsDcWFFbPvM2TUDtOMaPQ1FVHiNOMw==">Ebony G. Patterson</a> on the prestigious honor of being selected as a 2024 MacArthur Fellow.Twenty-two new geniuses were anointed today as the Chicago-based MacArthur Foundation announced the 2024 winners of its MacArthur Fellowship, an award commonly known as the “genius grant.” Four visual artists, three performing artists, six writers and a filmmaker are among this year’s winners, who hail from 15 states and Washington, D.C. The grants, given annually by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, are considered one of the nation’s most prestigious awards for intellectual and artistic achievement; this year’s winners also include historians, activists, scientists and social scientists. Along with bragging rights, fellows receive $800,000, paid in quarterly installments over five years, with “no strings attached” or requirements for how the money is used. The foundation says the money is given to “talented and creative individuals as an investment in their potential.”<a href="https://t8j4tqkab.cc.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=0016uP_BbuIpNfrdySlTiXGXFRejiRecC-J-uP4YtCodvdB2hta6e2RbQWEHr5LCIzsvf8k-6Ms_1Vya99o1j0gfMuhch1h-oq7VJ-k0q1CP4dA0H6yDSWmn8zouhCt0JuE_XiZM1Wp0g3sVKvnBm_emQ5M0KCJ9jIBEhAhwXX97X93dfTwixdrtinCZ1SWH3DzSD8feiiBL-D6SU_IdBBRTw==&amp;c=NzXn9j3APTOa30ZmH7z0vnDJlduKON8EVnRmgMbI3bXYPIaY2YsDFg==&amp;ch=Hbu8S_kA3RbrlON8-dQxTAfTLsDcWFFbPvM2TUDtOMaPQ1FVHiNOMw==">learn more</a><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2020/5/ebony-g-patterson-the-interactivity-of-visual-appeal">Read CGN's 2020 interview with Patterson</a>&nbsp;Ebony G. Patterson's&nbsp;expansive practice addresses visibility and invisibility, through explorations of class, race, gender, youth culture,&nbsp;pageantry&nbsp;and acts of violence in the context of postcolonial spaces. With the strong sensibility of a painter, Patterson works across multiple media - including tapestry, photography, video, sculpture, drawing and installation - united by her consistent visual language and intention.&nbsp;Each work is intricately embellished and densely layered, in order to draw the viewer closer and to question how we engage in the act of looking.&nbsp;Patterson states: I aim to elevate those who have been deemed invisible/un-visible as a result of inherited colonial social structures, by incorporating their words, thoughts, dress, and pageantry as a tactic to memorialize them. It is a way to say: I am here, and you cannot deny me. Entrancing and colorful, Patterson's works command the viewer to look beyond their rich formal characteristics and to acknowledge the realities of social injustice. Using the paradoxical to convey important messages, she draws on far reaching vernaculars of art history, religious&nbsp;imagery&nbsp;and popular culture. Patterson explains that she uses beauty to trap the viewer 'physically, psychologically and emotionally' in intricate and seducing compositions. Shrouding figures&nbsp;almost completely, the artist creates a presence of bodies no longer there, which raises pertinent questions about those who are not visible.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Patterson (b.1981, Kingston, Jamaica) received an MFA degree in Printmaking and Drawing from the Sam Fox School of Design &amp; Visual Arts at Washington University St. Louis (2006) and a BFA in painting from Edna Manley College of Visual and Performing Arts in Kingston, Jamaica (2004). Patterson has taught at the University of Virginia; Edna Manley College School of Visual and Performing Arts; the University of Kentucky and was the Bill and Stephanie Sick Distinguished Visiting Professor at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Her major survey exhibition&nbsp;...while the dew is still on the roses...&nbsp;opened at Pérez Art Museum Miami in 2018; then toured to Speed Art Museum, Louisville, KY (2019);&nbsp;and the Nasher Museum at Duke University, NC (2020).&nbsp;Other notable solo exhibitions include …things come to thrive…in the shedding…in the molting…,&nbsp;New York Botanical Garden, NY (2023); Hales Gallery, New York, NY (2022);&nbsp;moniquemeloche, Chicago, IL (2021);&nbsp;Kunsthal&nbsp;Aarhus, Denmark (2020); Contemporary Art Museum, St. Louis, MO (2020); Baltimore Museum of Art, MD (2018); SCAD Museum of Art, Savannah, GA (2016); The Studio Museum in Harlem, NY (2016);&nbsp;Atlanta Contemporary Art Center, GA (2016);&nbsp;Nerman&nbsp;Museum of Contemporary Art, Overland Park, KS (2014); Bermuda National Gallery (2012);&nbsp;among others. Select group exhibitions include&nbsp;Multiplicity: Blackness in Contemporary American Collage&nbsp;which originated at the Frist Art Museum, Nashville, TN (2023) and traveled&nbsp;to MFA Houston, TX (2024) and the Phillips Collection, DC (2024);&nbsp;Forecast Form: Art in the Caribbean Diaspora, 1990-Today,&nbsp;which originated at the MCA Chicago, IL&nbsp;(2023) and&nbsp;traveled&nbsp;to ICA Boston, MA&nbsp;(2023) and MCA San Diego, CA&nbsp;(2024);&nbsp;Giants: Art from the Dean Collection of Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys,&nbsp;which originated at the Brooklyn Museum, NY&nbsp;(2024) and&nbsp;traveled to&nbsp;High Museum, Atlanta, GA (2024).Her work is in the public collections of The Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, NY; Studio Museum in Harlem, New York, NY; SFMOMA, San Francisco, CA; Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA; Pérez Art Museum Miami, FL; the High Museum, Atlanta, GA; The IndianapolisMuseum of Art at&nbsp;Newfields, Indianapolis, IN; Denver Art Museum, Denver, CO; Nasher Museum, Duke University, Durham, NC; National Gallery of Jamaica, Kingston, Jamaica; Speed Art Museum, Louisville, KY; 21c Museum and Foundation, Louisville, KY; among others. She has been the recipient of several awards and fellowships including the David C. Driskell Prize (2023); Tiffany Foundation Grant (2017), the United States Artist Award,&nbsp;Painter&nbsp;and Mixed Media Artist (2018) and the Joan Mitchell Foundation Art Grant (2015). Patterson lives and works between Kingston, Jamaica and Chicago, IL.&nbsp;</body></html>

Chicago's Ebony G. Patterson Selected as a 2024 MacArthur Fellow

<html><head></head><body>*This feature and is from CGN's fall 2024 magazine. To subscribe to the print edition <a href="https://835ba3.myshopify.com">click here</a>.*&nbsp;This fall we will move through a warm and busy September season opening into a crisp but fleeting October, followed by frenzied holidays and the end of year crush. Following are a few places to visit for the first time or to return to, hopefully they are reminders of just how fabulous Chicago itself is as well as how wonderfully close it is to so many regional art destinations. These exhibitions, installations and events, are down the street or within a day’s drive, each worthy of an adventure this fall. – GV&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/doodfj7a3riou2n4hhkk.jpg"></figure>Grand Rapids, MIAn annual celebration of autumn, Mums at Meijer Gardens, Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park, is the largest of its kind in Michigan, featuring expansive chrysanthemum displays, fall foliage and family-friendly activities. Don’t forget to see the world-class collection of sculpture on site while you’re there.&nbsp;October • <a href="https://www.meijergardens.org/mums/">meijergardens.org</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/vpoolqlc9kfxahu9tdqy.jpg"><figcaption>Stanley William Hayter, Flux, 1969, Chazen Museum of Art permanent collection &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Madison, WIMadison’s vibrant arts scene shines against a backdrop of fall foliage, when the trees around the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s campus and Lake Mendota provide a picturesque setting for just about anything. Take a walk or bike through the UW Arboretum, and don’t miss the long-time Madison arts tradition that is the free fall Gallery Night on October 5, organized by the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art. While you’re there the University’s Chazen Museum of Art boasts an impressive collection ranging from ancient to contemporary works.&nbsp;• <a href="https://arboretum.wisc.edu">arboretum.wisc.edu</a>&nbsp;• <a href="https://www.mmoca.org">mmoca.org</a>• <a href="https://chazen.wisc.edu">chazen.wisc.edu</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092761/tq8abbllaecjqdr6oa7p.jpg"></figure>Chicago, IL – South LoopThis fall, find a blue-skied morning when the leaves are changing to visit Grant Park in Chicago’s South Loop and wander into a forest of 106 towering figures made from cast iron. Polish artist Magdalena Abakanowicz created the installation, titled Agora–meaning meeting place in Greek–for the City in 2006 as part of her ongoing artistic exploration of the image and meaning of crowds. The work is meant to be walked through, as it imprints a special magnificence as well as somberness that can only be experienced by standing among these headless figures, especially as the seasons change.&nbsp;South Michigan Ave. and Roosevelt Rd.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092762/hfgul6sceuivztbsciem.jpg"><figcaption>Deborah Maris Lader during construction on Wing, at 4883 N Lincoln Ave. &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Chicago, IL – Lincoln Ave. North Arts DistrictChicago Printmakers Collaborative turns 35 this fall and is thrilled to introduce its new Co-Director, printmaker/glass artist/educator Lauren Steinert, formerly of Tuscon, AZ, where she ran the printmaking program at Pima College. Lauren will work together with Founder/ Director Deborah Maris Lader through March 2025, after which she’ll take the reins of the world renowned community printmaking workshop and nurture it into its future iteration. The CPC will continue serving the needs of area printmakers, and classes and gallery hours resume in full tilt in September, along with events like Open House Chicago (Oct) and the 35th Annual Small Print Show (Dec). Lauren’s glass experience will likely bring fresh programming to CPC, including workshops in vitreography and other multi media print processes.Amidst all of this activity, outgoing Dir. Deborah Maris Lader has built an addition, called “Wing”, which will house her studio and feature an arty storefront facing Lincoln Ave., anchoring the new Lincoln Avenue North Arts District (LANA). Deborah’s studio will debut during Open House Chicago (Oct 19-20) and then be open by appointment and feature its own programming and printmaking demonstrations.&nbsp; •&nbsp; <a href="https://chicagoprintmakers.com">chicagoprintmakers.com</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092763/ac38orxbiuf1dqnoa9bs.jpg"></figure>Three Oaks, MIThree Oaks, Michigan is known for its creative community as well as its scenic lakeside location just an hour and a half from Chicago. One gallery that opened a couple of years ago on the main street is arbor3 arts, a space that celebrates female artists while offering affordable art and programming for the Three Oaks community.&nbsp;On September 25 at 11am Chicago-based photographer Jessica Tampas, who exhibits with the gallery, will lead a workshop on how to take dramatically better iPhone photos. The class runs for one hour and will be held on the gallery’s outdoor patio, where the lighting (and likely fall foliage) is perfect.The class is $65/per person.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.arbor3arts.com">arbor3arts.com</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

Sightseeing In Search of The Season’s Colors

<html><head></head><body>*This interview was conducted in August &nbsp;and is from CGN's fall 2024 magazine. To subscribe to the print edition <a href="https://835ba3.myshopify.com">click here</a>.*&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/wdlxn3pv3akeptjjcdt1.jpg"><figcaption>New graduate Tom McCormick in 1971 in the communal kitchen of the Lakeside Inn, his boss john Wilson’s headquarters &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By GINNY VAN ALYEATom McCormick hails from Kansas–he graduated from the University of Kansas in 1971 with a printmaking degree and an obsession with antiques collecting and old stuff–but he’s been just about everywhere. For a time he was a professional “picker”, sourcing quilts, furniture, folk art, ceramics, prints, paintings, even Navajo rugs and oriental carpets, wherever he could unearth them, honing his eye and learning the joy of turning a profit from secret treasure. Eventually McCormick found himself more mainstream employment working for a print dealer in Lakeside, Michigan, who happened to be John Wilson, the eventual founder of Art Expo. The job involved crisscrossing the country and enough motel stays in two years for a lifetime. Once he tired of being on the road, McCormick got his MFA and sold off the collection he had built, catching the bug that would lead to a life and career as a dealer. He also established himself and his family in Chicago.Today McCormick still spends much of his free time in Michigan, but it’s clear Chicago maintains a hold on him. Nearly 25 years after opening a gallery in the up-and-coming West Loop, McCormick could reasonably retire and write a tell-all about the art market, sharing secrets and witty observations about shifting peaks and valleys of Chicago’s gallery world and its characters and creatives. Instead, for now, he is embracing change while keeping his feet planted in the city. This July McCormick moved his namesake gallery from its longtime home on West Washington Boulevard and migrated to the still-evolving West Town. A new address of his own and a fresh space has re-energized McCormick, though he doesn’t seem to ever run out of energy.&nbsp;&nbsp;CGN: So Tom, what’s new with you and the gallery?&nbsp;Tom McCormick: Well…as you know, we moved [in July] to a new location in West Town, 2251 W. Grand Ave., and are busy getting ourselves organized and settled in. A big job to move after 24 years in the old place. Because of partnership issues surrounding the Washington Blvd. building, of which I’m a half owner, I knew a change was inevitable and I began shopping for a new home this time last year. I ended up buying Tyler Mongerson’s building after he tragically, and unexpectedly died last summer. Really awful. Tyler had been helping me look at West Town real estate, and I eventually worked a deal with Sara, his wife, to acquire their property. It’s a terrific space and we spent the last year slowly renovating it to fit our needs.&nbsp;&nbsp;CGN: The gallery has been around for 24 years. Why make a big move now instead of just saying, “It’s been a great run.”&nbsp;TM: OK, I have been doing some version of this (art dealing) for over 50 years, and I think I’m finally starting to get the hang of it. You know, practice makes perfect. Seriously… I love doing this job and am reasonably good at it. I have a great Director in Mary Beyer and a wonderful group of artists that we represent. I also continue to nurture my long interest in historic art. As long as I am healthy and can arrive at work in an upright position, I think I’ll just keep on showing up. I think they keep an oxygen tank somewhere in the closet, just in case.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/cixwin2zv2mrgopvhult.jpg"><figcaption>The exterior of the new gallery space at 2251 W. Grand Ave. in Chicago’s West Town. &nbsp;</figcaption></figure> &nbsp;CGN: What attracted you to West Town? What are you excited about after so many years in the West Loop?&nbsp;TM: Honestly, I grew disenchanted with the West Loop years ago. Since we own the building we didn’t get forced out by high rents, as usually happens to galleries, we stayed put as others moved on. The neighborhood was raw and funky in 1999. My car mechanic was across the street, there was a great hot dog place on the corner, and you could buy a mop bucket next door. Perfect. There was a community of galleries within walking distance. That’s all changed. So many good galleries have moved west: Rhona Hoffman, Andrew Rafacz, Carrie Secrst, Corbett vs. Dempsey, GRAY, PATRON. West Town is the place to be now.&nbsp;CGN: Tell me about the first show planned in the new space.&nbsp;TM: John Santoro, who we have shown for years, will be opening with new paintings on September 12. John was also a huge help in the move, he’s quite a handy guy. Eventually I want to do an inaugural type show featuring all our contemporary artists. &nbsp;&nbsp;CGN: What are you spending time on outside the gallery these days?&nbsp;TM: I guess the short answer is Michigan. We have had a place in Sawyer for over 30 years and it has become more and more central to our life. [My wife] Janis lives there pretty much full time and actually changed her residence so she can vote there. Smart lady. She also has chickens, her art studio and she has joined the board of the Lubeznik Art Center in Michigan City. We have a native prairie and about 25 sculptures sited around the place. We just added a commissioned piece by Gwen Yen Chiu, a fantastic young artist.&nbsp;So, we are blessed with a beautiful 13 acre property, which keeps us busy, often on our bellies in the dirt–pruning, weeding, planting, and cussing.&nbsp;Visit McCormick Gallery's new location at 2251 W. Grand Ave. in West Town.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thomasmccormick.com">thomasmccormick.com</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092760/se7frktsourmz2c9kkfl.jpg"><figcaption>A painting by John Sontoro, whose exhibition opens September 12, 2024 &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;</body></html>

