<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417602/nva7dtwlxz0xxjhrjlrx.jpg"><figcaption>Installation view, "Jill Magid Tender Balance" at the Renaissance Society. Photo: Useful Art Services.</figcaption></figure><a href="https://news.artnet.com/opinion/pandemic-aesthetic-contemporary-art-1983834?utm_content=from_&amp;utm_source=Sailthru&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=US%2010%3A21%20a.m.%20newsletter%20for%207%2F1%2F21&amp;utm_term=US%20Daily%20Newsletter%20%5BMORNING%5D">Welcome to Pandemic Aesthetics: How the Health Crisis Is Reshaping Contemporary Art—and Changing the Way We Look at It, Too</a>The first two exhibitions I visited in person after 409 days of seeing art only through my computer screen were Jill Magid’s “Tender: Balance” and William Pope.L’s “My Kingdom for a Title,” both in Chicago. Apart from being a fan of the artists and curious to see their new work, I chose these shows for pragmatic reasons: Their venues were located near one another and both were scheduled to close soon.&nbsp;What I did not expect was how these installations would speak to one another, and to me, about the pandemic.&nbsp;Via Lori Waxman, Artnet News&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417603/ord3dh1k21nqvzk0dhmi.jpg"><figcaption>An abstract sculpture in honor of activist and journalist Ida B. Wells, created by sculptor Richard Hunt, is seen at sunset on S. Langley Ave. in Chicago's Bronzeville neighborhood on June 30, 2021. (Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune)</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/people/ct-dedication-ceremony-ida-b-wells-monument-20210629-nfsjdanscbavbjnbb2ejp4flry-story.html?utm_source=Newsletter_Daily-Rundown-Non-Member&amp;utm_medium=WBEZEmail&amp;utm_campaign=Daily_Newsletter_Daily-Rundown_+20210630&amp;utm_content=6/30/2021&amp;DE=WBEZEmail">First monument in Chicago to honor a Black woman will be unveiled and dedicated to Ida B. Wells in Bronzeville on Wednesday</a>After a seven-year crowdfunding quest and three years of building, the first monument in Chicago to honor a Black woman will be unveiled and dedicated this week in Bronzeville, where civil rights icon Ida B. Wells lived for much of her life.On Wednesday, the Ida B. Wells Commemorative Art Committee, a subcommittee of the Oakwood Shores Working Group, will host a dedication ceremony for the Light of Truth Ida B. Wells National Monument, on the site of the former Ida B. Wells public housing development.Via Maya Mokh, Chicago Tribune&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417604/kvlispmohjvodp2kfpq9.png"><figcaption>Gainesville artist Tom Miller in front of his 2016 artwork, Nothing.</figcaption></figure><a href="https://news.artnet.com/art-world/florida-man-lawsuit-invisible-sculpture-1984780?utm_content=from_&amp;utm_source=Sailthru&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=6%2F30%20US%20Afternoon&amp;utm_term=US%20Daily%20Newsletter%20%5BAFTERNOON%5D">A Florida Man Is Threatening to Sue an Artist Whose Invisible Sculpture Sold for $18,000, Saying He Came Up With the Idea First</a>Earlier this month, an Italian artist named Salvatore Garau went viral when his “immaterial sculpture”—that is, a <a href="https://news.artnet.com/art-world/italian-artist-auctioned-off-invisible-sculpture-18300-literally-made-nothing-1976181?artnet-logout-redirect=1">work of art made of literally nothing</a>—sold for €15,000 ($18,300) at auction.Articles about the sale was shared widely, often accompanied by captions of the “I could have done that” variety. Users posted pictures of blank spaces—their own invisible sculptures which could surely be had for a fraction of Garau’s price. Many bemoaned the fact that they didn’t think of it first.&nbsp;Via Taylor Dafoe, Artnet&nbsp; &nbsp;</body></html>

What We're Reading: 7/2

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417513/efdnfhnuufqv8ndsspca.jpg"><figcaption>Emery Blagdon created The Healing Machine to channel the curative properties of minerals and magnetic fields Photo: Rich Maciejewski. Courtesy of the John Michael Kohler Arts Center</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/preserving-america-s-home-grown-art-environments?utm_source=The+Art+Newspaper+Newsletters&amp;utm_campaign=22d8f0fa85-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2021_06_24_08_39&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_term=0_c459f924d0-22d8f0fa85-61117077">Art Preserve: first museum devoted to America’s homegrown ‘art environments’ opens in Wisconsin</a>After a ten-month delay resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic, the John Michael Kohler Arts Center in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, is opening the Art Preserve, the world’s first museum dedicated to long-neglected art environments, on 26 June. The 56,000 sq. ft facility will exhibit and store more than 25,000 objects from the Kohler Arts Center’s art environment collection as well as serving as a hub for research on, and displays of, artists’ genre-defying creations.Via The Art Newspaper&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/gainsborough-showstopper-the-blue-boy-comes-home-to-the-uk-after-100-years?utm_source=The+Art+Newspaper+Newsletters&amp;utm_campaign=7756d79366-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2021_06_28_10_30&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_term=0_c459f924d0-7756d79366-61117077">Gainsborough showstopper The Blue Boy comes home to the UK after 100 years</a>A painting by Thomas Gainsborough described as a masterpiece of British art is returning to the UK. The Blue Boy (1770) will go on show at the National Gallery in London from 25 January next year (until 3 May 2022), 100 years to the day since it was last seen in Britain following a public uproar. The work is on loan for the first time from the Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens in San Marino, California, where it has been on display since 1928.Via the Art Newspaper&nbsp;<a href="https://news.artnet.com/art-world/aamd-salary-survey-2021-1984578">Considering a Career in Museums? Here’s How Much Money You Can Expect to Make in Dozens of Different Roles</a>After a turbulent year marked by the pandemic and social-justice uprisings, how have salaries in the museum industry changed? According to the just-released salary report from the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.aamd.org/">Association of Art Museum Directors</a>&nbsp;(AAMD), the answer is: not much.Via Artnet&nbsp;<a href="https://www.artnews.com/art-news/market/gallery-as-service-1234597283/">Hybrid Auctions Are Now the Norm. Will Galleries Follow&nbsp;Suit?</a>One of the surprises following last year’s global lockdown was how well the art market seemed to function in a state of semi-suspended animation. There’s a variety of explanations for the industry’s unexpected ability to survive. There are macroeconomic factors involving stimulus packages and governments further easing already lax monetary policies. There are also technological ones based upon the existence of platforms for displaying art. (Many of these platforms already existed, but few of them were used frequently.) There are even psycho-social factors involving the need for cultural and intellectual engagement that requires minimal interpersonal contact.Via Artnews&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

What We're Reading: 6/30

<html><head></head><body>By CGN StaffThree whole days off? With a long weekend coming up, how will you spend those bonus hours in the heart of summer?&nbsp;If you're flustered and trying to figure out how to best spend your time, we recommend you take a look at the <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events?category=exhibitions&amp;filter=all">exhibitions currently on view in the CGN Calendar</a>. With a return to openings, finally, there is a tendency to forget shows once they open, but many exhibitions are on view for several weeks, giving you many changes to visit in person and spend time engaging with art off-line.&nbsp;Below is a small selection of <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events?category=exhibitions&amp;filter=all">exhibitions currently on view</a>.&nbsp;Enjoy the art, and the long weekend!&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418929/fgmsanldr092dysauheu.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/dorothy-graden-liminal-spaces">Dorothy Graden: Liminal Spaces</a>Exhibition Runs Thru July 11Evanston Art Center&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418930/erl9bfvetlqrtqq009z8.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/the-color-of-normal">The Color of Normal</a>Exhibition Runs Thru July 11Juliet Art House&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418931/ry5ghqsfawxiwols91om.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/international-association-of-pastel-societies-iaps-2021-juried-gallery-exhibition">International Association of Pastel Societies (IAPS) 2021 Juried Gallery Exhibition</a>Exhibition Runs Thru July 18Zhou B Art Center&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418931/s8dpss9nx4nsvmfnpxyu.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/bill-mauldin-limited-edition-prints">Bill Mauldin, Limited Edition Prints</a>Exhibition Runs Thru July 31Jean Albano Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

Exhibitions On View Now Through Mid July

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418923/kkefd4ynjsv7sj51icgm.jpg"></figure>&nbsp;By GINNY VAN ALYEAThe River North Gallery Tours first started 20 years ago. Yes, 20. In 2001 the Chicago Art Dealers Association thought the regular neighborhood tours would be a great way to make area galleries accessible to the public. The idea was to tour four local spaces that were all in walking distance of one another. By bringing a tour group into a gallery and making interactions between dealers and the uninitiated but curious art visitors more friendly, art buying would be encouraged and developed in the process. CGN interviewed <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2013/1/collector-profile-anne-and-mark-siebert">some collectors back in 2013</a> who got started by attending the tours in the early years.&nbsp;The tours have long been popular. In recent years, the number of galleries in River North has decreased, but the neighborhood has still been ideal for tours. It's close to Michigan Ave., as well as main CTA bus and El stops, and the galleries there are still close to one another and offer a range of art, from outsider to encaustic to craft. Some participating galleries today include Carl Hammer, Zg, Vale Craft, Victor Armendariz, and others.&nbsp;"These gallery tours provide a real personal touch, and we love participating in them," says Carl Hammer. "It's a great way to hear one-on-one stories from the dealers and curators, and it's really one of the coolest art-viewing opportunities out there. It's a hidden gem. It's free, and it's priceless!"&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418924/g130zcr8ohx9po1uidde.jpg"></figure>&nbsp;Tours stopped altogether for most of 2020, but gallery owner Dan Addington took up the charge of organizing and leading them again when it was safe to resume in-person events. Now he has a plan to refresh and revive the tours in time for summer.&nbsp;"Leading these tours has been so much fun, and they are a unique way to experience artists, galleries, and exhibitions in a personal and comfortable way. We've met so many art enthusiasts who have become returning participants on the tours, and we look forward to providing this opportunity in the future! What a great way to spend a Saturday morning," says Addington.&nbsp;Tours are taking place <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/free-cgn-saturday-gallery-tours">once a month on Saturdays</a>, leaving from Addington Gallery, 704 N Wells St, at 11am, and visit at least three other galleries. While they won't take place weekly, they'll be more anticipated than ever, even in the winter months.&nbsp;The next tour takes place on Saturday, July 10. Addington asks that visitors please Rsvp by text or phone to 312.664.3406 by 9am the date of the tour&nbsp;in order to give him a heads up for how many people to expect.&nbsp;According to the owners of Zg Gallery, "These tours have been an exciting way to communicate the importance of River North in the history of the Chicago gallery scene, and they allow people to discover art on a personal level while providing a great venue to ask questions in a comfortable context. People remember this tour experience even years later, and they often return with their friends."&nbsp;If you're interested in scheduling a larger group or private tour, please contact the CGN office: 312 649 0064 or <a href="mailto:info@chicagogallerynews.com?cc=ginny@chicagogallerynews.com&amp;subject=Private%20Gallery%20Tour">email CGN</a> More information, including upcoming dates in 2021, may be <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/organizations/free-cgn-saturday-gallery-tours">found here.</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

