1. FIGHT NIGHT at Octagon Gallery

Work by Jesse Avina, Michael Garcia, Ryan T Dunn, Jim Zimpel, Stephanie Burke, Jeriah Hildewine, David Ayling, Mary Ayling, Jake Myers, John Myers, Jeremiah Myers, Lara Stall, Joe Sepka, Bo Totten, Christa Donner, and Jarard Novacain Nathaniel.

Octagon Gallery is located at 1318 N Milwaukee Ave. Performance is Saturday from 7-11pm

2. PREVIEW & Time Signatures at Chicago Artists’ Coalition

Work by BOLT residents and CAC artists, respectively.

Chicago Artists’ Coalition is located at 217 N. Carpenter St. Reception is Friday (tonight) from 6-9pm.

3. Don’t think you can change our evil ways at Heaven Gallery

Work by Max Reinhardt.

Heaven Gallery is located at 1550 North Milwaukee, 2nd Fl. Reception is Friday (tonight) from 7-11pm.

We wanted to pass this along to our readers, as it seems like a great opportunity all the way around: there are just a few days left to take advantage of Chicago Artists’ Coalition’s Bolt Residency Application / Membership deal – artists who apply for the Bolt Residency before April 22nd (that’s this Friday, folks) will receive a $20 discount on CAC Membership (all applicants must be CAC Members). Full information on the Bolt Residency and application process follows below:

The Bolt Residency is a highly competitive and juried artist program housed in the former FLATFILEgalleries, an 8,000 square foot space in the vibrant, art-centric West Loop neighborhood. Bolt Residency is a one-year artist residency program consisting of nine subsidized studios and professional exhibition space with daily, ongoing professional development programming and support from CAC staff.

All artists applying to Bolt must be current CAC members. Artists who apply before April 22 receive a $20 discount on CAC membership. If you have any questions about membership, please contact the CAC office (773.772.2385) or email Alyson Koblas (alyson@chicagoartistscoalition.org).

Bolt Residency is an investment in YOUR artistic career, providing ongoing dynamic, in-depth collaborations with prominent curators, cultural institutions, visiting artists, gallery directors, dealers and collectors.

Open House

CAC will hold two open houses with tours of the space, every 15-20 minutes. Tours will take place at 217 North Carpenter on  Sunday, April 10 from 2-5pm and Tuesday, April 19 from 5:30-8:30pm.

Vision

Bolt Residency seeks to create a supportive environment that promotes and evolves artists’ professional and artistic practices; providing ample space for the development of groundbreaking work.

Programming

Critical to our partnership with artists in residence are ongoing dynamic, in-depth collaborations with prominent Chicago curators, cultural institutions, visiting artists, gallery directors, dealers, and collectors. Bolt Residency hosts vital services and programs that provide artists with opportunities to build new audiences and meaningful connections to industry and business leaders throughout the Chicagoland area. Bolt Residency engages the Chicago arts community and its public in critical dialogue about contemporary art. CAC programs foster community and stimulate invention, risk and innovative artistic practice.

CAC will work closely with Bolt Residents to:

• Develop a customized professional development plan based on your vision and personal goals.
• Provide one-on-one monthly studio visits and workshops by the following partners (with more to come):

Candida Alvarez: Interim Dean of Graduate Studies/Professor, SAIC
Lynn Basa: Artist and Instructor, SAIC. Author of The Artist’s Guide to Public Art: How to Find and Win Commissions
Elizabeth Chodos: Associate Director, Oxbow, SAIC
Romi Crawford: (Ph.D.) Assistant Professor, SAIC, Former Curator and Director of Education and Public Programs at the Studio Museum in Harlem
Chicago Art Dealers Association
Robyn Farrell: Gallery Manager, Donald Young Gallery
Mark Jeffrey: Adjunct Associate Professor Contemporary Practices & Performance, SAIC. Curator. Artist.
Nancy Jones: Executive Director of Learning and Interpretation, Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA)
Charlotte Marra: Assistant Director, Rhona Hoffma
Monique Meloche: Owner/Director Monique Meloche
Jackie Terrassa: Assistant Director of Public Programs, MCA

• Coordinate open studios and exhibition openings  with the West Loop’s gallery walks
• Showcase your studio to interested parties.
• Market exhibitions and special events to the press and arts community.
• Provide full and free access to CAC’s Art.Business.Create (A.B.C), a series of intensive educational workshops and consultations designed to build artists’ professional business skills (worth over $500)
• Offer competitive studio rental rates with the option to share/divide or use space individually.
• Create evaluation and sustainable exit plan, post-residency

Bolt Residency Studios

• (5) Front Room Studios: $455 for 260 sq.ft.
• (1) Private Studio: $525 for 300 sq.ft.
• (2) Back Room: $390 for 260 sq.ft.
• (1) Side Studio: $225 for 260 sq. ft.
• Open floor plan, work-only (non-residential)
• Move in date: June 15, 2011. Security Deposit: TWO months’ rent

Important Dates

April 29 (12pm): Application and supplementary materials are due via email to cortney@chicagoartistscoalition.org

May 18: Announce finalists selected by jury

May 23-May 27: Finalists interview with CAC staff

May 31: Announce Bolt Residents 

June 15: Bolt Residents move in to 217 N Carpenter

Move In Date

Move in date: June 15, 2011. Security Deposit: Two months’ rent.