Moving Out and On: An Interview with Tom McCormick

Gertie Makes No Little Plans: Chicago Exhibition Weekend 2024, and Beyond

<html><head></head><body>By BIANCA BOVAMany Chicago galleries have a remarkable longevity. This year three celebrate the milestone of reaching (or in some cases, surpassing) 20 years in business. Dealers John Corbett and Jim Dempsey of Corbett vs. Dempsey; Scott Speh of Western Exhibitions and (Northern) Western Exhibitions; and Bert Green of Bert Green Fine Art share the origins of their respective operations, how they’ve crafted programs and fostered long-term relationships with artists, and what they see for themselves in the future.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/zgvwzzsldg5scknp7qb7.jpg"><figcaption>Jim Dempsey and John Corbett, Indianapolis, Indiana, 2021.&nbsp; (Photo: Terri Kapsalis) &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>John Corbett and Jim Dempsey, Corbett vs. Dempsey&nbsp;&nbsp;CGN: What led to the decision to found the gallery? Has its focus changed in the 20 years you've been open?&nbsp;Corbett: We met because we attended a lot of the same events around town, art and music wise. We hit it off immediately, then started talking about how little we knew about the Chicago art scene—given that we’re really both kind of culture-vultures, it felt a little weird that there was so little information readily available about the visual art scene that we were both part of. Our first collaborative exhibitions were at the Roger Brown Study Collection, on the ground floor of the late artist’s home. I was interim chair of the exhibition studies program at the School of the Art Institute at the time, and just kind of commandeered the space between SAIC shows. Then in 2004, we opened Corbett vs. Dempsey in the space above Dusty Groove.&nbsp;&nbsp;CGN: Tell me about the long-term relationships you've had with artists over the gallery's tenure.&nbsp;Dempsey:&nbsp;A couple of artists that we work with now–Gina Litherland was Phil Hanson were some of the very first we worked with, we showed them all the way back at the Roger Brown space. The thing is, we were and are both interested in the historical part of Chicago, but we realized that the artistic output in the last 50 or 60 years in this city can be really hard to parse sometimes. We just thought, maybe we can find ways to put the puzzle together on our end a little bit to present it to other folks, and start to develop a narrative that seemed a bit spotty at that moment. That has led to some long-term engagement&nbsp;CGN: The gallery moved locations after 15 years. What led to the decision to expand?&nbsp;Dempsey: Initially, when we moved into the first space in Wicker Park, we thought we would have more of a private dealership model, but that space naturally felt more like a gallery. And we had a good run in that space. Eventually, we just had to acknowledge that we were up against the limitations of that space. No elevator, small doors, and there were things that we just couldn't do there. But it was also such a big part of our identity that it took a lot to kind of get our minds around like, we need to make this move. And then to find a space that had the warmth of the space that we had before that wasn't just like a white cube or a traditional gallery. Ultimately, we found what we needed in our current space. We’ve been able to realize programs and exhibitions we could not have done before.&nbsp;&nbsp;CGN: What's next for Corbett vs. Dempsey?Corbett: On September 14, we opened <a href="https://corbettvsdempsey.com/exhibitions/hubcap-diamond-star-halo/">“Hubcap Diamond Star Halo: Corbett vs. Dempsey at Twenty,”</a> a program of events and exhibitions in honor of our twentieth anniversary. It includes a survey exhibition in the primary gallery space, as well as a revolving exhibition in the north gallery space which will change over weekly for the seven weeks of the show. That will be featuring thematic and one-, two-, and three-person exhibitions. There will also be a robust slate of book launches, conversations with artists, and musical events accompanying the exhibitions, which will run through November 2. Come back often.&nbsp;<a href="https://corbettvsdempsey.com">corbettvsdempsey.com</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092761/jkdhghq0g7mvyhpfhb7t.jpg"><figcaption>Scott Speh. Photo by James Prinz &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>Scott Speh, Western Exhibition | (Northern) Western Exhibitions&nbsp;CGN: What led to the decision to found the gallery? Has its focus changed in the 20 years you've been open?&nbsp;Speh: I was a failing artist who became more interested in organizing shows than making my own work. I was living in Brooklyn but a day-job kept me on the road a lot. When I’d return to town, I’d find myself wanting to connect with artist friends, often in their studios, instead of holing up in my own studio. I moved to Chicago in late 2001 and became frustrated that friends of mine who I thought were great artists weren’t getting the recognition they deserved, so I decided to open a gallery.&nbsp;The early focus was presenting the work of friends and some college colleagues whose work excited me, and I felt it deserved a larger audience. As the gallery continued, several themes began to develop (though this wasn’t necessarily a conscious plan of mine, my instincts led the curatorial development, not a unified mission), themes I didn’t really place until I overheard a conversation in our booth at the first EXPO on Navy Pier between curators Shannon Stratton and Mark Pascale, with Stratton urging her colleague to consider “Western Exhibitions' especially rich program devoted to drawing” (or something to this effect. Also, Mark, when I used this anecdote elsewhere professionally, strongly told me that he already knew this). This led me to the realization that Western Exhibitions prioritizes drawings and works on paper, an organic development. It took an outsider to notice this, as at that point, I didn’t perceive that the gallery had a particular focus other than work I thought was good and important. From there, I realized that gallery artists and the shows we’ve presented often pull from the following paths — personal narratives, unique cosmologies and world views; LGBTQ artists and issues; Feminist art/fighting the patriarchy; pattern, decoration and surface concerns; works on paper (especially drawing); and artist books.&nbsp;CGN: Tell me about one or two of the long-term relationships you've had with artists over the gallery's tenure.&nbsp;Speh: One of the first artists I encountered in grad school at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1994 was Stan Shellabarger. As I was scoping out the print media studio (my area of focus), I noticed a tall, thin man with a long beard, slowly pacing the hallways, nearly hugging the wall. Upon further examination and explanation, Stan was using the performative practice of walking in public to make a drawing, in this case, by dragging his fingernail against the wall, the repeated accumulation of scuffs ultimately making a visible mark down the wall. I was FASCINATED. I didn’t necessarily become close with Stan during grad school but I made it a point to see his work every time it was presented.I stayed in Madison for three years after grad school, curated a bunch of shows there, self-published an art criticism zine, got divorced, moved to New York, lived there for two years, moved to Chicago in 2001 to find that Stan and his partner Dutes Miller had also moved to Chicago. Stan was still making this sort of ‘70s conceptually driven performance work that resulted in handsome, rough-hewn, hand-made minimalist objects, yet with pretty much no interest from the Chicago art world.&nbsp; When I started up the Western Exhibitions nomadic gallery project, I made it a point to work with artists like Stan who are compelled to follow their artistic path even if no one is paying attention. We had several shows with Stan and then started showing the collaborative work he and Dutes make, under the separate artistic persona, Miller &amp; Shellabarger. We’ve placed Stan’s work in several prestigious institutional collections, including the Art Institute of Chicago, Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, National Gallery of Art, Minneapolis Institute of Art and Baltimore Museum of Art.&nbsp;&nbsp;CGN: The gallery moved to various locations in Chicago several times before settling down at 1709, and then subsequently opening a second location in the north shore. How has it grown over the years as it occupied new spaces, and what led to the decision to expand to the suburbs?&nbsp;Speh: Every move was driven by circumstance, not strategic growth. From 2006 to 2008, I shared another space in West Town (1821 W Hubbard) with Lisa Boyle, a full-time dealer. Then, Shannon Stratton at threewalls asked me if I’d be interested in taking over their lease in the 119 N Peoria Building in the West Loop as they were moving to a bigger space in the same building. I leapt into running a gallery as my full-time job in the fall of 2008 in the West Loop, then the heart of Chicago’s contemporary art scene, just in time for the stock market to collapse and The Great Recession to begin. Fun.I then moved across the street to 835 W Washington to take over Tony Wight’s space when he decided to downsize and met the proprietors of Document and Volume Gallery there. When all of our leases were up in 2016, we decided to seek out a space together. After striking out on a bunch of possibilities, our landlords pulled a deus ex machina and offered us the second floor at 1709 W Chicago, then a cross-fit gym, as they planned to put a restaurant on the first floor. We invited David Salkin Creative to join our new art commune.(northern) Western Exhibitions in Skokie started as and continues to be an experiment and was definitely not something I envisioned or planned for. Zach Williams, a client of the gallery, came by the gallery for a visit one day and proceeded to tell me his life story which culminated into him winding down his law practice to do something cool and personally meaningful — opening a modern design store, seeded from his own collection as he strives to buy from living artists going forward, with a gallery attached, in Skokie. Zach told me “I want a gallery there but I don’t know how to run a gallery nor do I want to learn” and said that he appreciated my vision and work ethic and asked if I wanted a gallery in Skokie. To which I replied, “Wut? This thought has never occurred to me!” But I decided, why not? I am using (northern) Western Exhibitions to scratch my curatorial itch, as it is, to comb through gallery artists’ pasts to put together a show that they may not have envisioned themselves.&nbsp;&nbsp;CGN: What's next for Western Exhibitions?Speh: We’re officially celebrating our 20th year milestone with a show derived from the archives. <a href="http://westernexhibitions.com/exhibition/20-years-of-western-exhibitions/">20 Years of Western Exhibitions</a> will present every press release from every show at all 6 of our locations over the years, plus printed ephemera, some on loan from the Anthony Elms Art Ephemera collection as I somehow did not save the postcard from the first bricks-and-mortar show, plus reviews of shows and a pile of notebooks containing my to-do lists from over the years. And at the same time, in Gallery 2 in Chicago, I’m excited to present Zhi Ding’s first solo show in Chicago. Zhi is a Chinese artist, educated at the Art Institute, now living in New York, who makes seemingly whimsical paintings, which resemble illustrations from a children’s picture book, but are full of drama and darkness. At (northern) Western Exhibitions at the end of October, I am presenting a show devoted to <a href="http://westernexhibitions.com/exhibition/sigils/">Elijah Burgher’s practice</a> of creating painted mystical symbols, sigils, which is an early 20th occult practice of recombining the letters that spell out a wish into a new abstract symbol.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092762/ipybn3qaal3qvuqzc90p.jpg"><figcaption>Bert Green. Photo by John Ellis.&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>Bert Green, <a href="https://bgfa.us/index.html">Bert Green Fine Art</a>&nbsp;CGN: What led to the decision to found the gallery? Has its focus changed in the 20-plus years you've been open?&nbsp; Green: I started my first gallery in 1999, which is coming up on 25 years now, at the end of 1999 in Los Angeles. I first opened in Hollywood, then moved to downtown LA. Then moved to Chicago in January of 2012. There was a core group of people, about 30 galleries in the district then. When that scene peaked in the mid 2000s, the real estate obviously followed, then the gallery scene shifted to a different part of downtown a more industrial area. Then there was that push in the mid to late 2000s, where it became very international and very high end. That's where it is now, LA has become this major international art center. It was not like that at the time, but it was beginning, you could see it coming, it just it just hadn't happened yet when we were there.&nbsp;My late partner [Aric Lasher] was an architect, and was lured back here for a job that led to us making the move to Chicago. Initially, I saw myself as an opportunity to introduce artists to Chicago that might not have had an opportunity to show here–artists I was working with from California, a few international artists. The gallery has two rooms. For the first five years the program revolved around showing one out-of-town artist and one in-town artist.&nbsp;CGN: Tell me about one or two of the long-term relationships you've had with artists over the gallery's tenure.&nbsp;Green: The two that come to mind are Sandra Yagi. She's a Japanese American artist in San Francisco. We've been working with her pretty continuously since the gallery opened. She does sort of fantastical work that combines naturalistic imagery with scientific imagery. She's mainly a painter, but we've done some prints, and she also does works on paper.&nbsp;The other one is Grey James, he's based in L.A. Grey James is a transgender artist who had a previous identity, which was Jennifer Heaslip. I've been working with Grey since probably 2003. He transitioned from female to male in the year 2013, and in that year, we did a show here in Chicago where one of the rooms was the work from the previous identity and the other room was work from the new identity. Even though he is not well known in Chicago, it did really, really, really well. I felt that was a highlight for that sort of relationship between L.A. and Chicago.&nbsp;&nbsp;CGN: Yours is one of the few galleries still operating in the Loop. What made you decide on a downtown space, rather than a space in the gallery district?&nbsp;Green: Yes, I'm on an upper floor in an office building. When I first moved to Chicago I looked all over. At that time the West Loop was still where lots of galleries were, the West Loop and River North. River North was waning and West Loop was kind of at its peak or near its peak. I couldn't find a space that worked for me. Either the prices were too high or the cost of renovation was too high or just wasn't the right space. I live downtown, and I thought well wouldn't it be nice to just have a place that I can walk to work? My partner who was also an architectural historian made a suggestion to me to look at the street wall of Michigan Avenue across from Grant Park. All of those buildings are designed in such a way that they maximize light and views of the lake, but every one of those buildings has usually a tier in the back that doesn't get any light that's against the brick wall or, you know, it's very dark, and for a gallery that's kind of perfect. So I looked at three or four of the buildings and I found a very good deal in the Willoughby, very, very inexpensive rent at the time, which hasn't really gone up all that much.I also got a little bit tired after being on a street level space in LA. I had a very large space in downtown LA. The majority of people who walked in the door were, you know, just looky-loos and it really felt like the business was changing in such a way because online is such a important way that people look at art and connect with galleries now. I wanted something that was not quite by appointment only, but a destination. The majority of my business is done privately or online or by appointment, but I am open to the public, one day a week. And that balance has worked out really well for me.&nbsp;CGN: What's next for Bert Green Fine Art?Green: In October we open our <a href="https://bgfa.us/resources/bgfa_release_2410.pdf">25th Anniversary show</a>. It's really a look back. It includes people that I've worked with from the beginning and throughout the whole 25-year period, and also includes some artists that I've only started recently working with, a couple of artists in the show that I've maybe only worked with for two or three years. There’s about 30 artists in the show. A good number of them–probably a good half of them–are people that we've published prints with that we don't necessarily represent. People such as Ed Ruscha, John Baldessari, Shepard Fairey, people from California who have bigger names–don’t necessarily exhibit their work, but we’ve worked with them publishing prints. So they'll be in the mix as well. There's a good number of local artists from Chicago, like Industry of the Ordinary and Mac Pierce, who's a recent graduate from SAIC, Mikey Mosher, who's also a recent graduate from SAIC, Morgan Sims, who worked in Chicago for many years before he moved to Philadelphia. Jesse Howards as well. They're all pretty prominently featured. It’s a mix of lots of people, a good look at what the gallery has been doing for 25 years.&nbsp;#&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