River North's Popular Saturday Morning Gallery Tours Are Back, With Updates

<html><head></head><body>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418929/sozr37eqnduhit6ssput.png"></figure><a href="https://banksyexhibit.com/chicago/?utm_source=sendgrid.com&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=website">The Art of Banksy Will Take Place at Epiphany Art Center</a>The Art of Banksy, the largest touring exhibition of authentic Banksy artworks in the world, announced the Chicago exhibition will be held at the 42,000 sf Epiphany Center for the Arts in the West Loop. The core of the exhibition will be presented in the campus’ Epiphany Hall – formerly known as The Church of the Epiphany – a landmark building constructed in 1885 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The exhibition is being touted as featuring $35 million worth of (privately held) Banksy art.&nbsp; “Epiphany Center for the Arts’ historic atmosphere offers an ideal setting in which to present The Art of Banksy. Epiphany is poised to become one of the largest cultural destinations in Chicago, and we hope that many will experience this unique space for the first time when coming to see our one-of-a-kind exhibition,” said Corey Ross, President &amp; CEO, Starvox Exhibits, which is presenting the exhibit alongside [ collectiv presents ].Via PR<figure class="image"><img></figure><a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/swislow/lakefront-anonymous-chicagos-unknown-outdoor-art-gallery">Aron Packer Is Publishing a Book</a>We heard from Aron via email: "I have exciting news about a photography/folk art/public art project that I started documenting many years ago. I shelved it for years and then my good friend Bill Swislow took the baton and ran with it. Bill has written and produced a wonderful book, LAKEFRONT ANONYMOUS, which features many of my photos as well as Bill's. The book includes an article I wrote in the 90's reproduced from <a href="https://aronpackerprojects.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=b7ebf6056e18897faf852257a&amp;id=a32f853404&amp;e=118087ef3a">RAWVISION</a> magazine, along with new thoughts on this project 30 years later.&nbsp; Bill and I have started a <a href="https://aronpackerprojects.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=b7ebf6056e18897faf852257a&amp;id=57baf5ee5b&amp;e=118087ef3a">Kickstarter campaign</a> to help produce this book. Please check out the link to LAKEFRONT ANONYMOUS, which explains the project, and why you will surely want to help support this endeavor."&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img></figure><a href="https://intersectchicago.com">Intersect Chicago 2021 (Formerly SOFA Chicago) Coming to Navy Pier in November&nbsp;</a>Intersect Chicago 2021, the art and design fair formerly known as SOFA – Sculpture Objects Functional Art will take place in person November 4–7 to present an exploration of materiality and meaning in design, objects, furniture, and art with a focus on local, regional, and global creation. Intersect’s November 2021 edition will feature a diverse roster of galleries and cultural partners with dedicated programming, curated focus sections, and special events.Exhibitors, talks and additional programming will be announced at a later date.&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

CGN Art World Recap: 6/29

<a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-biz-thompson-center-state-vote-ryan-ori-20210622-pzjb2xozw5bizosn6ku4dyfzjy-story.html">State agencies expected to oppose adding Helmut Jahn’s Thompson Center to National Register of Historic Places</a>Preservationists fear two Illinois agencies will oppose having the James R. Thompson Center added to the National Register of Historic Places, which the groups see as a key to saving the Helmut Jahn-designed building in the Loop.The state agencies are expected to move to block the designation Friday in a meeting of the Illinois Historic Sites Advisory Council, preservation groups said, citing a publicly posted document in which the agencies say they agree that the Thompson Center should not be considered historically significant enough to be preserved.Via Chicago Tribune&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/artist-beeple-sold-his-nft-for-69-million-cryptocurrency-christies-digital-art-11624536293?mod=hp_featst_pos5">Artist Beeple Sold His NFT for $69 Million—But Has a Tough Time Breaking Into the Art World</a>Digital designer and artist Mike Winkelmann, who goes by Beeple, sparked a <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/nfts-explained-whats-driving-prices-for-lebron-james-and-kings-of-leon-digital-collectibles-11615205133?mod=article_inline">global frenzy for non-fungible tokens</a>, or NFTs, <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/beeple-nft-fetches-record-breaking-69-million-in-christies-sale-11615477732">after Christie’s sold his digital collage for $69 million in March</a>—but since then he’s maintained a relatively low profile, stoking curiosity about his next big move.Now, Mr. Winkelmann is opening up, revealing that he’s had a rocky entrée into the art establishment even though he currently ranks as the world’s third most-expensive living artist after Jeff Koons and David Hockney.Via WSJ&nbsp;<a href="https://www.barrons.com/articles/phillips-new-york-sale-driven-by-emerging-artists-01624541383?mod=hp_minor_pos26&amp;adobe_mc=MCMID%3D53461186548703087300401360111402314735%7CMCORGID%3DCB68E4BA55144CAA0A4C98A5%2540AdobeOrg%7CTS%3D1624557292">Phillips’ New York Sale Driven by Emerging Artists</a>Phillips 20th-century and contemporary art sale Wednesday evening in New York&nbsp;continued the auction house’s streak of 100% sold sales driven by a slew of hot contemporary artists.&nbsp;The total reached US$118.2 million after several long rounds of bidding with buyers from across the world throughout the two-and-a-half hour sale.&nbsp;The stars of the evening were emerging artists, including Avery Singer, Matthew Wong, Emily Mae Smith, Titus Kaphar, Amy Sherald, Amoako Boafo, and Mickalene Thomas, among others.&nbsp;Via Barrons&nbsp;<a href="https://news.artnet.com/art-world/immersive-van-gogh-experiences-1983011">Two Immersive Van Gogh Experiences Offer the Post-Pandemic Escapism Visitors Crave. They Have Weirdly Little to Do With Van Gogh</a>How did Van Gogh become the hottest artist of the post-quarantine, return-to-physical-spaces moment?I speak, of course, not of the real artist named Vincent Van Gogh, with his old-timey tale of suffering and transcendence. I speak of the undead mash-up of Van Gogh’s paintings with projection mapping, animation, and music, now doing beaucoup business in <a href="https://news.artnet.com/art-world/immersive-van-gogh-guide-1974038">dozens of cities</a> across the globe in one of the largest coordinated art phenomena of all time.Via Artnet&nbsp;&nbsp;Thumbnail image: Exterior view of the Thompson Center in Chicago's Loop, Nov. 19, 2020. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune)&nbsp;&nbsp;

What We're Reading: 6/24

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418923/gejffizxdyxatgbuvb51.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/nancy-rosen-monalisa-rosen-cut-paste-paint">Nancy Rosen &amp; Monalisa Rosen: Cut, Paste, Paint</a>Opening: Saturday, June 26, 1 – 4&nbsp;pmGallery Studio Oh!The artist behind Netflix's Original Series Grace &amp; Frankie, Nancy Rosen, joins us again for another showing of her newest works alongside her daughter-in-law, Monalisa Rosen.Nancy Rosen works on a variety of surfaces. She creates her images with the application of oil bars, china markers, graphite and oil paint, using live models. With her complex backgrounds she accentuates the quiet inner beauty of her figure and draws life itself into her subject.Monalisa Rosen creates mixed media collages in the form of silhouetted portraits with the use of fabrics, paper, oil pastels and paint. They are mainly made with leftover scrap fabrics discarded after making masks.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418924/k95atyk904bbqyooyjj6.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/karen-reimer-sea-change">Karen Reimer: Sea Change</a>Exhibition Begins June 26Monique Meloche GalleryThe overall effect of Reimer's conceptual technique creates an optical meditation on the larger collapse of cultural foundations and our capacity to coexist within the earth’s ecosystems.&nbsp;Each complex embroidery utilizes found textiles, a physical manifestation of an ethical salvaging of materials; the materials have been dyed and re-dyed, reconfigured, and re-sewn, they represent the many iterations of life and the infinite potential for plurality of existence.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418925/u29zpuyegsmkggqskdef.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/antonius-bui-the-detour-is-to-be-where-we-are">Antonius Bui: The Detour Is To Be Where We Are</a>Exhibition Begins June 26Monique Meloche Gallerymoniquemeloche gallery is pleased to present&nbsp;The Detour Is To Be Where We Are, an exhibition of intricate paper cutting works by Antonius Bui. This is Bui’s first solo show with the gallery.Antonius Bui (b. 1992, Bronx, NY) is a queer, gender-nonbinary, Vietnamese American artist. Their intensive paper-cutting process is exceptionally meditative; each sheet of paper represents an archive of memories and oral histories, mirroring the intergenerational trauma that so many refugee communities are faced with.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418926/ckbklkhhwwud3ajzt7ia.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/ricardo-manuel-diaz-and-margarita-fainshtein">Ricardo Manuel Díaz and Margarita Fainshtein</a>Opening: June 26 &amp; 27, 12 – 4&nbsp;pmUkrainian Institute of Modern Art (UIMA)The Ukrainian Institute of Modern Art is honored to present paintings by Chicago based artist Ricardo Manuel Díaz and printed works by Nova Scotian artist Margarita Fainshtein in The Horizon is a Circle, a two person exhibition that contemplates displacement, a sense of place, and what home means across geographic borders and cultures.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418926/ct71yfrdbvakcwkxxmm3.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/the-happening">The Happening</a>Exhibition Begins June 26FLXST ContemporaryIn our every day, small gestures of life occur in time invoking the future while repeating moments of the past. Inspired by the “happenings” first coined and performed by Allan Kaprow and artists in the US and abroad during the late 1950s and 1960s, “The Happening” at FLXST Contemporary creates both space and time that enables viewers to visualize synchrony of actions, intentions, and movements among artists exhibited together working across a variety of mediums however disparate their backgrounds, ideas, or social leanings might be. Collectively, the artists presented in “The Happening” explore forward-thinking practices and techniques often taken for granted, underappreciated, or misunderstood in their presentations and performances.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

New Exhibitions Start June 26

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418924/rzmlar4mowkwhaliis2t.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/nicholas-krushenick-1968-1978-a-decade-of-prints">Nicholas Krushenick 1968–1978: A Decade of Prints</a>Exhibition Begins June 25PICKLEMANKrushenick’s seven prints displayed at PICKLEMAN are like passing clouds; they resemble whatever you want them to. One of them looks like a zipper. Another’s a folded folio. Next to that is the sawtooth blade. Or at least that’s what I think. See them, and you can decide for yourself.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418925/on5xy93ogcgkuagqk0rj.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/monica-j-brown">Monica J. Brown | Roots, Branches: Ancestor(s) Stones</a>Opening: Friday, June 25, 5 – 8&nbsp;pmARC GalleryAncestor(s) Stones are intuition mining tools. They represent ancient wisdom, antiquity. They are the knowing inherent in having bourn witness to the ages. They align with the string of memory that lives in DNA, passed down through generations. They represent grounding, leverage, or steps to take. The stones have taken many shapes…&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418925/fog7o7x4b3y9liqgzllr.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/residual-marks">Residual Marks</a>Opening: Friday, June 25, 3 – 8&nbsp;pmHatch ProjectsChicago Artists Coalition is pleased to present <a href="https://news.chicagoartistscoalition.org/t/i-l-muyjyuy-ftuikdrju-j/">Residual Marks</a>, a dual exhibition curated by HATCH 2019-2020 residents&nbsp;<a href="https://news.chicagoartistscoalition.org/t/i-l-muyjyuy-ftuikdrju-t/">Fabiola Tosi</a> and <a href="https://news.chicagoartistscoalition.org/t/i-l-muyjyuy-ftuikdrju-i/">Stephanie Koch</a>.The exhibitions are presented under a shared conceptual framework of absence and emergence. What remains and what endures?&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418926/wmeepgew8wvwkth0xnir.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/longing-compass">Longing Compass</a>Opening: Friday, June 25, 3 – 8&nbsp;pmBOLT Residency at Chicago Artists CoalitionChicago Artists Coalition is pleased to present <a href="https://news.chicagoartistscoalition.org/t/i-l-muyjyuy-ftuikdrju-b/">Longing Compass</a>, a solo exhibition of new works by the BOLT artist-in-residence, <a href="https://news.chicagoartistscoalition.org/t/i-l-muyjyuy-ftuikdrju-n/">Karen Dana Cohen</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418927/ogimi6yhu3yzttvb2qyu.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/our-planet-ourselves">Our Planet: Ourselves</a>Opening: Friday, June 25, 5 – 8&nbsp;pmARC Gallery&nbsp;Spring is here! And the beauty of our natural world is ever more apparent. Green shoots are poking through the crust, and once again the earth is warming in the sun. However “the warming earth” carries a more somber message as well – a reminder of the fruits of our greed, the fragility of our planet, the reality of our losses. And, as we face the urgency to respond, we raise our artistic voices – to celebrate, to mourn, to activate, and to contemplate how we live together in relationship to this one planet we must all share and nurture.&nbsp;“Our Planet: Ourselves,” gives expression to these messages. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

