Good news for long time friend of Bad at Sports, Anthony Elms, he is heading to Philadelphia to curate for the Institute of Contemporary Art!

We say Hell Yes!

Anthony’s departure will be a major loss to this community but our loss, is there gain and it is nice to know that the Philadelphia recognized what we had. We are sure that this is just the beginning of some fabulous things for our friend and regular contributor, Anthony.

Well done.

Photo: Erin Leland

INSTITUTE OF CONTEMPORARY ART APPOINTS

ANTHONY ELMS AS NEW CURATOR  

PHILADELPHIA, PA

The Institute of Contemporary Art at the University of Pennsylvania, is pleased to

announce that Anthony Elms will be joining the ICA as Associate Curator. Anthony

has worked as an independent curator and writer, and he was Assistant Director

of Gallery 400 at the University of Illinois at Chicago for six years. He edits and is

the curator of WhiteWalls, an alternative space for artists’ publication projects

founded in the 1970s. Anthony is just completing work as part of the organizational

team behind this year’s PERFORMA visual art performance biennial in New York.

“It is common to think of museums like the ICA as non-collecting, but that isn’t true,”

Anthony said. “They do not have art objects, but they collect histories and

experiences with the artists that have exhibited. In that sense, I could not be

happier to join a museum with the distinguished and energetic collection of the ICA.”

“I am looking forward to having Anthony’s vision, and his passion for publications,

enrich the work of our stellar curatorial team,” says Robert Chaney, Interim Director.

“We met Anthony when he co-curated the Sun Ra exhibition that ICA hosted,

organized by Hyde Park Art Center,” adds Senior Curator Ingrid Schaffner. “This is a

wonderful outcome to our first collaboration,” adds Senior Curator Ingrid Schaffner.

Anthony’s recent projects include Blast Counterblast; More Alive Than Those Who

Made Them; Glenn Ligon / A People on the Cover, and Unicorn Basking in the Light

of Three Glowing Suns. He was a co-curator of Pathways to Unknown Worlds: Sun

Ra, El Saturn and Chicago’s Afro-Futurist Underground 1954-1968, which enjoyed

enormous success when it traveled to ICA in 2009. His writings have appeared in

Afterall, Art Asia Pacific, Art Papers, Artforum, May Revue, Modern Painters, New

Art Examiner, and Time Out Chicago, and he has also written essays for numerous

catalogues. He received a BFA in painting from Michigan State University and an

MFA from the University of Chicago, and he continues to exhibit as an artist. In

addition, Anthony is an enthusiastic drummer and record collector. He is also

interested in ghosts. 

Guest post by Thea Liberty Nichols

Email interview conducted with Steve Ruiz

Steve Ruiz is an artist and writer from Chicago. He is the Managing Editor of Chicago Art Review (.com) and has contributed to a number of publications including Jettison Quarterly, NewCity Magazine, and Proximity Magazine. Information on his artwork can be seen at steveruizart.com.

Steve Ruiz

TLN: Can you start by telling us a little bit about Chicago Art Review? I’m especially interested (as a former participant) in the audio component you have on there, which, as far as I’m aware, is unique to your site as a listings format.

SR: I started Chicago Art Review in April 2009, right around the time I was graduating from college. The blog started as a joke (I’d told my former professor, Geoffrey Todd Smith, that I would write a gonzo review of his show) but I quickly realized the project’s potential as a way of engaging with the Chicago art community, which I was pretty unfamiliar with after spending five years studying elsewhere. Chicago Art Review became a reason to get out to shows, meet artists, and know about their work. My idea was to learn in a public way and I think people appreciated the effort, especially as I didn’t really know anything or anyone and was writing from the hip on first impressions.

Chicago Art Review

TLN: On that note, since several of the folks you just mentioned also have blogs or websites of their own, or contribute to other publications online or in print, can you tell us a little bit about how you expanded your network to include them? And do you feel like more an editor (vs. a writer) because of it?