Three Chicago Galleries Navigate Their Twenties

<html><head></head><body>*These highlights are from CGN's fall 2024 magazine. To subscribe to the print edition <a href="https://835ba3.myshopify.com">click here</a>.*&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/vbd4is3l3m3arrenqkem.jpg"><figcaption>Taylor Ana Valdez</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;VSG Contemporary• Untitled Omakase, Opening September 27• Listen, Listen, Opening November 1&nbsp;VSG Contemporary opened in 2022 as A Very Serious Gallery, a leap of faith by founder Allan Weinberger. This fall, VSG is set to showcase two highly anticipated exhibitions. Kicking off on Friday, September 27, Untitled Omakase, curated by renowned artist and Chicago native Lefty Out There, will feature a dynamic collection of 18 national and international leading contemporary artists with a strong influence from street art and graffiti. The show will highlight global talents, many of whom are exhibiting in Chicago for the first time, including Portugal’s HelioBray, Brazil’s Rafael Sliks, Denmark’s Mikael B, the internationally acclaimed Bisco Smith, alongside Louis de Guzman, Whisbe, and several other renowned artists. The exhibition offers a unique opportunity for Chicago’s art community to experience fresh, groundbreaking works from both established and emerging figures in the global street art scene.Lefty Out There's curatorial debut at VSG Contemporary promises to celebrate urban art's influence on the global stage while positioning Chicago as a vital platform for international talent.Full Artist List: Astro the Baptist, Bisco Smith (USA/Portugal). Defer, Dot, Dont Fret, Fatal Attraction, Fidia (Italy), Heliobray (Portugal), Lalo, Lefty Out There, Louis de Guzman, Marcos Alvarado, Mikael B (Denmark), Rafael Sliks (Brazil), Saute, Sechor, TJ Kiser, Whisbe.*Later this fall on Friday, November 1, Montana-based artist Taylor Ana Valdez will present her second solo show, Listen, Listen, where she invites viewers to connect with the wisdom of nature and seek guidance from the spirit world, fostering healing and harmony within ourselves and our relationships.673 N. Milwaukee Ave.&nbsp; (West Town)<a href="https://vsgcontemporary.com">vsgcontemporary.com</a>Hours: W 12–5pm, Th 1–8pm (Open Late), 12–5pm&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092760/fc7uhq2aoxzggyfwksz5.jpg"></figure>&nbsp;MAYFIELDYawn Sigh, Oct 6–Dec 1Public opening Oct 6, 2–6pm&nbsp;Mayfield is a multi-use space housed in a near west suburb of Chicago. It’s a private residence and public site collectively organized by Madleine and Alberto Aguilar. This fall it will host a group exhibition with a cheeky title that plays on the word Lawn Sign. 13 artists will make a public declarations using the format of the lawn sign (it’s an election year, ‘tis the season), but the nature of the sign can be anywhere between political, directional, street, protest, picket, hand painted, classified, advertisement, billboard, motivational, marriage proposal, lost pet, for sale, for rent, or otherwise.&nbsp;Participating artists include: Andi Crist, H Schenck, Regin Igloria, Jeremy Carter, Jesse Malmed, Jordan Knecht, Mae C. Bishop, Atlan Arceo-Witzl, James Jonkowiak, Luba Mendelevich, Pedro Trueba Ramirez, and Berenice Vargas Bravo.505 Marengo Ave. (Forest Park, IL)<a href="mailto:mayfieldartspace@gmail.com?subject=CGN%20Highlight">mayfieldartspace@gmail.com</a>&nbsp;Hours: by appointment only&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092761/kgjwmhtu5hyrrmd4febu.jpg"></figure>OLD FRIENDS GALLERY• Ambulance Chase, September 27–November 16. Opening September 27, 6–9pm.• Luis González Palma, Opening late fall&nbsp;Located almost under the Paulina Brown Line El stop, on the border of Roscoe Village, Old Friends Gallery was founded earlier this year by Fawn Penn with the intention of highlighting artists working in diverse or historically overlooked materials. The gallery aims to showcase harmonious intersections between disciplines, embracing experimental materiality and its legacy within Abstraction as a throughline.Owner/Founder Fawn and Director Delia Pelli-Walbert have hosted several exhibitions to date. In late September the gallery will host Bianca Bova as curator for Ambulance Chase, which will include works by Peter Fagundo, Michelle Grabner, and Jonathan Worcester. The gallery’s last show of 2024 will be a&nbsp; review of portraiture by the Guatemalan photographer Luis González Palma, centering his Bodyguard daguerreotypes.&nbsp;3405 N. Paulina (W. Lakeview/Roscoe Village)<a href="https://www.oldfriendsgallery.com">oldfriendsgallery.com</a>Hours: Th–Sa 12–6pm&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092762/ktoqyf8g9qmqvgc4mtbq.jpg"><figcaption>Anne Lindberg</figcaption></figure>Secrist Beach• Anne Lindberg: Of All Colors• Manifest, a group exhibitionSept 20–Nov 9&nbsp;Carrie Secrist has had a gallery for 30 years, but she started fresh this spring when she opened the doors to her 10,000 square foot space in West Town, renamed Secrist Beach. Expansive and fabulous, the warehouse is like the space Carrie must have dreamed of when she first opened Gallery A in River North in the 1990s. After many years in the West Loop, Secrist’s new gallery home on West Hubbard feels like both a destination and a destiny. After an appearance at the Armory show in New York in early September, the gallery will open a show of new work by Anne Lindberg on September 20, running through November 9. Lindberg’s exhibition will be all about the color blue, centered on a 54 foot long thread installation. Running concurrently is Manifest, a group exhibition featuring a combination of artists and architects and will be about light, color and space.&nbsp;1801 W. Hubbard (West Town)<a href="https://secristbeach.com">secristbeach.com</a>Hours: Tu–F 10am–6pm, Sa 11am–5pm&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092762/rjfeihu3agmoyo675x4t.jpg"><figcaption>Photo by Steven Piper (@prezpipe)&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>TALA• Blinked Twice by <a href="https://www.instagram.com/_muneco/?hl=en">@_muneco</a> – Thru October 6• Group Exhibition curated in collaboration with Rupture and Verge Frames – October 18–December 16. Opening October 18, 7–10pm&nbsp;Tala is proud to present a group exhibition curated in collaboration with <a href="http://rupturechicago.com/">Rupture</a>, a Chicago BIPOC Maker/Visual Artist database working to create opportunities and representation in the fine art sectors of Chicago founded by Roland Santana. Framing provided in&nbsp;partnership&nbsp;with <a href="https://vergeframes.com/about-us">Verge Frames</a> (who support the artist's work with complimentary framing).&nbsp; 1644 W. Chicago (West Town)<a href="https://talachicago.com">talachicago.com</a>Hours: Th–Sa 1–7pm &nbsp; &nbsp;</body></html>

What's Next: On View in Chicago’s New Spaces

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/kub0fwjrccpowbhiogkn.jpg"></figure>Via PRCHICAGO – A captivating surrealist painting, <a href="https://link.mediaoutreach.meltwater.com/ls/click?upn=u001.iLq7DOSrsnpvrEmu8Fg-2BNMWM2lTpvyMoM6o39HlMyRBUNUkFazHWPpuN4Dwx-2BesxAXvwInr9wwic8-2F3ZEgYvwoNpqxz7cqBcolzjRm-2FEVfwpOy520lg5aWsmfbzJCG34fNGl_0g5QiKQ3ANfCkWXxwzczn1phIok0-2FnBF8GNWXrNhq2-2B4ftGj9DI8Jn4AfRAGeAJVn7gGoI0v4yHfyxNzcTgWoPEaLRzm-2F78kaJkURE3JvKd21AkP2t70-2BHtWbUdqbTMupZeZoNi02np7lyTIIa17QIdWmdi-2FiPfn55lIOSseb7r2OCqat3o-2BHaCNvMwAgtdj4YHZrIkilp8kIwWZFMcPNPDuAo-2Bt06dN5ZUwTefpVWkhXSifJFWyuyBtkVDpGe28igtToH1ZXpPYSDD8SN4KuGRczXD6THf9qc2rZ5Lk-2Foj-2Bx610R8hN0S-2FFSujWPI7gskX3Jmy-2B3FhypSAnfQFa3a-2B8RBON2waYzcp0P7WVikqU7dfJM46anbGMAoZqwZ8mZ-2FWfS0moMSV-2FyRIM-2Fg-2BoxQ-3D-3D">The Magician</a>, by Chicago artist Gertrude Abercrombie levitated past expectations at Freeman’s | Hindman’s September 25 Post War and Contemporary Art auction, achieving a remarkable $469,900—over six times its pre-sale estimate of $70,000–90,000. The sale, fueled by an intense bidding war via phone from the firm’s Chicago saleroom, marks yet another record-breaking moment for Abercrombie's work. Freeman’s | Hindman, the leading auction house for Abercrombie, surpassed its own record for the artist for the second time, following the sales of The Dinosaur for $387,500 in February 2022 and Untitled (Woman with Tethered Horse and Moon) for $437,500 in December 2022.Commenting on the sale, Zack Wirsum, Senior Vice President and Head of Department, Post War and Contemporary Art, said: The title of the work withstanding, it was no magic trick to realize a new world record price for the artist with the sale of Gertrude Abercrombie's spellbinding painting The Magician. Masterpieces just have a way of rising above and beyond any occasion and even lofty expectations.”Making MagicThe Magician, housed in its original frame, features a woman levitating above a sleek black chaise lounge reminiscent of one from Abercrombie’s own apartment. The scene is set against a backdrop of an austere interior, complete with a vibrant green rug and a black cat seemingly raising its paw to conjure the act of levitation—a testament to Abercrombie’s sharp wit and imaginative vision. This work is part of a broader exploration of levitation in Abercrombie's oeuvre, alongside notable pieces such as Floating Lady (1958) and Untitled (Levitation) (1964).The sale of The Magician highlights Freeman’s | Hindman’s commitment to promoting Abercrombie’s legacy and leadership in the market following the success of the Casting Spells: The Gertrude Abercrombie Collection of Laura and Gary Maurer auction in September 2022, which represented the most extensive offering of her work at auction to date. The heightened interest in Abercrombie's art is further amplified by the upcoming major retrospective titled Gertrude Abercrombie: The Whole World is a Mystery, set to debut in early 2025 at the Carnegie Museum of Art before traveling to the Colby College Museum of Art.Additional Highlights | Post War and Contemporary Art Auction<ul><li>Magdalena Abakanowicz (Polish, 1930-2017) | Dark, 1970-80 | Sold for $177,800</li><li>Louise Nevelson (American, 1899-1988) | Night Image 1, 1964 | Sold for $165,100</li><li>Lynn Chadwick (British, 1914-2003) | Maquette II for Jubilee III, 1984 | Sold for $133,350</li><li>Claire Falkenstein (American, 1908-1997) | Untitled (Large Fusion) c. 1960 | Sold for $95,250</li></ul>&nbsp;</body></html>