New Exhibitions Start June 25

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418923/tve24w1f2zoqfx7rqhws.jpg"><figcaption>The CGN Super Heroes</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By GINNY VAN ALYEAMy 5 year old son loves Spider-Man. Some days he is dressed head-to-toe in Spider-Man clothes. He likes the Spider-Man socks a little better than his Iron Man ones. He can strike up a friendship at the playground with any other kid wearing a Spider-Man t-shirt.&nbsp;So he's really the reason we bought tickets for the Museum of Science and Industry's Marvel: Universe of Super Heroes. When I went to buy tickets in March, planning for a spring break stay-cation and a return to Chicago museums, I found out, like so many others, that tickets were sold out for weeks. So we waited to go in May.&nbsp;What started out as a "cultural" diversion for our kids turned out to be a deeper education about the artistic storytelling mastery of Marvel for adults, or at least this one. I cannot claim to have ever been interested in super heroes or comics before I had kids, but much like how I gained my broad knowledge of construction vehicles, super heroes have come to our home through my son.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418924/klnqal0tvobicasfqwam.jpg"><figcaption>Human Torch #16, Cover, art by Alex Schomburg, 1944, pencil and ink on Bristol board</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;The exhibit is so big that is spans two galleries at the museum. Some of this is no doubt due to social distancing, but it is also because there is so much to display as well as to explain in detail.&nbsp;Marvel: Universe of Super Heroes celebrates Marvel history with more than 300 artifacts, including original comic book pages (marked as such by a jagged comic book word bubble heralding 'Original Art'), sculptures, interactive displays, and costumes and props from Marvel’s blockbuster films. Visitors are invited to discover the origins of iconic characters such as Spider-Man, Black Panther, Hulk, and Captain Marvel and see how they have evolved alongside society, as well as world history, over the past 80 years, making these characters a pop culture mainstay.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418925/ganzn5xnlknkqx6q52gu.jpg"><figcaption>Marvel Comics (1939) #1, Published: August 31, 1939. Writer: Al Anders, Bill Everett, Paul Gustavson, Ben Thompson. Penciler: Bill Everett, Paul Gustavson, Ben Thompson, Carl Burgos. Courtesy Marvel Comics.</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;The very first Marvel comic, issue no. 1, was published in 1939. Displayed near the entrance of the first gallery, it's a valuable treasure that sets the tone for the significance of this exhibition. A nearby text explains that in the beginning, in 1938, the modern Super Hero "ignited a national craze." Visitors must spend time up close with rare artifacts like this one, as well as rare original covers and artwork making their exhibition premieres at MSI. Accompanying each piece is a contextual explanation that covers its place in time as well as the events that were taking place in the US and beyond - such as the inaugural issue's featured battle between Human Torch and The Sub-Mariner. An explanation goes on to note that the rivalry between the two heroes recedes during WWII, as they become allies against real world forces of evil like the Nazis. The notion is clear that were it not for America's role in the war, "It's unlikely that the Super Hero boom would have taken off as it did." Conversely, once the war was over, interest in super heroes waned when a unified nationalism was not as prominent throughout the country.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418926/utxtz5obnhuzus2ydu1l.jpg"><figcaption>Self-portrait with Marvel Super Heroes, Jack Kirby (pencils) and Mike Royer (inks), 1969</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;I came away with an understanding that so much of the vision for Marvel and its well-known characters was borne from two very talented artists, Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, who were immigrants to the United States and who joined the new company in 1939 and 1941, respectively. They spun stories that have stood the test of time, embodied by characters who have also evolved from moral standard bearers and war effort boosters to those who reflect our diverse population today. Super heroes are not intended to stand high above every day people – they can be allies of hope, bravery and the confidence to be different. The heroes tend towards urban characters who offer save harbor for those who have ever felt left out or at a disadvantage. The villains represent the more evil forces in the world as well as the vulnerability and doom of being on the bad side.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418926/rypqeyd0v6yzfpfo3xul.jpg"></figure>&nbsp;Complementing the historic components of the exhibition are the things that make this fun for the youngest Marvel fans (like mine) as well as very Instagrammable for older kids and adults. Even though my son and his 7 year old sister are too young for the Marvel Studios films, they had a lot of fun posing with life-size Marvel characters including Black Panther, Ms. Marvel, and yes Spider-Man. The thoughtfully designed and set-worn Marvel Studios film costumes are works of art in their own rite.&nbsp;Trippier portions of the exhibition include set pieces like Tony Stark’s lab, the mirror dimension of Doctor Strange, and a tiny exhibit contained in sort of mirrored box with (spoiler) projected images of a flying Ant-Man and Wasp Girl. You have to watch closely, seeking out the art as well as some of the magic of super heroes.&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://www.msichicago.org/explore/whats-here/exhibits/marvel-universe-of-super-heroes/">Marvel: Universe of Super Heroes</a> runs through October 24. And yes, tickets are still selling out weeks in advance, so don't delay.&nbsp;&nbsp;P.S. Shortly after seeing the MSI Marvel exhibition I discovered a 2009 limited edition issue of <a href="https://www.marvel.com/comics/issue/24039/pride_prejudice_2009_1">Pride and Prejudice</a> by Marvel at a thrift store! Had I only known, I may have gotten into comics back in high school!&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418928/wbtsmn24g76lla7wphsj.jpg"></figure>&nbsp;</body></html>

MSI's Marvel Exhibition Tells an Artistic Origin Story

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417981/fexibzkql4mnxdnmcfsf.jpg"><figcaption>Ebony G. Patterson, ...a possum rises...a black bear falls...a pattoo takes watch...as children whisper through the leaves, 2019, at the Whitney Museum</figcaption></figure>The Whitney Acquires an Installation by Ebony G. PattersonMonique Meloche Gallery announced that the Whitney Museum of American Art acquired&nbsp;Ebony G. Patterson’s.&nbsp;…a possum rises…a black bear falls...a pattoo takes watch…as children whisper through the leaves (2019). This work is now on view in the exhibition&nbsp;<a href="https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001WIAC3Xlg3qwjLjyJAYvoHu1AtjevMUqz44BlEi8OpfaYSUcn2m6WQXEP3ElQZpbeYcwu-nDE485Kd7aCP6rg9H4QKbfBu0XBZFG1oP_VBWj_QVi9BAAzrsLCBIhHFBomBvWwtg04fxRFVZO4eDmbLE4ehuOV6xpd29PuLYAHxmWHQjwZwh2ZHw==&amp;c=HaMc7aubC6QbXwicCXU5QTjAk7Ql78_oo6rHfzE0KueZDsOswiHwyg==&amp;ch=5OYzsK_LRW4v5iRRlpqGyom0pcz04CnPbm2QOaukya8kzQ3xEalcng==">Making Knowing: Craft in Art, 1950–2019</a> at the Whitney until&nbsp;February 2022.The Brooklyn Museum has acquired&nbsp;Patterson's&nbsp;...three kings weep…, 2018, now on view in the exhibition The Slipstream: Reflection, Resilience, and Resistance in the Art of Our Time at the BMA until March 20, 2022Read CGN's 2020 cover interview with Patterson <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2020/5/ebony-g-patterson-the-interactivity-of-visual-appeal">here.</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417982/aysyt436o6btfs7pvae8.jpg"><figcaption>Hank Willis Thomas</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;<a href="https://monumentaltour.org">Hank Willis Thomas and Arthur Jafa Part of South Side Traveling Sculpture Show</a>Kindred Arts and Wide Awakes Chicago are presenting artists Hank Willis Thomas and Arthur Jafa in a group showing of sculptures on Chicago's South Side as a part of Monumental Tour, a traveling outdoor art exhibit empowering social change through the arts. The works will be on display June 18 – August 30, 2021, at two locations in Chicago. Thomas’ All Power to All People will be located in Englewood Square, 5801 S. Halsted St., and Jafa’s Big Wheel will be located at Blanc Gallery, 4445 S Martin Luther King Dr. The installations were made possible with support from Wide Awakes Chicago alongside a coalition of organizations including Grow Greater Englewood and Blanc Gallery.&nbsp;The exhibition can be viewed <a href="https://monumentaltour.org">virtually</a> or in person&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721417983/s035f7qnfk7adgfrc3df.jpg"><figcaption>Black Girl Takeover, Douglass Park, Chicago, 2018, Courtesy of A Long Walk Home's Girl/Friends. Photo by Paul Farber</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.21cmuseumhotels.com/chicago/">An Art Program Returns to a Chicago Hotel</a>21c Museum Hotel Chicago, recently reopened, has a new installation of posters designed by Anaya Patrice Frazier, Danielle Nolen and Aliyah Young, 2019 fellows of non-profit art organization A Long Walk Home’s (ALWH) Girl/Friends Leadership Institute, and San Francisco-based artist and designer Cheyenne Concepcion. Visible through the street-facing windows of the hotel through July 31, the installation is part of&nbsp;Shaping the Past, a multifaceted event and program series presented by Goethe-Institut North America.In partnership with Monument Lab,&nbsp;Shaping the Past&nbsp;addresses pressing issues around what, whom, and how to remember in public spaces. Contributing artists have designed posters that overview their projects which expand the vision of what public monuments can look like.&nbsp;On Thurs., June 24 at 6 p.m., 21c Museum Hotel Chicago will present a conversation between Chicago-based director, curator and artist Vincent Uribe of artist-run exhibition space LVL3 and artist, arts facilitator, and poet Hope Wang. To register for the event <a href="https://www.21cmuseumhotels.com/chicago/event/curator-conversations-june-24/">click here</a>&nbsp;</body></html>