Selection Process

Submissions are evaluated by a jury of four professional peers from Chicago’s leading cultural institutions: Romi Crawford, Tricia Van Eck, Monique Meloche and Allison Peters Quinn.

Jury selected finalists will be interviewed by CAC staff.

Artists who wish to apply as collaborators or apply to share space must apply individually and send individual fees, application and support materials (collaborators must include a separate page describing your collaborative proposal).

Types of Disciplines: painting, works on paper, photography, new media, installation and film. Sculptors,performers and sound artists are encouraged to apply, but may be limited by materials. Please contact Cortney at cortney@chicagoartistscoalition.org.

We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, national origin, color, sex, age, veteran status, or disability.

TO APPLY

Applications are available online by clicking here.

Applicants must be Current CAC members. To check on status or to join, please contact Alyson Koblas at alyson@chicagoartistscoalition.org. (Artists who apply before April 22 receive a $20 discount on CAC membership.)

Applicants need to reside in the Chicagoland area during residency.

Applications must be emailed to cortney@chicagoartistscoalition.org AS ATTACHMENTS and include:

• Completed Application (available online HERE)
• Resume (as PDF attachment)
• Work Samples (max 10 images, SUBMITTED ONLY AS JPEG’s, no larger than 72dpi) as attachment. WORK SAMPLES MUST INCLUDE: TITLE, DIMENSIONS, DATE AND MEDIUM.
• Non-refundable $25 application fee (paid via our secure online terminal)

To keep up to date with Bolt Residency, sign up here to receive CAC’s e-newsletter.

This announcement landed in my inbox this week and I thought I’d pass it along. It sounds like a fantastic opportunity for aspiring curators who are still in school (and in fact, it’s aimed at student curators only). The Chicago Artists Coalition (CAC), as part of their “Around Town” program and in partnership with Merchandise Mart and Art Chicago, is launching its Merchandise Mart/CAC Pop Up Gallery, a new six-month exhibition opportunity for student curators and student artists (undergraduate or graduate students are eligible). THE DEADLINE FOR THIS IS MARCH 12TH, so if you are interested, apply soon! Details follow:

“CAC Around Town creates alternative exhibition opportunities for CAC Artist Members including pop up galleries, restaurants, office lobbies, cafes and more. By joining CAC, artists are eligible to participate in Around Town where they can attract new and diverse audiences.

Beginning in March, 2010, CAC will manage a new gallery space in the Merchandise Mart, a location that welcomes more than three million visitors each year. With 150 showrooms and over 4,000 professional designers, Merchandise Mart offers an unparalleled opportunity for artists to be discovered and commissioned.

Curators select the artists for their proposed exhibition. Both selected curators and artists must be currently enrolled students.
EXHIBITION INFORMATION:
• Three curators will be selected to develop shows that will be up for approximately 6 weeks
• The gallery measures 1900 square feet, with 4,200 square feet of possible exhibition space
• Shows will be promoted city wide to over 60,000 Chicago residents
• CAC will host a reception for each show
APPLICATION GUIDELINES:
Email to pepper@caconline.org by 5:00pm, March 12.
Application must include:
• Curatorial Statement (200 words or less describing their vision for the show)
• Resume
• Two References

Curators must be CAC members to apply.
There is no application fee.
Curators may only exhibit student artist work.
Selected exhibiting artists must also be CAC members.
The cost of a student one-year membership is $45

(for more information on CAC membership benefits, visit www.caconline.org/services). Following the application, runners-up will be interviewed in the gallery space.

Administrative Contact is Pepper Coates;
Email application to pepper@caconline.org by 5:00pm, March 12.

We received word from the folks at the Chicago Artists’ Coalition that applications are now being accepted for the 12th Annual Chicago Art Open exhibition. From the CAC’s website:

The Chicago Art Open features 300 professional, emerging, and student artists with artwork in all media selected by guest curators. This major exhibition serves as the centerpiece of Chicago Artists’ Month. Members receive a discount on the application fee.

Here’s the information on the application process. If you have questions or need further information, contact Pepper Coate, Community Outreach Coordinator: pepper.cac@gmail.com.

Welcome to the Application for the 12th Annual Chicago Art Open!