SR: I My approach to involving other writers with Chicago Art Review is pretty casual. I don’t have any regular contributors, but I try to involve other people when I think they have an interest in writing something that I’d like to read but wouldn’t otherwise have a place to read it. The loose format on the site allows me to publish writing that wouldn’t fit elsewhere for whatever reason, and sometimes the appeal of “do whatever you want” is enough to get contributors on board. But no, I don’t think I work hard enough to feel like a Managing Editor.

TLN: It sounds like Chicago Art Review takes a very experimental approach to things and is happy to evolve by recognizing what works best for it– knowing what you know now, do you ever wish you could go back and take a different tact? Like do you feel the internet is written in stone or invisible ink? And where do you see Chicago Art Review going next– anything interesting in the hopper?

SR: No, I don’t think I’d change anything I’ve done, but I’d like to have done more of it. But its early, we’ve got time.

If anything, I’m happy to have established a sort of authoritative sounding brand based on formal experimentation and stubborn amateurism. Not to flatter the context here, but a lot of my ideas about art criticism were informed by seeing how the Bad at Sports podcast could deliver rich critical content in form based on the unlikely combination of a lack of claimed authority, persistant volunteerism, over-education, topical expertise, conversational tones, and alcohol. That relationship with criticism feels much more appropriate for this city’s community. I’m interested in finding a written form and style that reflects the culture here, and that serves our needs and demands for writing, which are very different than in other cities. Some things are valued less, some more, and I feel like that should be taken into consideration.

As for going forward, a few months ago I started – but do not claim any ownership of – a Facebook group called #chiart for art writers and artists to talk to each-other about art in Chicago. The name comes from a slightly problematic twitter hashtag I’d got going, but which was hard to use for bigger conversations. The Facebook group has worked much better, and I’ve been amazed at the quality of conversation there and at the ability for a certain number of engaged individuals to generate high-value critical dialog while essentially slacking off at work. Its easily my primary resource for almost all the tasks I’d previously have gone to didactic journalism for, making it harder to justify writing that kind of thing. I’m fascinated by the idea of body surfing legitimate critical discourse on crowds of distracted experts, and am looking for ways to turn that kind of conversation-based model into something that can produce discrete pieces of writing for us to print for binders and to cite on our CVs. Doesn’t that sound fun?

Thea Liberty Nichols is an arts administrator, independent curator and freelance writer. To listen to an excerpt from the “Form and Content of Writing” panel she moderated as part of Stockyard Institute‘s exhibition at DePaul University entitled Nomadic Studio, please click here. (Featuring commentary from Patrice Connolly, Claudine Ise, Abraham Ritchie and Bert Stabler)

It’s framing up to be an interesting weekend, here’s my top 5 recommendations, chronological order:

1. Proof at Catherine Edelman Gallery

The Home Funeral Contact (1990) Shelby Lee Adams

I’m actually really excited about this show. Being a photographer myself, who was worked in film for many years and still does so, I am intimately familiar with the selection process that happens whe you look over a contact sheet. They are amazing story tellers that few ever have the chance to see. This is a unique opportunity not to be missed.

Proof opens Friday, from 5-8pm. Catherine Edelman Gallery is located at 300 W. Superior St.

2. The Art of Touring at Johalla Projects

THE ART OF TOURING

Selected images from the book “THE ART OF TOURING,” images from the road. Ever wondered what a van looks like after 6 unwashed boys have spent 8 weeks crisscrossing the country in it? Do you already know and what to revisit it? This is your show. Work from tons of musicians and music biz people.

The Art of Touring opens Friday, from 7-11pm. Johalla Projects is located 1561 N. Milwaukee Ave.

3. Quarterly Site #3: Stay in Your Lane! at Swimming Pool Project Space

They say it better than I could myself, and I quote, “Quarterly Site #3: Stay In Your Lane! is hosted by Swimming Pool Project Space. Using the theme of direction, three curators conceptualize their various interpretations of the word by dissecting the gallery into physical lanes.” Curated by Anthony Elms, Katherine Pill, and Philip von Zweck.