Sale of Gertrude Abercrombie Work at Freeman's | Hindman Sets New World Auction Record

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/mbokkwjpqthbgesukcs9.jpg"><figcaption>Lynnea Holland-Weiss, Embrace, 2022, Acrylic Mural on Drywall, 25’ x 20’. Photo courtesy of Nic Lehoux Architectural Photography. From the permanent collection of the MetroHealth Glick Center in Cleveland, OH.</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By LAURA M. METTAMI left Chicago in 2015 after working in the River North gallery district for ten years with Chicago Gallery News. Fresh out of college and immersed in Chicago’s art community, this was a pivotal time in my life. I loved the city’s public art and world-class museums, and I got to know many wonderful people and artists from the gallery world. Season after season, year after year, I felt the excitement of opening nights in the galleries and the buzz of crowded art fairs.&nbsp;Art had this power to connect the community and bring people together. To excite and to move people. After working in other industries over the past few years, I recently found my way back to the arts. While the setting is different, I’m witnessing the same powerful impact that the arts can have on people in the environment of care.&nbsp;I’m proud to work with the Gifts of Art (GOA) program at Michigan Medicine, the University of Michigan’s academic medical center. Home to one of the largest healthcare complexes in the state, Michigan Medicine has been a premier site of groundbreaking medical and technological advancements since it was founded in 1848.&nbsp;Michigan Medicine’s Gifts of Art program was designed as an innovation in healthcare delivery as part of the new University of Michigan Hospital that opened in 1986. One of the first and most comprehensive arts in health programs nationwide, GOA’s programming aims to transform the hospital experience in support of health and wellness for patients, guests, faculty, caregivers, and learners.&nbsp;GOA’s multifaceted programs include rotating art exhibitions in nine separate gallery spaces, concerts and performances, and one-on-one bedside visits from artists and musicians. Our Art Cart program offers a lending library of art prints for patient rooms, and we maintain the Friends Meditation Garden as a tranquil space in the hospital courtyard. Michigan Medicine staff is encouraged to participate in an annual employee art exhibition, hospital-wide art projects and drop-in workshops. We reach the greater community through programs such as the Life Sciences Orchestra, our symphonic orchestra for members of the U-M life sciences community.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/mhmu4buz9znm1mydey8q.jpg"><figcaption>Gifts of Art Gallery featuring photography by Takeisha Jefferson in Michigan Medicine’s University Hospital, Ann Arbor, MI.&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;<blockquote>The arts and humanities give expression to that aspect of human health not readily accessible or quantifiable. They reinforce and encourage the presence, in a health care setting, of communication, courage, hope, understanding, compassion, humor, acceptance, and peace.”&nbsp;- Ralph Snyderman, MD, Former Chancellor for Health Affairs, Duke University Medical Center</blockquote>&nbsp;The World Health Organization’s research supports the role of arts in the environment of care and recognizes its positive impact on holistic health and wellbeing. We witness this firsthand when we hear touching stories from families recounting the rich impact that GOA has had on patients. We also see a ripple effect when we meet people who want to give back after being on the receiving end. Creating art is a means to express ourselves as well as provide a sense of control and autonomy. Neuroscience research on mental health, cognition and development is plentiful and shows that listening to live therapeutic music can reduce stress and promote emotional healing while stimulating the brain and long-forgotten memories.&nbsp;Elaine Sims, Director of the Gifts of Art program, elaborates on why art in hospitals has such a profound effect, “We might say it’s&nbsp;because art in healthcare has a job to do. It is not intended to merely hang on the wall and look pretty. It is a workhorse whose job is to distract, engage, comfort, calm, maintain a presence, provide clues to social support, and help retain personal identity.&nbsp;Some permanent pieces stand the test of time, but additional energy, pleasure and surprise comes from art that is ever changing. In this environment, art is a powerful presence and is experienced quite differently than when viewed in a museum or gallery. The relationship between the viewer and the art object is more visceral, immediate, and intimate.”&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092760/msbae4fyrpcubuefzczh.jpg"><figcaption>Pictured here is a bedside art watercolor kit and one of GOA’s bedside musicians playing harp in the background. GOA’s bedside art and music services provide an intimate experience for patients and guests right in the hospital room.&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Recognizing New Needs in HealthcareThe arts in health field has evolved over the past several decades and continues to grow. The Society of Healthcare Arts Administrators was founded in 1989 during the first convocation hosted by the Cultural Services Program, Duke University Medical Center in Durham, NC. This original group of arts administrators and practitioners was born out of a need for peer support and inspiration from other institutions. After several name changes over the years (from Society for the Arts in Healthcare; Global Alliance for Arts in Health; Art and Health Alliance) this organization ultimately disbanded in 2014. The National Organization for Arts in Health (NOAH) was formed in 2016 and picked up where the previous arts in health organization left off.&nbsp;NOAH provides leadership for organizations such as GOA with a research-based focus on arts, health, and wellbeing, and a mission to unite and advance the field. NOAH produces professionalization resources, member support, and guidance intended to define industry standards and ethical practices. Annual conferences are held throughout the US as a chance for participants to connect and learn about emerging research and topics; this fall Houston, TX, will host. I attended my first NOAH conference last fall in Cleveland, OH, where I toured two impressive examples of robust arts in health programs.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092761/hwqerskvm3adjvwhpstc.jpg"><figcaption>A captive audience enjoying a musical performance from the Gifts of Art program at Michigan Medicine in the late ‘80s.&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Cleveland Clinic boasts more than 81,000 caregivers worldwide in 23 hospitals and 276 outpatient facilities, with around 14 million patient visits per year. Cleveland Clinic Arts &amp; Medicine was created for the purpose of integrating the visual arts, music, performing arts and research to promote healing and to enhance the experience of patients, families, visitors and caregivers. Cleveland Clinic’s contemporary art collection creates a museum-like environment, which viewers can interact with through their custom art and architecture app, AR+, that allows exploration of their flagship locations.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092762/fu9j5rhsiu1sxlc79ty3.jpg"><figcaption>Yayoi Kusama, Pumpkin, 2014, fiberglass-reinforced plastic and urethane paint. Gift of Robert M. Kaye; © Yayoi Kusama; Courtesy of David Zwirner, New York / Ota Fine Arts, Tokyo and Singapore / Victoria Miro, London / YAYOI KUSAMA Inc. On display in Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH.&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;“The artwork at Cleveland Clinic humanizes spaces that can feel unfamiliar or overwhelming,” says Ellen Rudolph, Senior Director &amp; Curator for the Cleveland Clinic Art Collection. Rudolph continues, “Yayoi Kusama’s Pumpkin,&nbsp;for example,&nbsp;has become iconic within the collection. Located in the Miller Family Pavilion entrance, it is a welcoming beacon when you enter the hospital and the sculpture also serves as an important wayfinding tool and meetup spot.”I was moved by the poignant large-scale mural in MetroHealth’s Glick Center in Cleveland, OH. Linda Jackson, Director of the Center for Arts in Health at MetroHealth provided more insight, “Embrace is about empathy, support, hope and lifting each other up, physically and emotionally. It is about encouragement and getting through whatever life brings us, together. There is a sense of tenderness and patience in the faces of these figures, as they are in motion, adjusting to one another and moving as one. The warm and cool color combinations within the bodies emphasize the emotion but also allow room for the figures to become whomever the viewers see them to be. It invites the viewer to relate to what they might be experiencing and reflect on our collective humanity, on healing, and what brings us together.”&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092762/bzmizgftcxazvvfi6ino.jpg"><figcaption>The University of Chicago Medicine’s permanent art collection in the Center for Care and Discovery includes work from well-known Chicago artists including Michiko Itatani and this piece, Untitled, from her Cosmic Theater series.&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;The MetroHealth System’s Center for Arts in Health integrates the visual, performing and therapeutic arts in its hospitals, clinics, schools and neighborhoods for the benefit of patients, families, caregivers and the greater community. Uniquely embedded within MetroHealth’s Institute for H.O.P.E.™ ensures the arts play a valuable role in addressing the social determinants of health. Innovative programming and partnerships with artists, arts organizations, academic institutions and community-based organizations are strategically aligned and employed within their walls and in the community.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092763/hxacbsgazdcijyvdxchr.jpg"><figcaption>Snow City Arts music workshops focus on the gratifying experience of creating music, regardless of skill or exposure level. Photo by Jaclyn Silverman.</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Chicago’s Snow City Arts is an arts in health organization that brings art education and programming to children and youth in local hospitals including Rush University Children’s Hospital, Ann &amp; Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, Children’s Hospital University of Illinois, and Cook County Health. To enhance their arts and education offerings Snow City Arts has a long history of partnerships with cultural organizations including the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs, Columbia College Chicago, The Art Institute of Chicago, the Smart Museum at the University of Chicago, the Old Town School of Folk Music, the Museum of Contemporary Art, and more. Their team empowers and encourages children and young adults through programming in visual arts, media arts, music, creative writing, theatre, and dance.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092764/ipxwdfgu3h0cex8yrole.jpg"><figcaption>University of Michigan Life Sciences Orchestra with Nicholas Bromilow, the Drs. Spindler &amp; Juran Music Director, May 2024. Hill Auditorium, Ann Arbor, Michigan.&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;The University of Chicago Medicine’s (UCM) Healing Arts Program was developed as an extension of UCM’s commitment to excellence in patient care, research and education, and offers artistic and aesthetic opportunities for its patients, guests, and UCM staff. The program’s mission is to enrich lives, assist and support the healing process, and reduce the stress and anxiety associated with healthcare environments. Healing Arts coordinator, Monica Hork explains, “The ability to comfort, console and sustain is one of the most enduring qualities of the arts. They can give voice to our deepest fears, our feelings of loss, and our hopes for the future.”Enhancing the environment of care through art is also an important consideration for medical staff. The topic of burnout has become more widely acknowledged over the years, particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath. Chronic stress, PTSD, and high levels of emotional exhaustion or depersonalization contribute to burnout - these stressors are also an occupational hazard that many healthcare workers struggle with. Art interventions benefit patients and guests, but they also benefit the tens of thousands of caregivers working within the facility. &nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092765/ngvtysqnpyucvfyzzoeo.jpg"><figcaption>Saraswathi Ranganathan performing Indian veena instrumental music in the University of Chicago Medicine’s Sky Lobby.&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Hospitals can be hard places to be. When you or a loved one needs care and the future is unknown, feelings of isolation, helplessness and uncertainty can quickly become overwhelming. Our sense of identity can fade when the ground feels unsteady. In challenging moments like these when we feel weak or lost, there’s something transcendent about experiencing music or art. The arts can mitigate stress, provide levity, build resilience, and remind us of our humanity. Much like public art which can be impactful after just a fleeting moment when we pass by a beautiful mural or eye-catching installation, experiencing art in the environment of care has the same meaningful potential to shift our focus, lift our mood, and linger in our minds long after the encounter.#&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092766/uljivx4dvqkjz2kjqmyd.jpg"><figcaption>Jaume Plensa, Cleveland Soul, 2007, steel and stone. © Jaume Plensa; Courtesy of Jaume Plensa and Galerie Lelong &amp; Co. Photo by Thom Sivo. On display in Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH.&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;</body></html>

