News From Around the Art World: February 26, 2019
In Chicago, Science and Industry Also Means Art and Creativity
The Juried Art Exhibition has become the centerpiece of Black Creativity, launched during the 1980s to accompany the Exhibition. A festival of sorts, Black Creativity has evolved into an annual umbrella of events centered on African American creativity, ingenuity and innovation hosted by the Museum of Science and Industry.
By Audrey F. Henderson, New City
The Whitney Biennial: 75 Artists Are In, and One Dissenter Steps Out
The biennial, no stranger to controversy, is an indicator of currents in the field as well as a career booster for the artists included. Past editions have sparked debates over identity and representation, but this year, before the list of participants was even released, a Chicago-based artist, Michael Rakowitz, pulled out of the exhibition in a protest against a museum vice chairman, Warren Kanders. Mr. Kanders is the chief executive of a company that manufactures equipment, including body armor and tear gas, for law enforcement agencies and militaries. The New York Times received a copy of Mr. Rakowitz’s letter to the curators, dated Dec. 18, withdrawing from the show.
By Jillian Steinhauer, The New York Times
Art on theMART Announces Program Aligning with City of Chicago's Year of Chicago Theatre
theMART, with the City of Chicago, today announced the program alignment of Art on theMART, the largest permanent digital art projection in the world, with the 2019 Year of Chicago Theatre, a city-wide celebration of Chicago's theater community spearheaded by the City of Chicago's Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) and the League of Chicago Theatres.
Via Broadway World
‘Intimate Sense of Community’: New Forum Aims to Decentralize Art-Book Publishing
Artist Publisher, a new online forum launched by the Chicago-based printing collective Temporary Services, aims to encourage online discussion of art books and to democratize knowledge of a precarious industry. In different threads, users can chat about such insider subjects as storage and what kinds of printers to use, as well as post book reviews and titles for trade. An in-progress list also attempts to track and chronologically organize every art book fair and zine fest—with more than 40 logged for 2019 so far.
By Claire Voon, ARTnews