Quarterly Site #3: Stay in Your Lane! opens Saturday, from 6-10pm. Swimming Pool Project Space is located at 2858 W. Montrose Ave.

4. The Humboldt Moving Picture Show at the Richmond Manor

Humboldt Moving Picture Show

The second round of the Humboldt Moving Picture Show. I went to this last year and it was FANTASTIC. This year they’ve gone international with artists from the US, Egypt, Kosovo, Palestine, Germany, and Mexico. It’s $5 donation, but totally worth it.

The Humboldt Moving Picture Show begins at sundown on Saturday. The show will happen in the Sideyard at Richmond Manor, located at 1625 N Richmond St.

5. James Elkins Lecturing at The Art Institute of Chicago

James Elkins

James Elkins lectures on “Beyond the Aesthetic and the Anti-Aesthetic” at the Art Institute of Chicago as part of the annual Stone Summer Theory Institute.

James Elkins will be lecturing at 1pm in the Morton Auditorium at AIC. The Art Institute of Chicago is located at 111 S. Michigan Ave.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

download

This week Duncan and Richard talk to Anthony Elms about WhiteWalls! Also the book review has made its glorious return. Terri and Joanna review “The American Painter Emma Dial” by Samantha Peale. Rejoice and be glad!

Anthony Elms

1. Green Lantern says it’s the end but we can still be friends…

After 4 (or so) years going strong, the Green Lantern is closing it’s doors. Unfortunately The Man clamped down, and now we must say good bye, though hopefully only to the current space. Hopes are high for the Green Lantern re-opening in 2010 in a new locale, but for now we celebrate the end of an era. So head over on Saturday the 13th for It’s Your Turn, and rock out with Caroline and the rest of the crew. BBQ and copious toasts will be had. Afternoon to 2am.

2. ebersb9? WTF is that?

I’m glad you asked. ebersb9 is a (relatively) new apartment gallery in the Noble Square neighborhood. Everyone likes new apartment galleries, right? Well, now you have the chance to check it out and go see some weird looking work by Krista Hoefle. The show is called The girl who stopped being human, and opens Friday night from 6 to 9. And just remember, people live there, don’t barf on the bathroom floor.

3. Jim Nutt (and others) talk dirty too you at the Smart Museum.

Jim Nutt, Gladys Nilsson, and Dennis Adrian talk about the work of H. C. “Cliff” Westermann on Sunday at the Smart Museum. Come on, Jim Nutt is awesome, I’m sure the other two are smart, and you’ll probably learn something. What else do you have to do on a Sunday? Come on down for an enlightening afternoon, Sunday the 14th at 2pm.

4. Western Exhibitions presents…PORN!

Not just porn, but that’s what caught my eye (no surprise there). If you’re ambiling ‘roung the West Loop drop in, there are two shows opening. The afore mentioned porn is part of The Ecstasyis,work by Dutes Miller. Also opening is they will not ruin us through the things that we like, a show curated by Philip von Zweck and featuring the work of Joel Dean, Anthony Elms, Carol Jackson, Andy Moore, Mindy Rose Schwartz, Deb Sokolow, Amy Vogel. Two for one, and in the West Loop. Sweet. See yout here with Grolsch in hand. Opens Friday night, from 5 to 8.

5. The weather is better down where it’s wetter, under the sea (in a window on Armitage).

Art on Armitage is a strange place. It’s a window, rather than a whole gallery, and shows an array of work some good, some…Well, this week we’re going for a trip under the sea. Usually I’m not big into crafty work, but this stuff is just friggin’ cool looking. A whole coral reef made by knitting? How can you hate on that? Drive by, or stop and take a closer look ( and drink some wine) Saturday 2 to 5.