The Healing Power of Art: Art’s Impact on Healthcare

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/jgpjvy9blxlixd2h6fuj.jpg"><figcaption>Photo courtesy of Jonathan Worcester</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By BIANCA BOVA&nbsp;In 2008, the artists Michelle Grabner and Brad Killam acquired the Waupaca County Poor Farm in the rural environs of Little Wolf, Wisconsin. In addition to their respective practices as artists and careers as educators, the couple was, by then, well known for their long tenure as the proprietors of The Suburban, the storied backyard gallery space in Oak Park, Illinois (which later followed them to its current location in Milwaukee, Wisconsin). The Poor Farm was to become, Killam said at the time, The Suburban’s “rural cousin.”&nbsp;The Waupaca County Poor Farm was established in 1876. Its poor house, which still stands on the property, once housed Wisconsinites who, considered public charges unable to support themselves, were sent there and provided barebones room and board in exchange for their labor on the land. It operated as such in tandem with the larger American Outdoor Relief system–prevalent throughout the Midwest at the time–and shuttered when the system was discontinued with the advent of the Social Security system in the late 1930s.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092760/q69pplh2ldeaoljkaivt.jpg"><figcaption>Poor Farm Artist Residents. Photo courtesy of Jonathan Worcester</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Once they came into ownership of the 2.7 acre compound, Grabner and Killam set about making the necessary renovations, which included the removal of decades worth of junk from the building (ten dumpsters worth, to be exact), the addition of a new roof, and an overhaul of its heating and plumbing systems. While conditions may still seem austere by comparison to some other artist residency centers, those who stay have access to a kitchen, a bathroom, a space to sleep in the 2,500 square foot dormitory, and, of course, to workspaces. If they stay inside, they may at any time find themselves in the company of the colonies of chimney swifts and brown nose bats that the building by circumstance serves to shelter. Those so inclined are welcome to camp outside on the grounds, if preferred. This primitivity offers fidelity to the history of the property, which remains intact to the point of still housing a jail cell in the building’s fieldstone basement, and whose back acreage is still graced by a cemetery alongside the cornfields.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092760/lz8oj8zjjian4fbic6pi.jpg"><figcaption>Exterior view of the Poor Farm with a resident tent out front. Photo courtesy of Jonathan Worcester</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;The Poor Farm as an art space has always been billed as an experiment, and it remains true to form as such without ever having sacrificed a sense of overarching structure. Exhibitions are mounted on its ground floor, as well as in the small upper story bedrooms. Since its inaugural exhibition in 2009, the space has played host to shows honoring art historian, poet, and artist Moira Roth; an iteration of Keil Borrman’s Bunker/Repository comprised of an installation designed to hold preserved foods made in collaboration with farmers in Wisconsin and New York State, as well as a seed library, and facilities for fermentation; a historical survey of Gretchen Bender’s video works, including the re-staging of the video performance Total Recall, which later traveled to The Kitchen, New York; and Model Home, an exhibition paying homage to Michael Lesy’s sinister 1973 volume Wisconsin Death Trip, among many others.&nbsp;While the artists whose works have been included in the last 15 years of exhibitions are far too numerous to name in their entirety, notable among them are: Nelly Agassi, Gregg Bordowitz, Assaf Evron, Francisco Goya, Sky Hopinka, Dorothea Lange, Louise Lawler,&nbsp; Miller + Shellabarger, the Denmark-based multi-dependent exhibition phenomenon Piscine, Cauleen Smith, Faith Ringgold, and Molly Zuckerman-Hartung. &nbsp;&nbsp;<blockquote>“The Poor Farm attends to the idea and truth of art even more than my combined energies as a studio artist, professor, critic, and curator.”– Poor Farm Co-Founder, Michelle Grabner</blockquote>&nbsp;A commitment to openness of form has allowed for a wide range of more amorphous projects to gain a foothold at the Poor Farm as well. It serves, for one, as the home of the David Graeber Institute, an organization devoted to the recognition of the American anthropologist and anarchist activist David Graeber’s (remembered as one of the leading figures of Occupy Wall Street movement) research and scholarship on debt and the wealth gap. The Institute is comprised of a space that is dedicated to the discussion of inequities, social welfare, and the history of the Poor Farm/Poor House system in North America.The Open Fund, a Milwaukee-based utility conceived of to support ephemeral art-makers and social platforms founded in 2016 is another close collaborator of the Poor Farm. The Open Fund Artist Project Grant supports visual artist initiatives that are experimental, collaborative, and public oriented in a manner unique to individualized communities as well as the culture at large. Intended as an experiment in durational cultural investment, it foregrounds the importance of place and alternative economic exchanges. Funds awarded to recent grantees yielded the presentation of creative and experimental work via film screenings, exhibition series, pop-up presentations, zines and media, educational models, and civic sites in addition to other inventive models of artistic engagements. In 2024 with support from The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts Regional Re-granting Program as well as the Ruth Foundation for the Arts the Open Fund was able to award grants for visual arts projects at both the $5,000 and the $10,000 level, for a total potential of $120,000 in funds distributed.&nbsp;Through the first decade of the Poor Farm, Summer School, a project led by Minneapolis-based artist and educator Aaron Van Dyke was also on site. Gathering artists and engaging in dialogues around art making, teaching, and learning, Summer School aimed to be “an antidote to the shortcomings of formal education, stressing openness, experimental forms of education, and educational and artistic agency,” according to its founder. Over the course of its tenure, faculty and students from University of Wisconsin, Madison; Minneapolis College of Art and Design; the School of the Art Institute Chicago; University of Minnesota, Minneapolis; Northwestern College, Minnesota; Columbia College, Chicago; and St. Cloud State University, Minnesota all participated.&nbsp;Since 2018, the Poor Farm has been committed to hosting a long-term research residency known as Living Within the Play. Directed by Mark Jeffrey and Kelly Kaczynski of Chicago, the initiative explores, per its directors, “the contingent nature of hosting and gathering, the fleeting and the reverberating, particular to the moment of temporary, intentional assembly.” In addition to the various lengths of group and independent residencies the project hosts at the Poor Farm, an annual summer sister-residency is now on offer in the Umbrian hill town of Monte Castello di Vibio, Italy, where Grabner and Killam maintain another property.&nbsp;Closer to home, mainstay Wisconsin artist, dealer, and curator John Riepienhoff’s Beer Endowment series, now well-known for apportioning the profits of beer sales to help support artist-run organizations, inaugurated their partnership with Milwaukee’s Company Brewing with the production of Poor Farm Pils. It remains the oldest and best selling beer in the series.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092761/utkhbiho7m2qncppnkv5.jpg"><figcaption>2019-2020 installation view from Sky Hopinka and Living Within the Play</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;In addition to the residencies, exhibitions, and programming taking place throughout the year, the Poor Farm operates its own publishing imprint, known as Poor Farm Press. The Press has produced exhibition catalogs including Tracking the Thrill: Gretchen Bender; Sky Hopinka; and All Over the Map, the lattermost a catalog documenting a festschrift exhibition celebrating the work and professional achievements of the art historian Moira Roth. Additional publications of note include MOTHERNISM, a work of literary nonfiction by Lise Haller Baggesen examining the intersection of feminism, science fiction, and disco, co-published with Green Lantern Press, and ON PTG, a volume published in conjunction with the College Art Associations annual conference, with papers by Rebecca Morris, Molly Zuckerman-Hartung, Sabina Ott, Peter Halley, Thomas Lawson and others. Poor Farm Press has also produced two attendant publications, Can I Come Over to Your House?, a sprawling 1,200 page review of the first ten years of exhibitions and programming at The Suburban, produced in collaboration with designer and artist Jason Pickleman, and Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road? Original Jokes about The Suburban and the Poor Farm by Artists Who Have Exhibited There, produced in conjunction with a project at Yale School of Art. Forthcoming from the press is Wisconsin, What a Joke: The Indignity of the Cheesehead State, an artist publication that examines Wisconsin as a traditionally progressive pioneer turned riotous partisan fighting ground. Believing in the power and inherent truth of the joke, the publication is a collection of insights, critiques, and observations on the State’s troubling identity.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092762/xqzgbrrlq6cdaxn3d0ti.jpg"><figcaption>Poor Farm Artist Residents.&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;It is perhaps the complete lack of delimitation on the space’s use by its stewards, and their laissez-faire approach to its day-to-day goings on that sets the space apart the most dramatically from its peers. &nbsp;“The Poor Farm attends to the idea and truth of art even more than my combined energies as a studio artist, professor, critic, and curator,” notes Grabner.&nbsp;Those visiting in 2024 will be treated to a two-person exhibition of new works by Katharina Grosse and Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle, as well as continuing iterations of Living Within the Play. While the works on view are reason enough to make the roughly three hour drive from Chicago, and the proliferation of tangential projects make for a compelling backdrop to any visit, the property itself remains a worthwhile destination in and of itself. By maintaining an uncompromising commitment to foregrounding the history of the site by way of leaving all that can safely be left in its original condition where it lays at the Poor Farm, Grabner and Killam pay deep respect to a dark remnant of our country’s history that in less earnest or sincere hands might have been at best forgotten, and at worst intentionally eradicated in the name of moving on.&nbsp;In Grabner’s words, “Today the Poor Farm is a perpetual site of humility, wild imaginings, and the perennial unmaking of the instrumentalizing values that underpin many aspects of contemporary transactional culture. Today’s Poor Farm is intentionally the unsettled ‘other’ that lives in opposition to the out-come driven moral values that produced the Poor Farm System.”If there is a unifying facet to all that its proprietors have done across the many and varied projects they have touched throughout their shared and respective decades-long careers, it is perhaps this: with an unflinching gaze, they have looked upon our collective Midwestern past for all its hideousness and all its heart, and met it with unwavering commitment to acting as a resource for those who continue to be drawn to excavate meaning from it. Nowhere, perhaps, can this be felt more keenly than on a warm summer’s night, camped out on the grounds of the Poor Farm, beneath the dark and star-filled sky in Waupaca County.<a href="http://poorfarmexperiment.org">poorfarmexperiment.org</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092763/xn1kkni116jc8pvpoj5k.jpg"><figcaption>Photo courtesy of Jonathan Worcester</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

The Poor Farm: Creative Experimentation Mines History In Rural Wisconsin

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/iyve8yhtee9pri0coawm.jpg" poster2.jpg="" copy.jpg=""></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/diane-thados">Diane Thodos:&nbsp;Eros/Thanatos: The Expressionist Prints of Diane Thodos</a>Opening: Friday, September 27, 7 – 10&nbsp;pmFirecat Projects&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092760/kwqichxmryl6hwqqqfmq.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/john-akomfrah-four-nocturnes">John Akomfrah: Four Nocturnes</a>September 27Wrightwood 659&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092760/cf63bahqg4axbblkc7rm.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/spirit-spirits">Spirit Spirits</a>Opening: Friday, September 27, 5 – 8&nbsp;pmCircle Contemporary (Arts of Life)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092761/enf88yim6mbevqxn2vjm.jpg" mckenna="" --="" blue="" mountain.jpg=""></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/beth-mckenna-woodblock-prints">Beth McKenna | Woodblock Prints&nbsp;</a>Opening: Saturday, September 28, 6 – 9&nbsp;pmBlue Moon Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

New Exhibitions September 27 & 28

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/jkgoujobggaqffzz8is3.jpg"><figcaption>A photo of the artist Rafael Blanco at work&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By GINNY VAN ALYEARafael Blanco: Reflecting on a Decade of Public Art opened earlier this month at The Elmhurst Art Museum. The artist's solo exhibition is on view through January 5th. Blanco has cultivated a reputation for creating memorable works of public art over the past 10 years, and in recognition of the milestone many of his works have come indoors and are now on view all in one place.&nbsp;Blanco's work is deeply influenced by his own immigrant experience. The artist is originally from Spain. A video showing Blanco at work is a sort of love letter to the his adopted home. He speaks about feeling welcome in Chicago and the experience he had embracing a new country while maintaining his own identity and honoring his home country through his art – now as an artist, his goal is to unify people through his art. Known for works that are mostly on view outdoors, Blanco's exhibition at EAM is unusual for its scale and scope bringing public works into a gallery space – something Blanco said was really a unique opportunity. Elmhurst, he shared, really gave him complete freedom to exhibit his range of works collectively. At the preview he said, It's been an honor to do this exhibition.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092760/fyvd6eqijueggdjcq071.jpg"><figcaption>Rafael Blanco, I am not Zurbarán, Self Portrait, 2015, 33 × 48, Acrylic on Canvas</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;The exhibition, which was inspired while John McKinnon was still Executive Director of EAM but which opened under interim Director Ann Quinn Kelly, introduces the viewer to Blanco’s artistic journey in a variety of ways: through photographs, videos of the artist's process, as well as large-scale new paintings and portraits. By bringing outdoor works into a gallery space, Blanco transforms EAM's galleries into a sort of urban landscape filled with color, texture, and the serendipity of discovering public art. Wandering through the galleries is not the same as happening upon a street-side mural, but the experience of having so many colorful and vibrant figurative works in one place intensifies the visual impression the viewer walks away with.&nbsp;Notably on display are many works that Blanco proposed to several organizations and institutions but which were ultimately rejected. Blanco uses this exhibition opportunity as a means of finally displaying works that might otherwise have never seen the light of day. And by moving the pieces from proposal sketches to full scale works he also worked to refine them. By exhibiting them viewers to the exhibition get to form their own opinion of whether these works are worthy of being shown.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092761/k73hise9vderlybashvf.jpg"></figure>&nbsp;When I met Blanco at the museum, after I toured the inside galleries, we walked outside the museum into the park and towards the main road that runs by EAM. Blanco showed me an external wall of the museum where an existing You Are Beautiful work by artist Matthew Hoffman had been fading after being on view for several years. Blanco explained that when he was working to put his show together, the You Are Beautiful &nbsp;was almost no longer visible. Blanco and EAM talked to Hoffman and Blanco presented a design that would go over the existing letters as a temporary installation while the exhibition is on view. Blanco told Hoffman, It is not beautiful anymore. He then asked, Is it OK if I make it beautiful again? Hoffman said of course.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092762/ermuisynh7tue2w9rlpk.jpg"></figure>&nbsp;Blanco let me know he actually finished updating the work two days before the exhibition opened. His goal was to keep Hoffman's work while also bringing his style into it – to morph the sign into the colorful and vibrant style he says he is always looking for. By adding Spanish to the sign, this key collaborative work is in keeping with the bilingual pieces in the rest of the exhibition.&nbsp;Blanco shared that the experience of painting any mural is what he hopes to take with him once it's done. Once of the best memories, he says, from this exhibition was when a teenager was biking by the museum while Blanco was painting. Blanco shares, I was doing something with my brush, and I saw this girl stop and go back when she noticed the You Are Beautiful! He says he has grown with this work and he was so excited about seeing someone else's spontaneous excitement. Those are the moments he realizes, This is what I am trying to do – to get others just as excited. I love the act of painting more than the work itself. Being out in public is more fun that being in the studio.#Rafael Blanco: Reflecting on a Decade of Public ArtElmhurst Art MuseumThru Jan 5, 2025See more information on EAM's <a href="https://elmhurstartmuseum.org/">website</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092762/fdk0ldwc7bfbundtajaf.jpg"><figcaption>Rafael Blanco, Jump Study, 2014, 125.5 × 154, Acrylic on Canvas</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092763/wlamvhprjxcgk66ktrrc.jpg"><figcaption>Rafael Blanco, Flamenco, 2016, 75 × 139, &nbsp;Acrylic on Canvas</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092764/umfd4rqar4kg5vix5fya.jpg"><figcaption>Works by Blanco that were rejected in the proposal stage</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092765/xtdoocw195kp50zs8mmb.jpg"><figcaption>This collaboration with students from the area is an attempt to create a contemporary resemblance of the US flag. Young artists were invited to paint self-portraits in their own style while reflecting on what it means to be a student in America today.Viewing closely, one will identify the individuality and uniqueness of each student through their own perspective. While stepping back slowly, suddenly individualism becomes collectivism, group of people living together, in our society.This is the voice of the new generation.</figcaption></figure></body></html>