CGN Art World Recap: 6/21

<html><head></head><body>Chicago exploded with activity last week when the city reached phase 5. It's been a long year, and now that many restrictions are falling away, there are suddenly not enough hours in the day to do everything and see everyone. Traffic is telling that tale minute-by-minute in the city.&nbsp;If you're longing to and able to get away, there are several art exhibitions taking place outside of the City (in Illinois as well as Michigan, Indiana and Wisconsin) that may inspire you to escape for a day or weekend trip this summer.&nbsp;Have a look at the following highlights, and enjoy the return of your freedom this summer (and perhaps a respite from Chicago traffic).– The CGN team&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418923/bicqsxdwqm8pwjaexlps.jpg"></figure><a href="https://krasl.org">Michigan's Krasl Art Center: Art Fair on the Bluff and BLOW-UP</a>The 2021 Krasl Art Fair on the Bluff is back and in person this summer, celebrating artists and the community Saturday, July 10, and Sunday, July 11. Experience the talent of 155 artists from across the United States while enjoying the view and breezes of Lake Michigan and the charm and hospitality of St. Joseph, Michigan. <a href="https://krasl.org/art-fair/event-information/">Tickets start at $5.</a>While you're there, check out <a href="https://krasl.org/art/exhibitions/">BLOW UP II: Inflatable Contemporary Art</a>, an exhibition exploring the medium of inflatable art with imagery that is figurative, conceptual, and abstract. These large-scale inflatable sculptures, conceived by nine artists and art collectives from around the world, connote fun and whimsy, are familiar yet strange, and challenge the definition of art. Here, in an unusual feat, artists use air as an active tool in their work to subvert our perspective and surprise us. Including work by Chromaforms, Sharon Engelstein, FriendsWithYou, Josh Harker, Susan Lee-Chun, Matt Ritchie, Lizabeth Rossof, Jen Stark, and Max Streicher – many of whom have never worked in the inflatable medium previously.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418924/tuhek7gkeaz76fum9lyk.jpg"><figcaption>Roger Brown&nbsp;(American, 1941–1997),&nbsp;Chicago Hit&nbsp;By&nbsp;the Bomb, 1985, oil on canvas, 55&nbsp;×&nbsp;74&nbsp;×&nbsp;3 in. (framed).&nbsp;Indianapolis Museum of Art at&nbsp;Newfields, Promised Gift of Michael J. Robertson and Christopher A.&nbsp;Slapak, TR12054/12&nbsp;© The School of the Art Institute of Chicago and the Brown family. Courtesy of Kavi Gupta and Venus Over Manhattan.&nbsp;</figcaption></figure><a href="https://discovernewfields.org/calendar/private-eye-imagist-impulse-chicago-art">Private Eye: The Imagist Impulse in Chicago Art, at Newfields in Indianapolis</a>An expansive exhibition in Indianapolis features <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2017/4/the-personal-art-of-collecting">a collection profiled in the summer 2017 issue</a> of CGN. In the mid-1960s, a cadre of adventurous young artists began exhibiting at the Hyde Park Art Center in Chicago.&nbsp; With myriad influences from Surrealism and non-Western art to comic books and popular culture, their audacious, highly idiosyncratic, and personal approach set them apart from contemporaries working on either the East or West Coast.&nbsp; By the mid-1970s, this loose-knit assembly was commonly referred to as the Imagists.&nbsp;Now, more than 50 years after their first appearance, the Chicago Imagists are regarded as among the most important postwar American artists.&nbsp;Private Eye: The Imagist Impulse in Chicago Art&nbsp;is focused on works by artists who comprise the original Imagist exhibition groups along with independent artists who shared their iconoclastic sensibility.&nbsp; Also featured will be works by Chicago-based artists from the preceding generation, known as the Monster Roster, and a complementary selection of younger, Imagist-influenced artists.The exhibition, on view through December 5, is drawn entirely from the collection of Drs. Michael Robertson and Christopher Slapak, one of the most comprehensive private collections of Chicago Imagist art, which has been promised to the IMA with some pieces already donated to the Museum.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418925/sa7su9hoyx9sm1xevr16.jpg"></figure><a href="https://rockfordartmuseum.org/exhibition/now">Rockford Art Museum: Technicolor Constellations: Tales from the Permanent Collection</a>Now through September 26 you can over 50 selections from the Rockford Art Museum's Modern and Contemporary Collection that tell the fascinating stories of how RAM built a public art collection.&nbsp;Technicolor Constellations&nbsp;invites visitors to connect with the captivating stories behind each artist and their work and find the links that brought the work to the museum. From private donors, foundations, artists, and acquisitions, this exhibition explores the importance of artwork donations, collectors and what it takes to get into a museum's permanent collection.Technicolor Constellations&nbsp;brings together work by 38 artists and includes painting, prints, sculpture, and video. Featured artists include Herman Aguirre, Alice Aycock, Jeff Koons, Kerry James Marshall, Tony Oursler, Diane Simpson, and Ken Warneke.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418926/uttmryxuakrfinog56vw.jpg"><figcaption>Kevin Beasley, Chair of the Ministers of Defense,&nbsp;2016 Polyurethane resin, wood, acoustic foam, jeans, trousers, du-rags, altered&nbsp;t- shirts, altered hoodies, guinea fowl feathers, wrought iron&nbsp;window gate, vintage  Beni Ourain Moroccan rug, kaftans,&nbsp;housedresses, Maasai war shields, Zulu war shields, and&nbsp;vintage peacock rattan chair On loan from The Joyner/Giuffrida Collection and The Rennie Collection</figcaption></figure><a href="https://sniteartmuseum.nd.edu/exhibitions/current-exhibitions/kevin-beasley-chair-of-the-ministers-of-defense/">Kevin Beasley at the Snite Museum at Notre Dame (South Bend, IN)</a>The Snite Museum just welcomed visitors back in person on June 1. An installation to visit at the museum in person is Kevin Beasley's Chair of the Ministers of Defense. This immersive installation explores ideas of power and race in America through  theatrics reminiscent of the Roman Baroque. Here, renowned conceptual artist  Beasley calls into focus Black liberation movements and ongoing  imbalances of power experienced by Black Americans and marginalized men  and women of color. The work maintains a formality often employed in religious  imagery and in art intended to convey the divine right of leaders. An empty, rattan “peacock” chair is at center; above is a house window clad in  protective iron bars, evoking a stained-glass window. Flanking are archetypical  Maasai and Zulu warrior shields, icons of African might. Surrounding are vaguely  figurative, resin-infused sculptures made from t-shirts, housedresses, and du- rags—all items associated with contemporary urban culture. On view through December 23. Other exhibitions as well as the museum's sculpture garden are also accessible in person.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418927/xho5xwlrktfg5hy9wbci.png"></figure><a href="https://kam.illinois.edu/exhibition/question-emphasis-louise-fishman-drawing">A Question of Emphasis: Louise Fishman Drawing at University of Illinois</a>A Question of Emphasis: Louise Fishman Drawing is the first career spanning exhibition and publication of Fishman’s works on paper from 1964 to the present. Running Aug 26, 2021 – Feb 26, 2022 at the Krannert Art Museum at the University of Illinois in Champaign, the project includes more than 100 works from the artist’s archive that have rarely been exhibited alongside significant institutional and private loans. Citing John Cage’s response in 1965 to the question, “what is drawing?” A Question of Emphasis encompasses collage, oil and wax, thread, acrylic text, ink, charcoal, printmaking, oil stick, watercolor, and tempera in Japanese-bound Leporello (accordion) books. This full range of mediums foregrounds Fishman’s robust and dedicated practice of works on paper, which have never been studies for her large canvases. Instead, Fishman has used drawing to think through physicality, materials, and intimacy on a different register: generally small- and medium- scale, often sculptural and tactile, and aligned to her particular historical contexts and her communities.&nbsp;Top image: Krasl Art Center's summer installation&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

Notable Exhibitions Happening Outside Chicago This Summer

<html><head></head><body>&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418923/tkcroagwdnw0piogmttp.jpg"><figcaption>Interpol says its ID-Art app has access to a database of 52,000 stolen artefacts © ID-Art/INTERPOL &nbsp;</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/interpol-launches-app-to-identify-stolen-art?utm_source=The+Art+Newspaper+Newsletters&amp;utm_campaign=be025f2896-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2021_06_14_03_56&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_term=0_c459f924d0-be025f2896-61117077">Interpol launches app to identify stolen art—and it has already been used to discover loot</a>Interpol has launched a new, free-to-download app to help law enforcers identify stolen art. It has already scored successes during pilot tests by police in Spain and Italy.The new app, called ID-Art, allows users to check art against 52,000 works registered as stolen on Interpol’s database. It is also envisaged as a tool for collectors and museums, allowing them to create inventories of their collections. These records can be submitted to Interpol in case of theft and will greatly increase their chances of recovering stolen works.Via The Art Newspaper&nbsp;<a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/museums/ct-ent-mexican-museum-art-mackenzie-scott-20210616-dr7w2eaggvh2hjmq4qr3syiq6m-story.html">Chicago’s National Museum of Mexican Art gets $8 million from billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott</a>The National Museum of Mexican Art announced late Tuesday that it had received a donation of $8 million, the largest single gift in the Pilsen museum’s 39-year history.The unrestricted money came from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott and her husband Dan Jewett as part of their well-publicized donations of $2.74 billion, given to hundreds of organizations their charity team identified as equity-oriented, nonprofit projects working in areas that have been neglected.Via Chicago Tribune&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/06/14/t-magazine/how-to-buy-art.html?referringSource=articleShare">How to Buy a Work of Art, According to the New York Times T Magazine</a>The sheer volume of art being sold across the world each year is far greater than at any point in human history. There was a 22 percent drop in global sales of art and antiques in 2020 — to all of $50.1 billion. Those figures, the most credible data on this topic that exist — and this alone will say a lot about the art world for the uninitiated — come from an annual report by the economist Clare McAndrew funded and released by Art Basel, a contemporary art fair, and its corporate partner UBS, the Swiss multinational financial services company and one of the largest private banks in the world, which by comparison reported $32.39 billion in revenue in 2020... For one last comparison: $50 billion is also the cost proposed by the International Monetary Fund to cover its global plan to combat Covid-19.But the fact is that buying art is not so obvious. Having an expendable income at all in the year 2021 is a difficult proposition for the vast majority of people. But if you are someone who has been lucky enough to maintain steady employment during the pandemic... and you have some extra money lying around and have spent the last year looking at the blank walls of your home with encroaching angst — simply having that money doesn’t automatically translate into owning a work of art. Where do you begin? What should you look at?Via NYT&nbsp;<a href="https://news.artnet.com/art-world/estate-of-pop-artist-robert-indiana-reaches-agreement-1979915">Robert Indiana’s Estate Has Reached an Agreement With His Longtime Financial Backer After a Bitter Three-Year Legal Fight</a>A bitter, years-long legal dispute over the legacy of famous Pop artist Robert Indiana has come to an end. The artist’s estate, the Star of Hope Foundation, which the artist established before his death, and the Morgan Art Foundation, which holds the copyright to some of Indiana’s most famous works, have agreed to drop their overlapping claims and counterclaims.&nbsp;Via Artnet&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

What We're Reading: 6/16

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418923/vwqnhvu24b3wpl1nrqfu.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/the-obama-portraits">The Obama Portraits</a>Exhibition Begins June 18Art Institute of ChicagoOn loan from the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery, the Obama portraits come to Chicago for the first stop of a five-city tour. As the family’s longtime home, Chicago has a unique connection to the Obamas, as does the Art Institute. The First Lady recalls visiting frequently with her family when she was growing up on the South Side, and the museum was also the site of the couple’s first date.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418924/qk9wusrx2loqzneegqlq.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/chicago-where-comics-came-to-life-1880-1960">CHICAGO: Where Comics Came to Life (1880-1960)</a>Exhibition Begins June 19Chicago Cultural CenterThe exhibition focuses on the origins of the comics in popular publishing, the immeasurable importance of African-American cartoonists and publishing, the first woman cartoonists and editors, the first daily comic strip, and finally the art and comics of undeservedly forgotten Frank King, who with “Gasoline Alley” captured not only the rhythms and tone of everyday existence in his characters that aged not only at the same daily rate as its newspaper readers, but were also fictionalized versions of real people.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418925/ca5h9uat1wqcyf9yniiw.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/ali6-trust-solo-show">Ali6 "Trust" solo show</a>Exhibition Begins June 19Vertical Gallery Project Space and Studios&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418926/lzjzc754dtojvrcy3jej.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/chicago-comics-1960s-to-now">Chicago Comics: 1960s to Now</a>Exhibition Begins June 19Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago (MCA)The exhibition traces the evolution of comics in Chicago, as cartoonists ventured beyond the pages of newspapers and into experimental territory including long-form storytelling, countercultural critique, and political activism. Chicago Comics examines styles, schools of thought, and modes of publication across six decades of cartooning, including works from artists who are changing the medium today. The exhibition seeks to bring to the fore artists of color who were previously under-recognized throughout their careers. In this pursuit, the exhibition features archival material previously not seen in museums and offers a revised history of the art form. Represented throughout this timeline are special sections that highlight key artists including <a href="https://mcachicago.org/About/Who-We-Are/Artists/Kerry-James-Marshall">Kerry James Marshall</a>, Lynda Barry, and Chris Ware.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418927/ufrt0zmq2vu9hpqiolje.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/confluence-painting-and-sculpture-by-jennifer-vess">Confluence: Painting and Sculpture by Jennifer Vess</a>Opening: Saturday, June 19, 4 – 7&nbsp;pmWantoot Gallery&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

New Exhibitions Start June 18 (Part II)

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418918/ckcennblcwd4ijhlh3v4.png"></figure><a href="http://chicagoarchitecturalclub.org/2021-CHICAGO-PRIZE-JAMES-R-THOMPSON-CENTER">2021 Chicago Prize Competition Calls For New Visions for the State of Illinois / Thompson Center</a>Designed by the late architect Helmut Jahn, the State of Illinois Center, also known as James R. Thompson Center, is facing the threat of complete demolition. Located in Chicago's “Loop” it is a major transportation node, commercial center and workspace. The building has been criticized for being ugly, oversized, inefficient, and poorly maintained. However, the Thompson Center has been pivotal to urban transit and a highly democratic contemporary civic center. At the time of its construction in 1985, Jahn’s State of Illinois Center was a stark contrast to Chicago’s historic and modernist architecture, yet today it is an architectural icon in its own right. For the fourth year in a row, the Thompson Center has been listed in the Landmarks Illinois’ annual Most Endangered Historic Places in Illinois and it was included in Preservation Chicago’s Chicago 7 Most Endangered list in 2018, 2019, and 2020. The Chicago Architectural Club and the Chicago Architecture Center ask the 2021 Chicago Prize participants to envision a new life for the building through restorative architecture.The competition brief can be found at the following <a href="https://issuu.com/chicagoarchitecturalclub/docs/chicago_prize_2021_-_thompson_center_-_announcemen">LINK</a>.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/museums/ct-ent-obama-portraits-art-institute-chicago-20210611-5enwhd7f6fehxdbwavzg76slmq-story.html">‘Obama Portraits’ is opening at the Art Institute of Chicago: Expect long waits, and 44 other things to know</a>Since their 2018 unveiling at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, the official state portraits of Barack and Michelle Obama have been a pilgrimage for many, a curiosity for others, an argument for contemporary art, a clarion call for Black artists and a startling left-turn after decades of calcified propriety. To James Rondeau, president and director of the Art Institute of Chicago, the Obama portraits are, also, home. Their story, he said, by nature of their local subjects, makes this “a Chicago story, and knowing the Obamas’ history with the city, and their history with the museum, any possibility to show the Obama portraits felt incredibly important.”So, after years of negotiations, starting June 18, “The Obama Portraits” will be shown at the Art Institute for the next two months — the first exhibition of the portraits outside of Washington, and the opening stop of a five-city nationwide tour.Via Chicago Tribune&nbsp; &nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418918/hmhpa1k4m5asxlobhhht.jpg"><figcaption>Via Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.zillow.com/myzillow/favorites?">Former Dorchester Church for Sale as Condos</a>&nbsp;This 1904 church, built by famed architect Solon Spencer Beman, at 4840 S Dorchester Ave in Hyde Park/Kenwood is eye-catching and trendy. It's for sale for $999,999 (down from $1,250,000)Via Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices&nbsp;<a href="https://news.wttw.com/2021/06/14/chicago-based-scientist-who-helped-find-art-world-frauds">The Chicago-Based Scientist Who Helped Find Art-World Frauds</a>The recently released Netflix documentary series&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OH18cKTmwZ8">“This Is a Robbery”</a>&nbsp;explores the twisted story surrounding the theft of 13 pieces of art from Boston’s <a href="https://www.gardnermuseum.org/">Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum</a> in 1990.One of the potential paths to recovering the $500 million in stolen artwork involves scientific analysis of paint chips, with microscopic detective work done by a Chicago-based innovator in the field.Via WTTW&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

CGN Art World Recap: 6/15

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418918/ts1tf2otz0dmbwx2xtmh.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/the-sindhu-project-enigma-of-roots-7f959b32-41ef-4f65-8077-bc9b9a87c283">The Sindhu Project: Enigma of Roots</a>Exhibition Begins June 17South Asia InstituteThe Sindhu Project embodies responses of artists Mahwish Chishty and Gunjan Kumar to explorations of archaeological sites and artifacts in the expansive Sindhu (Indus) watershed, a geographical region stretching across northwest India and much of Pakistan. Through parallel journeys involving familial roots and enigmas of inhabited places across time, Chishty and Kumar bring contemporary art-making into dialogue with excavated forms that contribute to imagining this ancient riverine landscape.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418919/ekhyjk8ctoavxvczkf6f.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/atmospheric-landscape-paintings-brian-sindler">Atmospheric: Landscape Paintings: Brian Sindler</a>Exhibition Begins June 18Richard Norton GallerySindler is best known for his Plein-Air, Tonalist landscape paintings. He is influenced by the American Tonalist movement of the late 19th and early 20th Centuries. He has won numerous awards in Plein-Air painting competitions. Sindler enjoys painting in the Midwest, California, Arizona, Colorado and Virginia. He exhibits regularly at the Salmagundi Club in New York and at the Plein Air Festival in Door County, Wisconsin.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418919/wlv1iy5uoig69ccjxnlf.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/international-association-of-pastel-societies-iaps-2021-juried-gallery-exhibition">International Association of Pastel Societies (IAPS) 2021 Juried Gallery Exhibition</a>Opening: Friday, June 18, 5 – 9&nbsp;pmZhou B Art CenterIAPS is a non-profit organization representing pastel societies worldwide, united in the common goal of the promotion and support of the fine art of pastel. As the international organization representing these societies as their members, IAPS represents thousands of artists worldwide. The 2021 Juried Gallery Exhibition features the best pastel artists working today in this medium. This exhibition received over 1000 entries to the exhibition from countries including China, Russia, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Belgium, Finland, Ireland, France, Taiwan, Canada and the United States with 175 paintings selected.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418920/spzjnijagvcpxkljuqbs.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/solo-exhibition-beth-adler">Shape Shift: Works on Paper by Beth Herman Adler</a>Opening: Friday, June 18, 5 – 9&nbsp;pmOliva GalleryCurated by Kate Roth, “Shape Shift” highlights the shifts that Chicago-based artist Beth Herman Adler has experienced over the last four years, both in life and in her in her art. The show moves from works created during a difficult personal time through brightly colored, design-friendly monoprints inspired by mid-century modern motifs; it visits her Covid Houses and culminates in her very recent Luna series. All of the work employs Ms. Adler’s printmaking skills and often incorporates, drawing, painting, folded sculpture, collaging, and stitching.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418921/nurdc1gqknji5qls4pmi.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/matt-schommer-tim-anderson">Northwoods</a>Opening: Friday, June 18, 7 – 10&nbsp;pmFirecat ProjectsFeaturing the work of:&nbsp;Dennis Schommer, Tim Anderson &amp; Matthew Schommer**please call or e-mail to reserve a time before attending this event**&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

New Exhibitions Start June 18 (Part I)

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418918/piwemfolx8lchh7yxubt.jpg"><figcaption>Installation view of the UIMA permanent collection &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>BY ANNA DOBROWOLSKIArmed with my art gallery guide, mask, and hand sanitizer, I headed out West. West Town, that is. On my mission to rediscover art in a recuperating city, I serendipitously came across the gleamingly white façade of the <a href="https://uima-chicago.org">Ukrainian Institute of Modern Art</a>. Docent Elena Smolynets caught me peeking through the door: “Yes, we are open!” No reservation necessary, I sauntered in. Not only is the UIMA open, it’s also preparing to celebrate 50 years of robust existence.President Motria Melnyk, curator Adrienne Kochman, and Smolynets—three women who help keep UIMA’s legacy in the heart of Chicago’s Ukrainian Village alive—spoke with me about the UIMA’s history and plans for the future.Pre-pandemic, the UIMA had an ongoing rotation every six months displaying select works from their permanent collection, which currently houses around 1,200 objects ranging from photography and artifacts to kinetic sculpture. To date the UIMA earned a reputation for having one of the largest collections of Ukrainian art, globally, housing work by Soviet era Ukrainian Non-Conformists such as Alexander Archipenko, Alexis Gritchenko, Mychajlo Andreenko, and other artists of Ukrainian descent. Notably, it features art created by the first generation of artists ever to exhibit with the UIMA, including work by two of its founders: sculptor Konstantin Milonadis and sculptor/painter Mychajlo Urban. It also boasts a growing collection of Chicago-based artists, such as Martin Hurtig, Morris Barazani and Roland Ginzel. Soon (in September) we will be able to appreciate their collection in the context of UIMA’s fast-approaching 50th anniversary.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418918/gpka0kugsdpgob3bugnk.jpg"><figcaption>Mykhajlo Urban, Pulsating Form, 1969 Acrylic, light bulbs, steel plates, Gift of Dr. Philip and Mrs. Falk &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;Now, playing catch up with a pandemic-caused backlog of shows slated for 2020, they are leaving exhibitions up longer for visitors to enjoy in person. During my visit, the permanent collection that would usually inhabit the east gallery space was replaced by 38 paintings from Work, People, Art (WPA): selections from the Works Progress Administration collection of the Illinois State Museum. The label introducing the exhibits of WPA, a child program of President FDR’s New Deal, invites us to “consider whose work and perspectives are missing.” Contrary to all talk about ‘unprecedented times’, there is an uncanny parallel between the work of artists commissioned by the WPA, and the art produced eight decades later. Though there are similarities in context, we are challenged to look deeper and be better: art—then and now— is on the frontline, responding to a shift in values spurred by crisis, social fractures, and economic strife.Stepping into the west gallery one could relish in Not Afraid, a dual exhibition featuring the abstract, textural sculptural work of Gina Lee Robbins and the bold, expressionist paintings of Janice Elkins. These two self-taught artists hailing form Oak Park regale in the uncertain, and their uninhibited approach to their practice falls in line with the attitudes of the institute’s founding artists.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418919/jh6pkpqc35bp1ykgla3u.jpg"><figcaption>Ruminate installation</figcaption></figure>The U in UIMASince its genesis, the UIMA existed as an alternative venue for artists. Following WWII, Konstantin Milonadis and Mychajlo Urban emigrated from Ukraine and met while taking courses at the School of the Art Institute under the GI Bill. While they shared a Ukrainian background, what really drew them together was their love for art that did not fit the status-quo. These artists were experimenting with minimalism, geometric abstraction, and even kinetic media—and it was not just a phase. At the time, they were conscious that these modes of expression were not openly practiced in Ukraine. Curator Adrienne Kochman adds, “When they were working in the late 60s and 70s, Ukraine was still part of the Soviet Union. In the Ukrainian Republic, at least officially, it was forbidden to pursue Western aesthetic modes, such as abstraction, or they would suffer dire consequences such as loss of income or jobs. The official aesthetic, at least in the late 60s, was Soviet socialist realism.” Many of the literary, artistic, and cultural figures who pushed back faced persecution, imprisonment, or death. This “fueled the need to have a safe haven for artists who wanted to work this kind of aesthetic mode outside of Ukraine.”In Chicago, these artists wanted to explore these ‘modern’ styles without the limitations imposed by larger, often more traditional institutions and sanctioned “academic” styles. To the artists, “Major art institutions like AIC were conservative, and the general feeling was one of ‘If you waited for them to change, they wouldn’t.’”&nbsp;<figure class="image image-style-side"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418920/efwoi5eozgl4y6onyu1v.jpg"><figcaption>President Motria Melnyk</figcaption></figure>So, the artists carved out a space for themselves through makeshift art organizations such as the Lion’s Club. The UIMA as we know it was founded through the initiative of prominent doctor and active community member Dr. Achilles and Vera Chreptowsky, and lionhearted artists Konstantin Milonadis and Mychajlo Urban. Thanks to Dr. Achilles and Vera Chreptowsky, who became the patrons, and the efforts of volunteers, the UIMA metamorphosed into a proper institution.From the onset, the founders were interested in establishing a permanent collection. What started as a way to promote Ukrainian artists born in America or abroad, rapidly evolved into an institution that welcomes all walks of art— and has so for the past 50 years. Of the works they have acquired over the years, Adriene Kochman mentions that “Most donors of the artwork to the collection purchased it directly from the artist, or UIMA did through fundraising and grants specifically awarded for an organization to purchase artwork for its permanent collection. Some of course, were donated directly by the artist.” It is a dream for those studying provenance, and a testament to the close relationship between the artist community and UIMA.&nbsp;For the 50th anniversary, Kochman hopes to fill both galleries with art from the permanent exhibition so that we can appreciate its scope. Looking ahead, they will continue to welcome all contemporary artists, regardless of nationality: “We will always support Chicago artists! If you have a proposal, please submit it,” says Kochman.&nbsp;Recent Developments‘Survived first pandemic’ is just another tick off the list that makes UIMA relevant today in Chicago’s art scene. When the art world was upended over a year ago; staff remained in high spirits. On March 5th, after a mandate caused the institute to shut its doors to the public, they moved their permanent collections to a virtual exhibition space. President Motria, seizing the moment to get creative while taking stock of their collection, created “Corona Story,” to playfully present the artwork set to the upbeat instrumental version of Gloria Gaynor’s classic “I Will Survive.” In addition to uploading videos on the museum’s history to their website, she also created a downloadable activity book for children, complete with QR codes linking to the actual art.&nbsp;In our Zoom call, she describes her motivation and vision for the Institute, which includes opening up an educational program for young artists. “The founders of the institute not only envisioned an art museum, but also an institution for learning and teaching. Our dream is to incorporate a children’s art center. As an educator, I feel it is important to give young students the opportunities to explore, discover, learn, and express their appreciation and talent for art, enabling them to become life-long art advocates.” says Motria.Official plans for the 50th anniversary will be announced soon. As ever, plans are tentative, but they will find a way to celebrate and thank all those who made the 50 years possible—artists, patrons, visitors, volunteers. Looking forward, Motria says, “We wait for the day when art exhibition openings, musical concerts, distinguished speakers events, conversations, laughter and energy fills our galleries again.”&nbsp;For more information about UIMA visit their <a href="https://uima-chicago.org">website</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