Rafael Blanco Brings Public Art Into the Galleries at Elmhurst Art Museum

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/fct4die0mw4qwwcba031.jpg"><figcaption>Artist Paul Nudd’s studio. Photo by Mark Ballogg &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By JACKIE LEWIS&nbsp;When we hear ‘make space’ it can imply the act of a preparatory welcome, a decluttering of old things in anticipation of readying for something new. But space for making can signify an environment for creativity, in which something is forged from nothing. To enter that space is to be committed to contributing something tangible. This fall, photographer Mark Ballogg will exhibit a new body of work at ALMA Art and Interiors based on his book Making Space, which depicts Chicago artists and their studios, capturing their methods, processes and works in progress. Created over the course of six years, Ballogg’s book explores the studios and thoughts of 113 Chicago artists in 94 color photographs and 76 quotes, selected from over 4,000 images generated from 166 studio visits. The exhibition, also titled Making Space, features 30 large-scale photographs, displayed in conversation with a collection of finished work from the artists featured in those images. CGN spoke with Ballogg as he prepared for the exhibition’s opening in November.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092760/epvvaqtcyqpgswvqg8ty.jpg"><figcaption>Mark Ballogg</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;CGN: Tell me a bit about your artistic background and how you chose photography as your medium.Mark Ballogg: My exposure to art was sporadic. For a time, I lived in a home filled with art, and early on I could render most any object faithfully, but I lacked a consistent artistic focus. In 1974 I purchased a Nikon camera to photograph my drawings and quickly realized that formal instruction could help me develop my photographic technique. I enrolled in a photography class at Columbia College Chicago, which nurtured my lifelong passion. Capturing a photograph created a serene moment of total focus, uplifting me when I sensed I was seeing something for the first time. That discovery, in some small way, momentarily completed me.&nbsp;CGN: Your book “Making Space” captures scenes from dozens of different Chicago artists’ studios. What drew you to this subject matter?MB: In October 2017 I was invited by a friend, Jeffrey Goldstein, to visit Richard Hunt’s studio. Richard’s cavernous space in an old CTA power station was filled with massive abstract sculptures in various stages of completion, alongside maquettes, tools, and multiple mounds of scrap metal. I was mesmerized. This experience happened while I was searching for a concept for a new body of work, and photographing Chicago artists’ studios seemed promising. After researching several books on artists’ studios, I felt confident that I could create work that was uniquely my own to add to that oeuvre.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092760/txgdqochjbglor4nstih.jpg"><figcaption>A detail showing Barbara Crane’s studio. Photo by Mark Ballogg.</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;CGN: Do you feel this project connects with prior subjects or is it a divergence from your usual work?MB: I have worked as a commercial architectural photographer for nearly 40 years in Chicago and across the country. Interior photography is a primary aspect of my commercial work. Artist studios are primarily interior spaces, but Making Space is solely defined by my personal vision unconstrained by a client’s direction. I tried to make photographs that transcend documentary, to elevate the image to a new level of emotional and intellectual vibrancy, to arrange and distill complex disparate elements into a dynamic whole. Some detail shots taken out of context don’t necessarily even read as an artist’s studio. I forced myself to make photographs that made me uncomfortable, to push my work forward.&nbsp;CGN: In a city filled with so much art, how did you determine which artists you would visit and capture?MB: I have also collected art, and through collecting I have cultivated friends in the arts. Initially I scheduled visits with some of those friends and at each visit I asked for other artist recommendations. My final selections were based on an artist’s accessibility and my desire to capture the diversity and flavor of the Chicago art scene. I photographed a balance of artists in all aspects of gender, practice, and defining circumstances.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092761/qbxknevlirw6jgh5grrj.jpg"><figcaption>Artist Wesley Kimler’s studio. Photo by Mark Ballogg &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;CGN: Tell me about these studio visits. What transpired between you and these artists to create such a collaborative book?MB: Each studio visit consisted of about two hours of photography and one hour of a recorded conversation with the artist discussing all matters of art. On most occasions, the artist was in the studio working and/or watching me photograph their studio. I approached each studio without preconceived ideas, responding intuitively to the space. Often the photography would inform the direction of our conversations. The collaborative nature grew from the artists’ generous willingness to allow me into their studio and my respect for their space and work.&nbsp;CGN: Have you found connections between an artist’s physical space and their relationship with their artistic practice and philosophy?&nbsp;MB: The Making Space photographs of studios offer unique and shared aspects of an artist’s practice. In some cases, they are discreet. For example, In Anne Harris’s studio photograph, I was drawn to the word “eyelid” drawn on the wall. When Anne spent about 15 minutes talking about the significance that eyelids play in her art, I figured I’d been right to notice. Others are more obvious: the massive sculptural work of Richard Hunt dictated the scale of his studio. But yes, many studio photographs are defined by studio size, space location, functional design, furnishing, tools, and the work itself, all offering insights into the artist’s practice.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092762/aaokgf9rgwxueje2wej4.jpg"><figcaption>The late Richard Hunt's studio. Photo by Mark Ballogg &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;CGN: This fall Making Space, the exhibition, will be at ALMA Art and Interiors and include 31 of your studio photographs alongside 31 works from the related artists. Was this also a collaborative experience?MB: These collaborations were expressed by the artists’ willingness to be included in the exhibition and submit work for the it. In addition, we are planning a series of events that bring these artists into the gallery to discuss their practices and their Making Space experience.&nbsp;&nbsp;CGN: How do your photographs work in conversation with these artists’ pieces?MB: I hope to create a symbiotic relationship between the artist’s work and my photographs of their studio. At times, the photograph illustrates the artist’s work. On other occasions, the actual construction of the photograph reveals one aspect of the artist’s practice. The studio space itself can also be a reflection of the artist’s personality.I think the total impact of viewing the photo and the work is greater than viewing each separately. I hesitate to predict exactly how that relationship plays out, but I’m excited to see how the audience reacts.&nbsp;Making SpaceCurated by Mark Ballogg, Kimberly Oliva and Gosia Korsakowski&nbsp;ALMA Art and Interiors – 3636 S. Iron, Chicago (60609)Opening Reception, Friday, Nov 8, 5–9pm. On view Nov 8–Feb 28, 2025Details at <a href="https://www.almaartandinteriors.com">almaartandinteriors.com</a> and on Instagram <a href="https://www.instagram.com/makingspace_book/">@makingspace_book</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092764/eaq4hglob3ucy90wg7rb.jpg"><figcaption>Artist Renee Robbins's studio. Photo by Mark Ballogg &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;</body></html>

The Magic of Making: Mark Ballogg’s Studio Views

<html><head></head><body>CGN works with dozens of art world leaders, creatives and supporters all year long. Each one has a different perspective on the industry in general as well as their own role within it. CGN is pleased to share many of these insights and personal stories in a new online series. Our first interview is with Natasha Egan, Executive Director of the Museum of Contemporary Photography.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/ye0bav2mr20ydcfvoesr.jpg"><figcaption>Headshot taken by Brook Hummer Photography&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By ABBEY KOTNatasha Egan has served as the MoCP’s executive director since 2011, formerly filling the roles of associate director and curator. This week, we sat down with her to discuss the inner workings of an establishment that combines industry professionals with working students.&nbsp; &nbsp;Chicago Gallery News: While most museums focus on education, the MoCP is unique in that it is connected to a college and staffs many of its students. What do you feel some of the benefits are when working with students and emerging scholars in a professional museum setting?&nbsp;&nbsp;Natasha Egan: MoCP’s affiliation with Columbia College Chicago is central to our mission of preparing students for the professional world. Our student staff come from various disciplines at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, and our team mentors them, providing valuable real-world experience. We expect a high degree of professionalism from our students, and they consistently meet this standard. For example, during our #AiWeiwei exhibition, Ai Weiwei’s team was impressed that our preparators were all student employees overseen by professional staff.Many of our student staff pursue careers in the museum and art fields. For instance, Greg Harris, a former student of mine who worked on our operations team, went on to earn his master’s degree from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and became the Assistant Curator at the DePaul Art Museum. He is now the Curator of Photography at the High Museum in Atlanta. Greg recently returned to Columbia College to give a lecture and critique graduate student work, creating a full-circle moment. He even mentioned that he still carries his MoCP tote bag.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092760/fyonfgmrjkykw19wzjrs.jpg"><figcaption>Terry Evans conducting a print viewing in the MoCP’s print study room.&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;CGN: As the executive director of the museum, you oversee all aspects of operation, from print viewings to installation plans; are there any recent challenges you can recall that allowed for creative problem-solving or a lesson learned?&nbsp;NE: MoCP has a small but highly capable professional staff, each overseeing different departments such as operations, education, marketing, curatorial, and collections management. Despite recent budgetary constraints, our team has adapted by embracing changes in their job descriptions. This flexibility allows us to remain nimble and continue producing top-tier exhibitions and programs under adverse circumstances.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092760/uh30lcqatylxo1nkrazj.jpg"><figcaption>From the Summer 2024 show “Captured Earth”</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;CGN: Your background is in higher education and fine arts photography, with an impressive and deep connection to Columbia College Chicago, working as an educator in the school’s photography department and holding the position of associate director at the MoCP for over ten years. Are there any surprising ways your knowledge of fine arts and background in education has translated into your time in the administrative side of the museum world?&nbsp;NE: During my tenure at MoCP, I have curated over 50 exhibitions and collaborated with artists and institutions worldwide. Teaching at Columbia College Chicago for over a decade, both on campus and abroad in China, exposed me to diverse curatorial styles and institutional operations. These experiences have been invaluable as I now focus on strategic initiatives for MoCP’s future as Executive Director.&nbsp;CGN: The turnaround time between shows at the MoCP tends to be fairly quick, with the gap between your current and next show set for only twelve days. What moments do you look forward to during the installation and execution of a new exhibition?NE: After months or even years of developing exhibitions, it is always rewarding to see them materialize. The installation phase provides a deeper understanding of the exhibition beyond its conceptual phase. For students, it is a time to meet artists, learn more about the exhibited works, and develop new skills. It is also exciting to witness the public's reaction to the exhibition for the first time.&nbsp;&nbsp;CGN: What is one piece of advice that you would give to someone wanting to get started in the museum world?NE: Immerse yourself in the art world by visiting a variety of institutions, from the largest museums to the smallest galleries. Smaller museums often influence larger institutions. Additionally, visit artist spaces and nonprofits that offer unique perspectives outside traditional museum settings. Take the time to have informal conversations with art professionals to determine if this path is right for you.&nbsp;For more information about MoCP and its programming visit <a href="https://www.mocp.org">mocp.org</a>#&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