Re-discovering the East in the West: Ukrainian Institute of Modern Art

<a href="https://www.artprize.org">ArtPrize 2021 Visitors, Jurors To Award $250K In Prizes</a>ArtPrize, the international public art competition, announced that this fall, event visitors and a panel of jurors will award a combined total of $250,000. This includes a $150,000 prize pool to be <a href="https://artprize.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=568226b22d477264c2318619f&amp;id=015cc8ae15&amp;e=4296d6b5b0">awarded by visitors</a> directly to the artists of their choosing throughout the 18-day event, $50,000 in juried awards presented by Haworth, and a $50,000 grand prize decided by the public and presented by Wolverine Worldwide, to be awarded to a single artist at the end of the event. Artists interested in participating in ArtPrize 2021 can register online at <a href="https://artprize.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=568226b22d477264c2318619f&amp;id=6a81fab742&amp;e=4296d6b5b0">artprize.org</a> through June 10.&nbsp;<a href="https://loopchicago.com/explore/things-to-do/muralwalk/">Chicago Loop Alliance announces free self-guided Loop Mural Walk, featuring Chicago-based and international artists</a>Chicago Loop Alliance has launched a brand new, free program to give Chicagoans and visitors an outdoor activity that will lead them off the beaten path downtown: a Loop Mural Walk. The self-guided walk features 21 murals on three routes, for a 2.1-mile combined journey through alleys and other oft overlooked spaces in the Loop. The Loop Mural Walk is available through July 4 at <a href="https://u7061146.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=4tNED-2FM8iDZJQyQ53jATUXhkX0UhPogPnfTGmCBMoMiKr8jjjV1B2cev1bN6rFDsWMSr8eWjvUy2SLciNx3oSw-3D-3DMIf8_BYLPtpUivDHORxxkVXshLCRT3wjV7CgXbLJWP9J5MP9LJ6jv7-2Bb0c97UF1yE1XeiuuTDCWCbvFFcP-2BZ-2Ft6yZw0AYl95zT-2FawsXUF9bauiyLu2f9uGoAOVwkthHw50cB1-2FGu7BmBt9wwqKhAVHYSHDUePCEBfVmVWAQ8ZeQlYFuKDwbfijXhOIanGtcXcSDjwZqyyDV6rcG6RGDnF-2Ft5xKC5Ly3OFQWaC-2BN-2FBcFLqSLw-2B4h-2FgIINXJe0sR2n2DgLDXYdtOUKvEIJ8BfgBT-2B21P82jc8sfZrOEcGvWd-2FSiNPRXGX3rkJOGysMFbtYm875Psl4uJl8qpvv3Xd0-2BEab8aETSkHytP6WUnkviIVQun0s-3D">LoopChicago.com/MuralWalk</a>.Featuring work by international household names as well as emerging artists, the Loop Mural Walk highlights a hidden side of the Chicago Loop many may have never seen before. Participants are invited to use their smartphones to follow turn-by-turn directions or forge their own paths to these masterful works of street art, many by artists of color whose perspectives and stories in these spaces are important to witness. While a few of the featured murals are prominent, well-known pieces, many others are more obscure, often left behind after Chicago Loop Alliance’s popular ACTIVATE alley events.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.artdesignchicago.org/adcnow/">Art Design Chicago Now Announces Summer 2021 Programming</a>Art Design Chicago Now&nbsp;is a series of free public conversations, hands-on workshops, behind-the-scenes collections tours, and digital storytelling amplifying the voices of Chicago's diverse community of makers―past and present. Coming up this summer are IGTV Artist Studio Tours with Anya Davidson, and Chris Pappan. ADC Now also spotlights Andrea Carlson and Juarez Hawkins.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hydeparkart.org/">Hyde Park Art Center Announces 2nd Phase of New Grant Initiative, Artists Run Chicago Fund</a>&nbsp;Hyde Park Art Center announced the second phase of Artists Run Chicago Fund, a new regranting initiative providing more than half a million dollars ($560,000) to offer unrestricted COVID relief for Chicago’s artist community. Taking place in two phases, the first phase in March granted awards of $8,000 to each of the 50 independent artist-run spaces that participated in the Art Center’s popular 2020 exhibition, <a href="https://www.hydeparkart.org/exhibition-archive/artists-run-chicago-2-0/">Artists Run Chicago 2.0 (ARC 2.0)</a>. Now, an additional 20 Chicago artist-run spaces that applied for the second phase are receiving grants of $8,000. The Artists Run Chicago Fund initiative is being funded by an anonymous donor and is being fully administered by Hyde Park Art Center.&nbsp;The second phase of the grant supports experimental artist-led spaces and platforms with a particular focus on those that are run by artists who identify as BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color), women, queer and/or with disabilities. Phase two will also expand the network of support that makes artist-driven projects thrive in Chicago.&nbsp;

CGN Art World Recap: 6/10

<html><head></head><body>By CGN StaffWith many of us eager to stretch our travel legs this summer&nbsp; – to make up for all we missed during the last one&nbsp; –&nbsp; an easy trip, or two, around Wisconsin to visit the state’s many destinations for art will satisfy your wanderlust as well as your cultural cravings.&nbsp;Check out these&nbsp;highlights on now, and hit the road!&nbsp; &nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418918/nzoori6lsqaqdmavmnm4.jpg"><figcaption>Mary Giles, Fading Light, 2007, waxed linen, fine copper wire, and fine iron wire, 13 x 17” D, Racine Art Museum, gift of Jim Harris. Photo: Petronella J. Ytsma. Part of Collection Focus: Mary Giles thru July 3.</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.ramart.org">Racine Art Museum</a>The Racine Art Museum holds the largest and most significant contemporary craft collection in North America, with more than 9,500 objects from nationally and internationally recognized artists.&nbsp;A trip to RAM is less than 60 miles from downtown Chicago. &nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418918/p7rwfkhvcgv5zthdbofb.png"><figcaption>Robert Indiana, The American&nbsp;LOVE, 1966-99. Photo by Kevin J. Miyazaki / Sculpture Milwaukee &nbsp;</figcaption></figure><a href="sculpturemilwaukee.com">Sculpture Milwaukee</a>Sculpture Milwaukee’s fifth exhibition will be co-curated by Theaster Gates and Michelle Grabner, starting June 25th through fall 2022. One of the largest annual outdoor exhibitions to focus on contemporary sculpture and public art practices, the works selected by Gates and Grabner will be explored through programming and educational initiatives.&nbsp;Also local community and corporate investment has meant that a growing number of works previously exhibited at Sculpture Milwaukee have been purchased and donated so that they stay on public view in the city.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418919/blb0kuzo2rr8h5mht80m.jpg"><figcaption>The Museum of Wisconsin Art is located about 45 minutes from downtown Milwaukee in West Bend, WI&nbsp;</figcaption></figure><a href="http://wisconsinart.org">Museum of Wisconsin Art (MoWA)</a>For 60 years MoWA has evolved from a small hometown gallery to one of the leading regional museums in the country, devoted to exploring the art and culture of Wisconsin.&nbsp;On view through July 3 is Artists Without Borders, an exhibition that showcases the works of nine artists—all with roots abroad and currently residing in Wisconsin—to explore their distinct takes on the relationship between art and place.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418920/bnmkve2bhq8gnzt3y14y.jpg"><figcaption>Mary Cassatt, Spanish Girl Leaning on a Window Sill, ca. 1872. Oil on canvas, 24 3/8 × 19 in. Collection of Manuel Piñanes García-Olías, Madrid. Photo, Cuauhtli Gutierrez &nbsp;</figcaption></figure><a href="http://mam.org">Milwaukee Art Museum</a>The Milwaukee Art Museum is open to the public again, with several exhibitions planned for this summer, including Americans in Spain: Painting and Travel, 1820–1920, the first major exhibition to focus on the influence of Spanish art and culture on American painting. Jun 11–Oct 3&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418920/sr2yzsu3xwipnpk2dkc6.jpg"><figcaption>Nick Cave and Bob Faust, Amends</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.mmoca.org">Madison Museum of Contemporary Art</a>&nbsp;MMoCA's modern building, designed by world-renowned architect Cesar Pelli, offers 51,500 square feet of interior space, as well as a 7,100-square-foot rooftop sculpture garden. MMoCA also has one of the premier institutional collections of Chicago Imagist works.&nbsp;This summer <a href="https://www.mmoca.org/art/amends-nick-cave-and-bob-faust">AMENDS: Nick Cave and Bob Faust</a> runs Jun 19 – Oct 24. AMENDS is a community-based, interactive art project. The internationally known artists and collaborators created the three-component project in 2020 after the killing of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis. The ultimate goal of AMENDS is to lay the groundwork for the eradication of racism.&nbsp;AMENDS will bring together the artists, community leaders in the Madison area and the state, and members of the public to complete the three components of the project.<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418921/nue0copvhsmxlxi2ihgk.jpg"><figcaption>Painter Annabeth Marks is equally concerned with acts of construction and of deconstruction. Her work considers the boundaries of painting in both process and form. For her contribution to the Return to the Real Marks presents a new body of work in a site-specific installation paintings.</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.jmkac.org">John Michael Kohler Art Center</a>Located along the western shore of Lake Michigan, north of Milwaukee but before you head towards Green Bay and Door County, the John Michael Kohler Art Center (JMKAC) in Sheboygan offers a range of serious, dynamic exhibitions that consider art in Wisconsin and well beyond.&nbsp;Return to the Real, on view through January 9, 2022, responds to the following question: As our lived experience is increasingly mediated by our screens, how can art remind us of the rich rewards of the real? Through a series of exhibitions, performances, and events that foreground the multisensory experience of viewing art in person, the series title is derived from art critic and historian Hal Foster’s influential 1996 book Return of the Real, a theoretical exploration of contemporary art grounded in the materiality of bodies and sites. The work featured in the series affirms the power of objects and human presence, emphasizes the nuances and subtleties that virtual viewing cannot provide or capture, and honors the irreplaceable experience of confronting—and of being confronted by—a physical work of art.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418922/zaylkdvgpf9nhypzo5ih.jpg"></figure><a href="http://artsmp.org">Arts Mineral Point&nbsp;</a>The creative community of Mineral Point offers a haven for working artists as well as a bucolic weekend art destination southwest of Madison, towards the Iowa border. Enjoy late night shopping, live music, workshops, artist receptions and more.&nbsp;The 8th annual Paint the Point live painting fundraiser takes place August 11–14.&nbsp;</body></html>