CGN Insights: MoCP's Natasha Egan

<html><head></head><body>*This interview appears in CGN's fall 2024 magazine. To subscribe to the print edition <a href="https://835ba3.myshopify.com">click here</a>.*&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/u4e5j23fa7naks81lppc.jpg"><figcaption>Georgie Miller, Pete’s Wild Party For Him and His Friends, 36 x 48”, 2024. Collage on Paper. &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By GINNY VAN ALYEAGeorgie Miller is definitely from Texas. When I ask her, over lunch one sweltering day when I can feel heat emanating from an expanse of baking Chicago concrete, if she’s been enjoying the summer, she doesn’t mention the 90° temperature, even though it’s all I can think about. Instead she tells me she’s just gotten back from Nicaragua, and she’s off to Montana in a few days. The jet-setting, she explains, is for her job as Travel Editor and Digital Strategy Director for Texas Based PaperCity. But when she’s between trips, she is working on creating her art and experimenting with how to get it in front of a wider audience. &nbsp;As I melt in my chair Miller keeps her cool, rattling off a list of area galleries she has been following, as well as arts groups and residencies she has been undauntedly applying to. She says she has averaged five residency applications or group show submissions a month for the past year, with five successes so far in 2024: one in Austin, Texas, another in Houston, and three in Chicago. Because Miller lives in both Austin and Chicago, she plans to continue taking advantage building relationships in two gallery markets.&nbsp;While Miller has been fearlessly sending out applications, she confesses she is learning as she goes.&nbsp;“I don’t have a real body of work quite yet, so by applying I’m also trying to figure out what sticks as well as what it is I’m working on next,” Miller admits. “Eventually I’d love to work with a dealer who can help me focus and choose a direction, because right now I have several.”&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092760/otkik9jnopjpdeeautia.jpg"><figcaption>Georgie Miller next to her piece that was part of a group exhibiton earlier this year at ARC Gallery, Chicago.</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Conventional wisdom has been that navigating the art world is part cold-calling, part self-help. An artist creates a body of work and spends time getting to know various gallery programs in order to decide whether or not there is a fit for their own art. Then an artist must attempt many introductions, steeling themself for individual rejections before going back to fine-tune what they present to galleries or collectors. Artists also have to contend with a limited market of operating galleries that are even accepting unsolicited applications. While much of these truths still hold, in 2024 artists can choose to set up a basic website or even just a social media presence solely to push their precious art out of the nest and in front of millions of content-hungry viewers, at once marketing and selling while also soliciting feedback and gaining visibility, essentially learning to fly in real time. Miller says she has enjoyed going solo so far, prolifically creating work and posting individual pieces as she completes them, as the follower engagement has helped her look at her work the way others might, and she’s also secured a couple commissions along the way.&nbsp;For now Miller works exclusively in collage, an accessible but often labor intensive medium. She says she chose to work in a photography-based version because it feels like the right vehicle to help her present her exploration of indulgence and consumption in a colorful and appealing way. Her larger-scale tablescapes incorporate light colorways, even glitter, as she creates tableaus of cigarette-filled dinner parties and card games. No iPhones on the tables here, just martinis and matchbooks. Mah-jong has even made an appearance. There’s nothing conspicuously sinister about folded hands of cards and the spilled dregs of a wine bottle, but Miller acknowledges there are various perspectives one might have, depending on which gatherings or social situations come to mind when viewing the work–the laughter-filled ones, the awkward ones, or the ones that should have ended before the tempers flared.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092760/z3s7zmyvwsn409yvdyr8.jpg"><figcaption>Georgie Miller, Petalscapes, Texas and Chicago No 1, 2024.Collage on Paper.</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;You can tell Miller has reached a point where she is ready to push into new themes and alternative tonalities with her most recent work, which focuses on still lifes of flower arrangements made from snaps of Chicago streets and skyscrapers – 875 N. Michigan, Water Tower Place, a Lakeview apartment building. The palettes are a bit forboding, stormier compared to the lakeside vibes of a relaxing weekend with friends during a house party. Says Miller, “I’m dropping in photos, which is different for me, and these pieces have a darker, more tactile look. I’m trying out styles and seeing if they connect.”&nbsp;Process is always critical to an artist’s practice, and though Miller is young and juggling art-making along with another full-time job, I can tell she is having fun now, and she will continue to enjoy each layer of the creative process as it comes.#&nbsp;<a href="https://www.georgiemillerart.com">georgiemillerart.com</a></body></html>

A Young Artist Learns as She Works: Georgie Miller

<html><head></head><body>*This interview and is from CGN's fall 2024 magazine. To subscribe to the print edition <a href="https://835ba3.myshopify.com">click here</a>.*&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/abkndwr35643txbilvab.jpg"></figure>By GINNY VAN ALYEAThe art world is ever changing, but when many people consider the arc of the gallery scene in Chicago, they still think (or hear stories) of River North in the 1980s, when it was a new city neighborhood bursting with dozens of art spaces and the buzzy people who flocked to them on opening nights. Gallerist Carl Hammer’s name and career is inextricably linked to those early days in the art world and much of what has come in the four and a half decades since.Hammer opened his gallery, then called Hammer and Hammer / American Folk Art, in 1979 at 620 N. Michigan Ave., in what was known as the Breskin building, which housed numerous other galleries at the time, including Richard Gray, and other prominent early names. He moved a few blocks west to Wells Street in the ‘80s and was part of the original 16 galleries that created the River North Gallery District. Hammer’s gallery remains at the same historic Wells Street address today.Hammer’s journey to being one of the most well-known dealers in Chicago started before he was part of the art market at all: when he was teaching English at Evanston High School during the Civil Rights era and the Vietnam War. Hammer and his wife at the time became interested in collecting art and were inspired to focus on grassroots artists because of the country’s political and social climate. Collecting art while traveling during school breaks led to a deeper, but still idealistic, exploration of what grassroots art meant, and those out of the way road trips put Hammer in touch with self-taught and folk artists, who were eventually labeled “Outsider.” Hammer felt called to enter the business of selling the art he so admired, and his life in the gallery world followed, featuring exhibitions of work by noted Outsider artists like Lee Godie and Henry Darger, as well as contemporary art by Michael Hernandez de Luna, and graphic novelist Chris Ware.&nbsp;Hammer told me a few years ago he considered himself a bit of an outsider, since he never had formal art training, but I think it’s Hammer’s continual curiosity, combined with his affection for artists and collectors, that has given him 45 years both inside and outside the art scene, with more to come.&nbsp;The gallery will celebrate it’s 45th anniversary this fall with an exhibition of work by Chris “CJ” Pyle, opening September 6, and a show with David Sharpe opening November 1.&nbsp;Details at <a href="https://www.carlhammergallery.com">carlhammergallery.com</a>&nbsp;</body></html>

Carl Hammer: 45 Years of Steady Change

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/y5z5iingaf54oce8pdcd.jpg"><figcaption>Chicago's most famous castle, dubbed the Irish Castle by neighbors, is a crenelated curiosity perched atop the steep ridge that runs through Beverly and Morgan Park. It is the area's calling card, with a history that traces to Robert C. Givins in 1887, the first of only five owners. Givins, a real estate developer, used it to spark residential growth along the Rock Island Line. Built as an extravagant private residence, purportedly a gift to Givins' wife, today the Beverly Unitarian Church calls it home. Givins spent the then enormous sum of $80,000 constructing the mansion of solid Joliet limestone, intended to resemble a castle he visited once in Ireland, but also recalling the Richardsonian Romanesque style popular at the time. A recent fundraising campaign and state grant helped fund all new custom made windows.</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Via PRCHICAGO—The <a href="https://www.architecture.org/">Chicago Architecture Center</a> (CAC) announced the sites for this year’s Open House Chicago (OHC), a free festival that instills civic pride by providing behind-the-scenes access to places of architectural, historical and cultural significance and highlights businesses, organizations and creative leaders making a positive impact in Chicago’s diverse neighborhoods. This year, OHC willhighlight 170+ locations across 20+ Chicago neighborhoods, including 25 new sites, on October 19 and 20. &nbsp;“With all the new developments happening or proposed in Chicago, it’s more important than ever that people see how architecture and design shape our city,” said Eleanor Gorski, CEO &amp; President, Chicago Architecture Center. “Open House Chicago is easily accessible and free to all. We hope the event fosters dialogue about architecture and inspires people to become more actively engaged in shaping and improving our built environment.OHC, now in its 14th year, allows attendees to visit significant sites across the city, many of which are normally closed to the public. The event is one of the largest architecture and urban exploration festivals in the world, attracting more than 25,000 people annually.This year, new sites include the Ramova Theatre in Bridgeport, which opened as a movie theater in 1929 and shut its doors in 1985, sitting vacant for nearly 30 years before being redeveloped and reopened this year as a restaurant, brewery and concert and events venue. The Ramova Theatre will also host CAC’s Designing Futures Gala on Oct. 1 to raise funds for OHC and other CAC programming.Participants will also get an inside peek at the historic Chess Studio at Willie Dixon’s Blues Heaven Foundation, where legendary artists who shaped the sound of Chicago blues performed over the years. Also new to OHC is Bronzeville’s Al-Sadiq mosque, one of the oldest mosques in the United States and the former headquarters of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA. OHC participants will also have access to The Driehaus Museum's Murphy Auditorium for the first time, an architectural marvel designed by noted Chicago architects Benjamin Marshall and Charles E. Fox. The building features a pair of cast bronze doors produced by Tiffany Studios and an iconic limestone exterior was built to mimic the façade and flanking entry staircase of the Chapelle Notre-Dame-de-Consolation in Paris.&nbsp;Also new this year is the OHC photo competition. Festival attendees can showcase their photography skills by submitting photos taken at OHC sites in one of four categories: interior, exterior, black &amp; white, and detail. Submissions can be made through the competition webpage at <a href="http://architecture.org/">architecture.org</a>. Selected entrants will have their photography printed and displayed at the CAC over the holiday season as part of the Center’s “Framed Views: OHC Photography” exhibition that opens on Nov. 23. Winners of the competition, which will be judged by local photographers, will receive complimentary memberships to the CAC.&nbsp;&nbsp;By making learning about architecture accessible to all, OHC is a key part of the Chicago Architecture Center’s mission to inspire people to discover why design matters. It was developed based on a similar festival in the United Kingdom that was founded in 1992 to allow people to explore buildings in London. This year’s OHC event includes partnerships with local small businesses like Starshaped Press in Ravenswood, which is creating official OHC merchandise.&nbsp;In addition to the tours, OHC sites will also host more than 40 programs and activations during the weekend. Growing Home Urban Street Farm in Englewood is hosting a hands-on mosaic magnet-making activity at its Harvestfest on Oct. 19; the National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts &amp; Culture in Humboldt Park will have drop-in salsa lessons and art-making activities; the Historic Pullman Foundation is offering mini tours of the Pullman neighborhood in collaboration with the Illinois Labor Historical Society; and Graceland Cemetery in Uptown will be hosting art classes with ofrenda/paper marigold making for Dia de Los Muertos in collaboration with the National Museum of Mexican Art. More events will be announced closer to OHC weekend.&nbsp;People interested in attending the event or volunteering can learn more details on the Chicago Architecture Center’s <a href="https://www.architecture.org/">new website</a> or download the CAC app to plan their OHC weekend. The app allows users to sort by neighborhood and building type and build routes to enjoy all that OHC offers.&nbsp;The Annual Public Festival, the Largest of its Kind in the World, Provides Free Access to Culturally, Architecturally and Historically Significant Sites Throughout Chicago’s Diverse Neighborhoods on October 19 and 20&nbsp;###&nbsp;</body></html>

Chicago Architecture Center's Annual Open House Chicago Announces 2024 Lineup

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/iu5vpvgi2lt7azja41rn.jpg"></figure>Via PRIt is with an abundance of pleasure that Corbett vs. Dempsey announces Emily Letourneau's partnership. Letourneau came on board CvsD in 2013 and has been a guiding force for the gallery over the last decade, working directly with artists and estates, helping construct and finesse the program in Chicago and elsewhere, and dealing with the complex management of the business as it grew over that period. Letourneau joins founders John Corbett and Jim Dempsey as a principal of the gallery just as CvsD dives headlong into its third decade with Hubcap Diamond Star Halo: Corbett vs. Dempsey at Twenty.After a summer internship at MoMA in 1999, Letourneau began working at Donald Young Gallery, Chicago, where she directed all aspects of operating the legendary gallery. In spirit, Young's visionary program was a direct inspiration for Corbett and Dempsey when they began CvsD, and after Young tragically died in 2012, CvsD invited Letourneau to join them, which, after a brief stint at the Art Institute of Chicago, she did. Ever since, Letourneau has been instrumental in helping chart the course of the home exhibition schedule, art fair participation, and international interface of CvsD. She is an essential ingredient in the CvsD stew.I am so happy to enter this new phase of my relationship with CvsD. I feel fortunate to have connected with John and Jim following my time working with Donald Young, to have found two kindred spirits who share my enthusiasm for supporting artists and who do so with utter joy and integrity. It has been an honor to be embraced by the community John and Jim have built since 2004 and to combine my own relationships with artists, collectors and curators and forge new ones together. I look forward to many more years working with John, Jim and all our amazing colleagues at CvsD. –Emily Letourneau&nbsp;</body></html>

Emily Letourneau to Become Partner at Corbett vs. Dempsey On Gallery's 20th Anniversary

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/wwkmlcriwp0xjwi2ek8f.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/neil-beloufa-humanities-f863abe7-a21e-4ae9-a5d9-6a1989796532">Neil Beloufa: Humanities</a>Opening: Saturday, Sep 14, 2024 4 – 7&nbsp;pmThe Renaissance Society&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/x40b4jpcaukxbxiswoyv.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/hubcap-diamond-star-halo-corbett-vs-dempsey-at-twenty">Hubcap Diamond Star Halo: Corbett vs. Dempsey at Twenty</a>Opening: Saturday, Sep 14, 2024 12 – 4&nbsp;pmCorbett vs. Dempsey&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092760/akmn2i8qfm0evvmjhfud.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/alice-tippit-the-deep-element">Alice Tippit: The Deep Element</a>Opening: Saturday, Sep 14, 2024 5 – 7:30&nbsp;pmPATRON&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092761/zma4xzd4v7l1m4qvbhbr.jpg" spider="" and="" baba="" paska="" by="" allison="" ford.jpg=""></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/by-degrees-iii">By Degrees III</a>Opening: Saturday, Sep 14, 2024 6 – 9&nbsp;pmChicago Sculpture International (CSI)&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092762/vjswh8o4fq5khs9fx2c1.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/thirteen-thirteen">THIRTEEN + THIRTEEN</a>Opening: Saturday, Sep 14, 2024 6 – 10&nbsp;pmAgitator Artist Collective&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092763/vhu7ogtj2kptxp5hp3ak.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/meghan-borah-ladylike">Meghan Borah: Ladylike</a>Opening: Sunday, Sep 15, 2024 2 – 5&nbsp;pmGoldfinch&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092764/fgc3e93kh56df0r59h2d.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/trotter-alexander">Black and White | Trotter Alexander and Michele Thrane</a>Opening: Sunday, Sep 15, 2024 1 – 4&nbsp;pmEvanston Art Center&nbsp;</body></html>