Head North: Explore Art in Wisconsin This Summer 

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418918/tmisxwqbz3gjy1eywmy3.jpg"><figcaption><a href="www.dusablemuseum.org">The DuSable Museum</a> will be open until 10 p.m. Friday, June 12 for its DuSummer outdoor concert and entertainment series. The museum officially opens June 19.</figcaption></figure><a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/museums/ct-ent-musems-chicago-open-late-20210610-upkfqyokzjhanjxjue3q67lm5q-story.html">5 Chicago museums will be open late Friday to celebrate city’s reopening</a>Some of Chicago’s museums are helping celebrate Chicago’s reopening Friday with late-night hours, staying open until 9 p.m. or 10 p.m.In a celebration announced by Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s office, five Chicago museums will participate to mark the June 11 Open Chicago initiate, when the city follows the State of Illinois in entering phase five of the pandemic recovery, or full reopening. “One of the best ways we can celebrate our city’s reopening is by spending time at our renowned museums, which have undergone so many challenges over the course of this past year,” said Mayor Lightfoot in the announcement. “That’s why I am thrilled that so many of our most iconic museums will be opening their doors until late this Friday night to give residents and visitors a head start on returning to a sense of normalcy.”Via Chicago Tribune&nbsp;<a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/6/7/22522751/modernist-building-demolition-chicago-landmark-cenacle-sisters-retreat-historic-preservation?fbclid=IwAR3KKOvSaBq8CIwZZDG37hu10vJfqhJ7xC4b1zK21omBRMnpMNLuQhup__g">Modernist building’s slated demolition exposes weaknesses in Chicago’s landmark laws</a>The building’s official address on Fullerton Parkway is a parking lot, so odds are you’ve never really noticed the beautiful structure on Cleveland Avenue, set half a block back.But take a closer look: Some of the loveliest brickwork you’ll ever see in Chicago forms the 1967 Cenacle Sisters Retreat and Conference Center, at 513 W. Fullerton Parkway, designed by local architect Charles Pope.“It’s a keeper,” I would say. Except that it’s not. See it while you can, because it’s likely about to be smashed to rubble, with the express permission of the Commission on Chicago Landmarks.Via Chicago Sun Times&nbsp;<a href="https://news.artnet.com/art-world/met-return-benin-bronzes-1978902">The Metropolitan Museum of Art Will Return Two Benin Bronzes to Nigeria, Putting Pressure on Other Museums to Do the Same</a>The Metropolitan Museum of Art will return three artworks, including two Benin Bronzes, to&nbsp;Nigeria, accelerating a fast-moving development to repatriate the nation’s treasures, which were looted by British forces in the late 19th century.The three artworks headed to the&nbsp;Nigerian national collections are two 16th-century brass plaques created at the Court of Benin and a brass head produced in Ife sometime around the 14th century.Via Artnet&nbsp;<a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/theater/chris-jones/ct-ent-martha-lavey-steppenwolf-mural-20210609-uudulgypgjfq3eucvxlnrkus54-story.html?fbclid=IwAR25fI4ws7ecM8XYWXNLNExEVD1CT1GTE6xcVXqNEL4rzA7ltjeYtiNRhoU">Column: Martha Lavey, sorely missed, will be aptly remembered on the walls of Steppenwolf</a>When Chicago’s famed Steppenwolf Theatre opened its new Lincoln Park home in 1991, it debuted a building intentionally unadorned.The Tribune’s Sid Smith described the dour décor of the fortresslike building on Halsted Street as “deliberately threadbare.” The construction was by way of gray concrete blocks and washed cement, both inside and out...So Monday’s announcement that Tony Fitzpatrick has designed a special mural that will be attached to an exterior wall of the theater was striking news. The mural is part of the theater’s epic expansion over what (in 1991 and long thereafter) was a vacant lot between the theater and a parking garage that budget problems left famously unfinished. (As witnessed close-up by at least two generations of travelers on the CTA Brown Line).Fitzpatrick is anything but glossy or suburban. But his work also is a long way from concrete blocks and water stains. In fact, this commissioned mural (his largest to date and perhaps his crowning career achievement) will be printed digitally on ceramic tiles.Via Chicago Tribune&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

What We're Reading: 6/10

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418918/ldlho92hpc0mwihldq2v.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/marina-black-unseen">MARINA BLACK: UNSEEN</a>Opening: Friday, June 11, 5 – 7:30&nbsp;pmCatherine Edelman GalleryThere are many photographers whose work reveals its intent upon first viewing. Then there are photographers like Marina Black, whose images reveal themselves slowly, allowing the viewer multiple interpretations. Black cites Goya’s The Disasters of War as one of her main influences, which many have interpreted as a protest against violence and the public who remain complicit. Her series Hasard Anticipé (anticipated chance) casts children as the subjects through which fear, joy, trauma and innocence is addressed. In Blacks world, the sanitized assumptions of childhood are replaced by the reality that innocence can be lost when children are not protected. In Hasard Anticipé, Marina Black presents photographs of daily activities – dancing, a soccer game, children swimming – that seem ordinary until wires, ropes and other objects obscure reality and the identity of those pictured. Black invites the viewer to construct their own narratives, while suggesting that innocence is something to attain, and should not be taken for granted.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418918/htrpzej9gdwghhw3fjvo.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/technicolor-constellations-tales-from-the-permanent-collection">Technicolor Constellations: Tales from the Permanent Collection</a>Begins June 11Rockford Art MuseumFeaturing nearly fifty pieces from Rockford Art Museum's Modern and Contemporary Collection. Artist's include: Herman Aguirre, Alice Aycock, Jeff Koons, Kerry James Marshall, Tony Oursler, Diane Simpson and Ken Warneke.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418919/httvgcquh5ev2kgy6qa7.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/joseph-e-yoakum-what-i-saw">Joseph E. Yoakum: What I Saw</a>Begins June 12Art Institute of ChicagoYoakum was born into poverty, had very little schooling, and at an early age left home to join a circus. He wound up working with several circuses, traveling across the United States as well as abroad and becoming intimately familiar with the world’s various landscapes. These experiences would provide the foundational memories that fueled his deeply spiritual vision decades later.This exhibition follows a shifting progression of Yoakum’s mountainous terrain, arid deserts, and majestic waterways, as well as a selection of his portraits of African American icons, testifying to the rich imagination of an exceptional American artist as well as to the remarkable circumstances that led to his lasting legacy.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418920/zfjc8a2qkcauikxidlly.png"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/blow-up-ii-inflatable-contemporary-art">Blow Up II: Inflatable Contemporary Art</a>Begins June 12Krasl Art CenterBLOW UP II: Inflatable Contemporary Art explores the imaginative ways that air is used as a tool to create large-scale sculptures. Inflatable works are often initially regarded as whimsical or humorous, yet they can contain serious critiques of pop-culture, social norms and the politics of space. BLOW UP II explores the complex relationship between the familiarity of the material combined with serious commentary, creating a dialogue around reinterpretation.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418920/bmzcsjh40gmgwcqr7ebg.jpg"></figure><a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/events/matthew-metzger-heirloom">Matthew Metzger: Heirloom</a>Begins June 13The Renaissance SocietyMatthew Metzger’s paintings often closely replicate not-quite-familiar images, cultural artifacts, or common objects that signify nauseating conditions of power—conditions that for him leave self-expression feeling inadequate or corrupted, requiring a different way forward. While rendering each painting with an obsessive focus, Metzger relies on abstraction to more than formal ends, using it as an active means of distortion that mirrors the effects of our information ecologies and other aspects of culture today.In Heirloom, Metzger presents a new ensemble of works, conceived as an installation for the Renaissance Society and its space.&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

New Exhibitions Start June 11

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418918/mh9yrnlzkzr9rn1zqq2k.jpg"><figcaption>Night and Day in the Garden of All Other Ecstasies by Tony Fitzpatrick</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By CGN Staff via PRMost theaters around the world have been dark for much of the past year. Chicago's famed Steppenwolf Theater Company’s, like many other local theaters, is &nbsp;slowly coming back online once again, welcoming patrons through their doors to enjoy award-winning theater.&nbsp;The theater shared a major announcement that no matter what the status of the theater's operating hours, art will still be prominently on view from the street, 24/7, thanks to a new, massive public mural by celebrated Chicago-based artist and actor Tony Fitzpatrick. Fitzpatrick has created a vibrant, expansive mural for the exterior of Steppenwolf's new Arts and Education Center at 1646 N. Halsted in Lincoln Park. Commissioned by Steppenwolf as a highly visible public art installation for the southwest wall adjacent to the Center, “Night and Day in the Garden of All Other Ecstasies” is, at 12-foot-high by 76-foot-long, Fitzpatrick’s largest work to date and his first outdoor mural.The new work pays homage to the leadership of the company’s former artistic director Martha Lavey, highlighting the evolution of the company over its four decades and the thrilling future as it opens the doors of its new theater building and education center. Steppenwolf is proud to be joining the ranks of esteemed institutions that are home to Fitzpatrick’s art including The Metropolitan Museum of Art and The Museum of Modern Art (New York City); The Art Institute of Chicago and Old Town School of Folk Music; the Museum of Contemporary Art (Miami) and the National Museum of American Art (Washington, D.C.).Fitzpatrick shares, “I think of the long and luminous history of Steppenwolf like a garden; every year more color, more thorns, more blooming wonder and more and more seeds planted. The beauty of a garden is the promise it contains—that next year it will be even more unexpectedly luminous and full of wonder and truth.”He goes on to explain his personal connection to Steppenwolf and this project. “This mural is meant to honor Martha Lavey, who was one of my mentors. This company was her garden, and she was the gardener. Spirits like Martha come along maybe once every couple of generations. She was entirely and only like herself, much like this great company.”As Fitzpatrick aims to walk away from institutional exhibitions and pursue more personal artistic endeavors, he adds: “This is my final public artwork for the City of Chicago; I wanted to leave something lasting, life affirming and positive.” &nbsp;He also shared with CGN that he and artist collaborator Danny Torres are planning other murals elsewhere, both around the country and the world.&nbsp;Steppenwolf Theatre Executive Director E. Brooke Flanagan adds, “Steppenwolf’s new Arts and Education Center was designed specifically to contribute to the City of Chicago, not only through the addition of our first-ever dedicated education space, The Loft, but also via this monumental new public art installation that will no doubt provide joy to all who pass by.&nbsp; This mural beautifully symbolizes the Company’s past roots and future growth.”&nbsp;Fabricated on ceramic porcelain tiles, “Night and Day in the Garden of All Other Ecstasies” was designed by Fitzpatrick over a period of several years and then painstakingly digitized by Danny Torres, his frequent collaborator (and partner in the new public art initiative, Fitzpatrick/Torres Humboldt Caballo).&nbsp;&nbsp;The boldly colored mural is comprised of eight themed vertical panels, encompassing dozens of four-foot square tiles digitally printed in Bologna, Italy by the artisans of Imola Ceramica. The installation process is expected to be completed within a week. &nbsp;&nbsp;About the ArtistTony Fitzpatrick's early artistic career focused primarily on multi-colored drawings on slate, followed by printmaking and now his focus is producing mixed media "drawing/collages." Fitzpatrick's drawing/collages often blend central cartoon-like drawings, found images and ephemera such as baseball cards and matchbooks, and poetic or narrative text. His main subjects have been Chicago and memories of his father, although more recent subjects have included Paris and birds. He is influenced by Chicago street culture, cities he has traveled to, children’s books, tattoo designs and folk art. Fellow Chicago artist Ed Paschke once described his work as "autobiographical," saying that "it's in the true spirit of what art is all about. It is an extension of him."&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418918/fbtntqdnfsjwsojr0lx3.jpg"><figcaption>Rendering of Steppenwolf’s New Building by Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture with Tony Fitzpatrick mural placement pictured to the left</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;About Steppenwolf’s New Arts and Education Center at 1646 N. Halsted StreetDesigned by world-renowned architect Gordon Gill of Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture and London-based theater design team Charcoalblue, Steppenwolf’s new Arts and Education Center is a 50,000 sq. ft. building featuring an innovative 400-seat Round Theater only six rows deep—the only one of its kind in Chicago; a dedicated education floor, tripling the reach and impact of Steppenwolf’s nationally recognized education work; a bright and open two-story atrium lobby, a wine bar and a sidewalk lounge, increasing the social gathering spaces where artists and audiences converge.&nbsp;Steppenwolf Theatre Company is a Chicago theater that is home to America’s ensemble. The company began performing in the mid-1970s in the basement of a Highland Park, IL church—today Steppenwolf is the nation’s premier ensemble theater with more than 50 members who are among the top actors, playwrights and directors in the field.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

Tony Fitzpatrick Creates His Largest Ever Mural For Steppenwolf Theatre – Says It's His Last in Chicago