New Exhibitions September 14 and 15

<html><head></head><body>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/xcmdvqwrce0yjbrcud7q.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/rob-fischer">Rob Fischer: A Bird Song</a>Opening: Friday, Sep 13, 2024 5:30 – 8&nbsp;pmENGAGE Projects<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092761/f9ongglrk5dydnslkmtu.png" armendariz.png=""></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/tony-armendariz-latin-expressions">Tony Armendariz: LATIN EXPRESSIONS</a>Opening: Friday, Sep 13, 2024 6 – 9&nbsp;pmEpiphany Center for the Arts&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092761/axgjyiclcjlnr7wh2csi.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/david-antonio-cruz-come-close-like-before">David Antonio Cruz: come close, like before</a>Opening: Friday, Sep 13, 2024 4 – 7&nbsp;pmmoniquemeloche&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092763/b6vxvionhs5u7iicswoz.png" hartney-="" unplanned="" parenthood="" .png=""></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/michelle-hartney-unplanned-parenthood">Michelle Hartney: Unplanned Parenthood</a>Opening: Friday, Sep 13, 2024 6 – 8&nbsp;pmInternational Museum of Surgical Science (IMSS)&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;</body></html>

New Exhibitions September 13

<html><head></head><body>*This interview appears in CGN's fall 2024 magazine. To subscribe to the print edition <a href="https://835ba3.myshopify.com">click here</a>.*&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/pj5orybf29krve1vhj3n.jpg"><figcaption>Artwork pictured on walls, starting from left of cabinet: Jason Lazurus, Cody Hudson, Jason Pickleman, Jeroen Nelemans, Adam Pendelton, Aron Gent, Brian Kapernekas, Laura Letinsky, Loyola Condenser, Stephen Eichorn, Tony Tasset, Dorothee Joachim, David Salkin (in background through door). Photo by CGN. &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By BIANCA BOVA“The place that art holds is sacred ground,” Michelle Edwards tells me. An established collector, fashion icon to those in the know, cultural patron, and–more recently–a realtor, Edwards’ reverential attitude towards art, if not life itself, is immediately discernible upon entering her home. Seated in her living room, surrounded by sweeping 47th floor views that look north over Grant Park and east out onto Lake Michigan, there is a serenity to the space, despite the fact that its entirety is densely arrayed with objects of all modalities. The predominant feature is, of course, the art collection, alongside which can be found selections of transferware, Wedgewood, and silver service pieces. The furnishings are lush, and thoughtfully selected. In less careful hands, the aggregate of it might overwhelm, but here, to the contrary, Edwards has created an oasis. She concedes to having had some help, noting, “I have for many years worked with Patrick DiMichele on my spaces. I won’t–can’t–live in an environment he has not done.”*&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092759/jj1w5zmvajmxseujevfc.jpg"><figcaption>Michelle Edwards. Artwork pictured on wall: Jason Lazarus; Monika Bartholomé; in background, sculpture by Greg Stimac. Photo by CGN. &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Edwards is not a lifelong art collector, or (to my surprise) even a lifelong art enthusiast. Her first love was fashion, with deep roots in the storied Oak Street boutique Ultimo.&nbsp;“During high school I was a waitress at the Oak Room in Marshall Fields in the Oak Brook Mall, and I would save my tips, then I would go into the city, to Ultimo, and buy stuff on sale. I just loved magazines, French Vogue was my favorite. And I knew that Ultimo had Norma Kamali and they had Thierry Mugler, so I would go there,” she tells me, “When I got out of college, I was trying to figure out what I would do, and I interviewed across all these different jobs. Then I went down to Ultimo one day and they just hired me. You weren’t allowed to talk to customers for, like, six months. It was really this apprentice program. By the time I left, I ran the whole thing: men’s department, women’s department, all of it. I do have a tendency to end up running the show, whatever I do.”“You have to understand that it was the equivalent of carrier pigeons compared to online shopping today. The access just wasn’t the same. There were really only four or five seminal boutiques in the world at that time, of which Ultimo was one. You relied on these boutiques for taste and for the edit. If it wasn’t in those stores, you didn’t need to have it, was the feeling.” &nbsp;&nbsp;<blockquote>“I can’t garden, I’m not a gardener. So this is my garden. The amount of time that I spend interacting with the art–and everything in my home–it brings me so much joy. I stop and look at it. I spend time with different pieces. I’m tending my garden.”– Michelle Edwards</blockquote>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092760/zzxvaj0do8felhuglh5s.jpg" 2.jpg=""><figcaption>Edwards's sitting room features a black and white photograph by Lenny Kravitz, who turned the camera back on the paparazzi that always followed him. Photo by CGN. &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;It was through her years at the boutique, from 1984 to 1999, that Edwards came into contact with the art world.&nbsp;“When Art Chicago came around, it was a big deal at the boutique. It was the art crowd that traveled globally, and of course, they were shoppers. Everyone would come through that weekend.”When Edwards herself visited Art Chicago in the late 1980’s she acquired her first piece of art, a small painting by the English artist John Virtue. It still has pride of place in her home.&nbsp;“It was my first time ever at an art fair. I was with Lynn Sable, who was from Ultimo, and her brother is the art dealer Sean Kelly. He was there, and he was very passionate about his goal to have a gallery. And I don’t know–it was just infectious, it was so exciting. And this John Virtue, I just loved it.”&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092761/xdgbg7uvf17e0di7fqfi.jpg"><figcaption>Photo by CGN. &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Despite this initial acquisition, buying work at fairs didn’t become a habit for Edwards, who still prefers a quieter approach.&nbsp;“When it comes to collecting, I’m not an art fair girl,” she admits, “I like to go for the excitement, the community. That’s fun, but I can’t do: big, little, far, near, color, everything all at once. I get a headache. That’s why I love the gallery experience. I love a curated little show. I love a conversation.”In fact, the acquisition of the Virtue did not give immediate way to collecting as a practice, or sustained participation in the art world. It wasn’t until the late 1990’s, after leaving Ultimo and being introduced to the Society for Contemporary Art (SCA) at the Art Institute of Chicago that her involvement became a more serious and intentional pursuit.&nbsp;“I had a very good friend who is active in the art world globally, who used to be in Chicago, but has since moved to Los Angeles. She knew the SCA and she said, ‘I want you to join this group because they’re really good.’ When I joined, I did not like contemporary art. I did not understand contemporary art. I thought, ‘My dog can do that, my child can do that.’ I just didn’t understand it. But through attending lectures and realizing how unbelievably highly educated these artists are, and how thoughtful the work is–even if it’s work I don’t respond to–just to hear their story is so special to me. I started to go once a month, then I went to literally everything. At first, I didn’t talk to anybody. It took me a really long time to even decide to go to a dinner. I was hooked though. The first talk I went to was Gaylen Gerber, who of course spoke about [the color] gray. I remember going home and trying to tell people about this brilliant lecture, how thought provoking it was. I always feel bigger, better, fuller, richer for having heard someone speak about their work.” Her involvement quickly deepened as she joined the organization’s board of directors.&nbsp;“Eventually they started to notice that I was attending with regularity. I believe it was Jay Dandy who called me then and said he’d like me to be on the board. And I said, ‘Well, what do I have to do?’ And he said, ‘Oh, you might have to make a batch of cookies or something like that.’ So, you know, a four year presidency term, four fundraising benefits, I don’t know how many years as secretary, three years as the acquisition chair, and over 20 years in total on the board later, I still haven’t made a batch of cookies. But it did change my life.”&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092762/k6ntawhvysx8smsaglj3.jpg"><figcaption>A view looking north from Edwards's apartment. Photo by CGN.</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;As her long tenure on the SCA’s board comes to a close, Edwards continues to find new opportunities to support other institutions in the city, including the Museum of Contemporary Photography (MoCP), with whom she has recently become involved.&nbsp;“I appreciate the accessibility of [MoCP Director] Natasha Egan. The ability to just speak to her, and that she just is this endless stream of brilliance, but so accessible. It’s really magic. It’s still a small institution, and it would be really fun to see them grow.” she adds.&nbsp;As much as Edwards’ art collection has been led by her relationships with artists, dealers, and curators, it has also been informed by the spaces that have housed it. For years, she resided in the Kenwood neighborhood, in a historic home designed by famed Chicago architect Howard Van Doren Shaw, a leader in the American Craftsman movement. Built in 1904, the 10,000 square foot English country-style house sits on three quarters of an acre.&nbsp;“It was a very experiential house,” Edwards tells me, “Living in Kenwood, too–it’s the cradle of art intellects in Chicago in some ways, and that was in the air. I loved that experience, but this–this apartment–this is where I belong. I see the collection differently now, because I can literally see it. There’s daylight. The light is different in the morning than it is in the evening. The light is different in the summer than it is in the winter. So the work also changes, in a way it just didn’t in a dark, brick and limestone house.”&nbsp;As for the decision to also move the antiques into the new, more modern space, Edwards says with a shrug, “I didn’t think twice. There’s just that richness to it. I can’t live without this layer of richness. I think there’s this rogue gene I have, it’s the only way I can explain it.”&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092763/ozqzgrdcf4xcf4y4njrv.jpg"><figcaption>Pictured above: Nancy Rosen, Rose Edwards, Gary Rattigan, Ken Fandell, Jenny Shanahan, Andrei Rabodzee, random broquante find (not Picasso (!), Instagram (fur). Photo by CGN. &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;She points to several objects arranged on the coffee table between us, “This is my grandmother’s Bible. These were my great-grandfather’s buttons from his war jersey. Here are railroad spikes from when the SCA toured the 606. There really isn’t anything in this entire apartment–in my entire collecting existence–that there wasn’t some experience that it ties back to. A conversation, whether it was with the artist or with a gallerist, an event or a trip, or a memory of some kind.”&nbsp;Though her collection in some ways feels like an encyclopedic look at Chicago’s art scene in the past 30 years, there is a distinctive eye guiding it that mirrors the discerning eclecticism evident in all that Edwards involves herself with. Works by everyone from Laura Letinsky, Nathaniel Robinson, Jason Lazarus, Aron Gent, and Jenny Shanahan, to Judy Ledgerwood, Tony Tasset, Cowboy, Robert Brown Jr., and the Loyola Condenser may be found, alongside the occasional work by Lenny Kravitz or Ken Fandell.&nbsp;“I’ve never been a “checklist collector”–’Oh, I’ve got one of those, I got one of these, two of these’–those collectors working their way up the ladder hoping that they then get access to better stuff. I just don’t work like that,” she tells me, continuing, “And I’m not an impulse buyer. I have to go home and see how I feel about it in the morning. What I now have, what has developed over time, is just absolute confidence in what I collect. Plenty of works have come from galleries or from auctions, but I also have, for instance, a painting that I acquired off of Instagram, which was painted by a monkey. I love that monkey, I love the painting. I have a big, furry version of the Mona Lisa. I love the Mona Lisa, I have a real thing about the Mona Lisa, and I am also a fan of Sylvie Fleury’s fur paintings, so when I saw this, I thought–well, I just have to have it.”&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092764/ptg9d2vieelcw19ab1rj.jpg"><figcaption>A detailed view of works in Edwards's living room. Photo by CGN. &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;This nonhierarchical attitude is typical of Edwards, who acknowledges, “It’s paralleled by how I orient my wardrobe. People assume everything I wear is something, but it may not be. I have a jacket everyone raves over that looks couture, but it is, in fact, a Zara swimsuit cover up. Same principle as art. It’s confidence in what you have. It’s the eye.”&nbsp;Whether it is her eye, her confidence, or, as she puts it, her “rogue gene” that acts as a guiding principle, Edwards can be counted on to bring the full impact of her experience to all that she does.&nbsp;“Now I’m engaged with the real estate thing. A year and half ago I went to work with @properties Christie’s International Real Estate. The thing is, I’ve lived in a Lincoln Park studio, and a Bucktown bungalow. I lived in a greystone in Wicker Park and in a significant Kenwood country house mansion. Now here I am in a contemporary highrise on the lakefront. I’ve been in so many properties. I know why apartments work, and why houses work, and I know why they don’t work. It’s not unrelated to the way I understand fashion, or the way I understand collecting art.&nbsp;I love to tend the flock, and I really enjoy guiding my people through incredibly emotional purchases, as with the passage of life that comes with finding a home,” she says.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092765/eeu1mb5pqfvxrriofwrb.jpg"><figcaption>Pictured above: Robert Burnier; Laurie Simmons. Photo by CGN. &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;It is in Edwards’ own home that this ethos is exemplified, even celebrated. To move through its rooms is to be engaged, again and again, not just by the artwork, or by the furnishings, but by the stories that they each plainly tell. Great art and beautiful homes may be hallmarks of metropolitan life, but far fewer and farther between are such earnestly intentional collections, and striking, deeply personal domestic spaces as the ones Edwards has devoted herself to cultivating.&nbsp;“I can’t garden, I’m not a gardener. So this is my garden,” She says, “The amount of time that I spend interacting with the art–and everything in my home–it brings me so much joy. I stop and look at it. I spend time with different pieces. I’m tending my garden.”&nbsp;&nbsp;#&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1731092766/ejcukrtugtvana8ahiep.jpg"><figcaption>Photo by CGN. &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;This interview is featured in CGN's fall 2024 magazine. To receive a print copy please <a href="https://835ba3.myshopify.com">click here to subscribe.</a>&nbsp;</body></html>