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418918/wzsiisrlugmblo8empe6.jpg"><figcaption>An-My Lê, November 5, Sugar Cane Field, Houma, Louisiana, 2016, Inkjet print</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By ANNA DOBROWOLSKIWho are we? Where do we come from? Where are we going? These are just some of the existential questions tethered to creatives in any age, but this summer, as part of the upcoming multi-site exhibition Toward Common Cause: Art, Social Change and the MacArthur Fellows Program at 40, 29 artists add another question to the enduring list: Are we paying attention?The exhibition materializes as we emerge from isolation (and general art deprivation) to once again encounter artists’ creative solutions to contemporary issues. Abigail Winograd, MacArthur Fellows Program 40th Anniversary Exhibition Curator, spoke with me about some of the collaborative efforts involved in the project. &nbsp;&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418918/jmuc7te15wjmeb2j8kbl.jpg"><figcaption>Jeffrey Gibson working in the studio. Photo courtesy of the artist. Gibson's exhibition <a href="http://www.newberry.org/sweet-bitter-love-exhibition">Sweet Bitter Love</a> is on view at the Newberry Library thru Sept 18 &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;CGN: 29 artists, 19 exhibition venues, and over a dozen research partners and community partners — in only three short years? Can you tell me more about Toward Common Cause and how the initiative unfolded?&nbsp;Abigail Winograd: Three years ago the MacArthur Foundation invited me to propose an exhibition to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Fellow’s program. The invitation included an open-ended proposal to present a theme. I made a selection of artists and proposed an exhibition that uses the “commons” as a thematic umbrella to look at four areas of inquiry: human society and communication, the natural environment, the built environment, and identity and representation.&nbsp;The show was a response to what felt like, at the end of 2017 and start of 2018, a moment in which we were, as a society, grappling with the realization that what we had thought was common ground or a common understanding, was being called into question.&nbsp;CGN: One of the first exhibitions to open is Much Unseen is Also Here, which runs from June 3–August 29 at the Museum of Contemporary Photography (MoCP). Can you tell me more about the process, and some of the conversations you had with the artists An-My Lê and Shahzia Sikander and the curators?&nbsp;<figure class="image image-style-side"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418919/zuptqecte5rejno7lzma.jpg"><figcaption>Shahzia Sikander, Promiscuous Intimacies, 2020, patinated bronze, 42 x 24 x 18”, edition of 5 with 2 APs. © Shahzia Sikander. Photo: Jason Wyche, New York, Courtesy: the artist and Sean Kelly, New York. &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>AW:&nbsp;In the past couple of years, my conversations with artists An-My Lê and Shahzia Sikander involved thinking through their identities and representation as women of color in this moment in history. It developed into a conversation about their relationship to America and American-ness. That was happening in the midst of debates about monuments; the whole world, it seems, has been experiencing this moment of iconoclasm. After the murder of George Floyd, we see monuments literally being pulled off their pedestals because we’ve reached this moment of reckoning.*Both artists were already questioning the role of monuments through their own media and practice—An-My Lê through a 19th century photography apparatus, and Shahzia Sikander through mixed media (drawings, video installations, and patinated sculptures).Since 2015, An-My Lê has been working on a large-scale photography project, The Silent General in which she explores the complicated relationships to landscape, war, and history. As part of her project, she documents the decommissioning of the statues of General Robert E. Lee and General P.G.T. Beauregard Monuments (2017) from their established locations to the Homeland Security Storage in New Orleans, where they were ultimately withdrawn.Shahzia Sikander was interested in monuments from another angle. In 2017 she served on the Mayoral Advisory Commission on City Art, Monuments and Markers in New York City, which exposed her to ongoing discussions and competing public opinions surrounding the role of monuments. This culminated in an anti-monument, such as her Promiscuous Intimacies (2020 patinated bronze sculpture) depicting Greco-Roman Venus and the Indian Devata. An anti-monument cross-examines the social tenets underpinning monuments: its historical and classical implications, material structure; the power structures they inherently reveal along with the histories they conceal. Bringing these two bodies of work together into MoCP’s space crescendos into a duet of artistic practices that interrogate how –and whose—history is portrayed.When Winograd conceived the idea three years ago, she could not divine that the project would coincide with a pandemic. If anything, the work by the MacArthur fellows gained another level of urgency. She felt deeply grateful to forge relationships with participating artists who were already using their art as a platform to confront realities and injustices in the world. “In this fraught moment, working with this cohort of artists and spaces is an unimaginable privilege. It’s been all a very humbling experience,” she says.&nbsp;“It’s also been special for me to work on one of the largest exhibitions I’ve ever done in my hometown. It really took a village.” Chicago was the natural choice for the exhibition, not least because it is the home of the MacArthur headquarters, but also because of its wealth of art schools, ethnic diversity, and working-class roots.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418920/qciw9woeygiyxlbixl5w.jpg"><figcaption>Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle, Well 35°58’16”N -106°5’21”W (Santa Clara Pueblo, NM), 2014. Pictured: Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle. Courtesy of the artist. &nbsp;</figcaption></figure>CGN: What is Chicago’s role in this project? Does the initiative underscore the city as an exhibition space?&nbsp;AW: From the beginning, what we hoped to do was try to make the art available to as broad an audience as possible, which means lowering barriers of access. We thought about where museums and cultural resources are located and how we can integrate alternative venues to diffuse art across the city.We are collaborating with the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) for one of the exhibitions. This is the first time the CHA has participated in a contemporary art exhibition. After the last year, we all need more art in our lives. The CHA is another chance to work with organizations that don’t normally participate in these projects.*Due to the number and breadth of the exhibitions distributed across the city, it is impossible to look forward to just one. The fellows in the initiative – such as Jeffrey Gibson, Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle, Kara Walker, and Kerry James Marshall, to name a few – field a spectrum of social, environmental, and political issues in their practice. Toward Common Cause exposes where we are left vulnerable as a society and allows us to reflect and take the necessary steps to move forward.&nbsp;Are we paying attention? If so, how can we unearth common ground? &nbsp;For more information visit <a href="http://towardcommoncause.org">TowardCommonCause.org</a>&nbsp;</body></html>

Seeking Common Cause: The MacArthur Fellows Program at 40

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418918/y2yaxg9ybbqw1zabqzis.jpg"></figure><a href="https://blockclubchicago.org/2021/06/02/chicago-cultural-center-reopens-with-store-selling-locally-made-good-new-exhibits/">Chicago Cultural Center Reopens With Store Selling Locally Made Goods, New Exhibits</a>The Chicago Cultural Center reopened Wednesday after being closed more than a year due to coronavirus.The center also worked with a design team, Made, from Englewood to revamp its Learning Lab. The lab is open to people of all ages and abilities and features an interactive light installation.And the center has a new store, called <a href="https://hi-buddy.org/">BUDDY</a>, where guests can browse goods made in Chicago by local artists and entrepreneurs. The store includes vinyl records, honey, toys for children, perfume and other goods.Via Block Club Chicago&nbsp;<a href="https://links.e.history.com/u/click?_t=3350a610bca54cb8a557dd283bdde91f&amp;_m=a905838e0852431097ae8412efd71632&amp;_e=7M3xs4kXjb2FMoi7qCnO77sNN2wJzFWUdfTFwetuL6UrGyCnlKiAQZz0vZ05NDETFhZMqGSIMOoDp0EtutrrsPj39HWnezBz4_4_3VNK3vGuHpE52orrUcMf0f6yr1Xp1PBODHIVIqQ8szNCAf2H3Zca8UY0cS2XOdPfiKOcoW3Obu5cCS7ppV_K8aysqWP6xi79qprhY3ByLeonYdr-woDh6vXKMste6ZnmP6BIwx2JBFQF7WR3fDGsnWIsKWwDhoAphbXlTQrmoUE0GfB6qa6_cMg9ItnJRtFpCkH9MnMyJMEPSXTjmIUcYyCL6CkljjHKeopr-0ad7X3gbek9tptVM5yTu-pGdU6OvGG9WQsziVQr5pU6fumUnqzQ5Id5y5q76CW9kslqGoibkVnPySsYdRPxlMjb3VsqAIFajcM%3D">How the AIDS Quilt Allowed Millions to Memorialize the Epidemic</a>The AIDS Memorial Quilt—with 1,920 individual panels, each inscribed with the names of people lost to AIDS—was displayed for the first time on October 11, 1987. It has grown ever since.Via History.com&nbsp;<a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/museums/ct-ent-christina-quarles-mca-chicago-20210602-xb4jeduo4reypkuxgo727nibqm-story.html">How to see the Christina Quarles show at the MCA? Go with the rising star artist, and forget your glasses.</a>Christina Quarles, rising art world superstar, Chicago native, Los Angeles resident, visited the Museum of Contemporary Art the other morning. It was her first time visiting her new show, which is also her first major solo exhibition. The museum had just opened and the early crowd was a pandemic trickle. No one approached Quarles, though a couple nudged each other and whispered about her clothes: They were trying to decide if this woman, the one in the colorful pajamas, made all of this stuff on the walls. Probably, right?Via Chicago Tribune&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/27/arts/design/Art-Preserve-Sheboygan.html">Rescuing Artists of Vision</a>Charles Smith preaches with sculpture, hundreds of hip-height figures that he’s been reworking, repainting and rearranging for decades, first at a small house in Aurora, Ill., and now at his homestead in Hammond, La. Every time this self-taught artist repositions his work he testifies anew to the unfolding history of racial violence in the United States, connecting it to personal traumas, including what he believes was the racially motivated murder of his father when he was 14, and his own combat experiences in Vietnam.On June 26, the 80-year-old artist will star in a new and experimental museum in Sheboygan called the Art Preserve, awaiting his instruction on how his concrete figures will be shown. The preserve is the first museum in the country to focus on artists known as “environment builders,” whose worldviews take immersive and physical form, and who often turn their entire homes into works of art.Via NYTimes&nbsp;<a href="https://news.artnet.com/opinion/ai-weiwei-the-great-big-art-exhibition-1975114?utm_content=from_&amp;utm_source=Sailthru&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=US%209%3A45%20a.m.%20newsletter%20for%206%2F2%2F21&amp;utm_term=US%20Daily%20Newsletter%20%5BMORNING%5D">Op-Ed by Ai WeiWei: The Organizers of a Major U.K. Exhibition Used My Name to Promote Their Show. But They Were Too Afraid to Embrace My Ideas</a>What is art and what is its purpose? What is its relevance to our post-industrialist and consumption-oriented world? These questions may seem banal, but they are especially pertinent if we look at “The Great Big Art Exhibition,” organised by the U.K. visual arts organisation Firstsite this year. I am very honored to share that my 2021 project Postcard for Political Prisoners was not accepted—and that their rejection gave a real meaning to my artwork.Via Artnet&nbsp;&nbsp;</body></html>

What We're Reading: 6/3

<html><head></head><body><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418907/rhi0e4isha77ekidj2qm.jpg"><figcaption>Courtesy The Other Art Fair</figcaption></figure>&nbsp;By CGN StaffThe Other Art Fair first came to Chicago in <a href="https://www.chicagogallerynews.com/news/2018/8/the-other-art-fair-is-coming-to-chicago">2018</a>, bringing dozens of artists to Mana Contemporary in Pilsen the same weekend as EXPO Chicago. The fair returned in the spring of 2019 and had planned a 2020 edition, which they understandably put off. Now they have announced a return to the fall as well as a new venue.Planned for September 30 – October 3, the delayed third edition of the fair will now occupy the expansive space at Revel Fulton Market in the West Loop.The Other Art Fair, presented by Saatchi Art, the mega online art gallery company, marks 10 years in 2021. The fair first launched in London in 2011 as a smaller fair that took place once a year. Pre-COVID TOAF had scaled up to exhibit over 1,000 artists and host over two dozen fairs in cities throughout the United States, UK and Australia.&nbsp;Today TOAF emphasizes that it seeks to offer visitors the opportunity to meet a curated, centralized selection of over 110 independent artists and browse thousands of pieces to suit every budget (with prices starting from as little as $100). In particular TOAF is an appealing fair for first-time art buyers hoping to start a collection, especially after a year spent at home staring at the same (bare or boring) walls. It also aims to give artists exposure, the opportunity to grow their practice and to sell their work independently and a chance to connect directly to buyers, curators, collectors and gallerists.&nbsp;In the lead up to September, TOAF is seeking artist applications (they're <a href="https://www.theotherartfair.com/artists-apply/">free and open now</a>, closing June 19)Visit <a href="https://www.theotherartfair.com/">theotherartfair.com</a> for more information.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1721418907/f5u30laex3z7hy7d2azm.jpg"><figcaption>Courtesy The Other Art Fair</figcaption></figure></body></html>

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