The Chicago Art Open, an annual program of the Chicago Artists’ Coalition, exhibits established, emerging and student visual artists side by side in a professionally curated exhibition.

ELIGIBLITY GUIDELINES:

Please read the following guidelines before continuing the application process:

CRITERIA

All artists must meet the following criteria:

Must live or make visual art in Chicago or in the greater Chicago area
Must be 18 years of age or older
Must have created their entries within the last two years.
Entry pieces must not have been exhibited in any prior Chicago Art Open
ARTIST CATEGORIES

Professional Artist
Professional Artists must meet the following criteria:

Not currently enrolled in a degree-seeking studio art or design program
Must have participated in at least one professional exhibition within the last five years (not including the Chicago Art Open). Any artist that has exhibited at a professional exhibition in the last five years (see our definition below) MUST apply for this category even if otherwise he/she is considered “Emerging”.
Artists who have participated in professional exhibitions, but not within the past five years, may be accepted at the discretion of the Jurors.
Professional exhibitions include: juried, curated, group, or solo exhibitions taking place at a gallery, art center, museum, or other similarly recognized exhibition space. Public art commissions and representation in a commercial gallery can also be used to meet this requirement.
PLEASE NOTE: If your exhibition history ONLY includes the following types of exhibitions, you do not qualify for the Professional Category (see Emerging category guidelines instead):

Restaurants, coffeehouses, art fairs and festivals or retail environments
Web-based exhibitions or online galleries
Exhibits in a college or university gallery as part of an academic course of study or in fulfillment of a degree program
Emerging Artist

Emerging Artists must meet the following criteria:

Not enrolled in a degree-seeking studio art or design program.
Have no prior professional exhibition experience and have exhibited primarily in restaurants, coffeehouses, online galleries, art fairs/festivals, and other retail environments
Student Artist

Student artists must meet the following criteria:
Must be at least 18 years old and currently enrolled in a degree-seeking academic program.
TYPES OF ELIGIBLE ARTWORK

2D Artwork

Original artwork completed during the last two years
Cannot exceed 48″ height x 48″ width (framed dimensions)
Must include a frame or mount of professional quality. (Clip frames and other temporary framing devices are NOT APPROPRIATE.)
Must be installation-ready with wire and hooks already attached to the back of the work.
Paintings on stretched canvas may be left unframed only under these conditions: if the edges of the canvas are painted as an integral part of the work or if the edges of the canvas have been neatly primed and do not contain staples.
Artwork with a fragile surface (pastel, charcoal, wet oil, etc) must be protected by Plexiglas
All other canvases, including those with unprimed edges, marks or staples, must be framed!
3D ARTWORK

Original artwork completed during the last two years
Cannot exceed 60″ height x 60″ width x 60″ depth (including pedestal or mount). PLEASE NOTE: If your work weighs more than 150 lbs, you must arrange a time for drop-off and installation with the Exhibition Director.

INSTALLATION AND TIME BASED WORK

Original artwork completed during the last two years
Installation entries should include a brief written description of the work that addresses materials, approximate dimensions, and viewer interaction (if applicable)

Images or sketches of the finished or proposed installation.
Installations cannot exceed 60″ height x 60″ width x 60″ depth. Once accepted, you must contact the Exhibition Director to arrange a time for installing the work.

VIDEO AND MEDIA WORK

Original artwork completed during the last two years

Video and Media entries should be represented by a CD or DVD sample and a brief written description of the AV equipment involved (artist’s responsibility to provide).

INELIGIBLE ARTWORK

Collaborative pieces, films, and performances

PLEASE NOTE:

The Chicago Artists’ Coalition reserves the right to refuse any work due to inadequate framing and/or mounting hardware or if the actual work differs significantly from the submitted images. Warped or shoddily constructed frames, canvasses or board will not be exhibited.

Use glass at your own risk — it will not be insured.

SALES & COMMISSIONS

CAC retains a 40% commission of the sales price of any work. Artists are paid 60% no later than 30 days after the close of the exhibition.
APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS

REQUIRED MATERIALS

Artists’ CV with exhibition history to determine if application was submitted for the appropriate category
Artist Statement
CD with 3 high resolution with titles, medium, size and selling price
Artist name, email, mailing address, phone number
Entry Fee (see categories below). Online applications may submit a secure payment on CAC’s web site or may mail a check to the CAC office – MANDATORY FOR PAYMENT TO BE MADE BEFORE JANUARY 29, 2010
Send all mailing materials to:
Att: Chicago Art Open
Chicago Artist Coalition
1550 N. Damen
Unit 201
Chicago, IL 60622
Send all email applications to: pepper.cac@gmail.com

PAYMENT CATEGORIES
Professional Category, non-CAC member: $100
Professional Category, CAC member: $70

Emerging/Student Category, non-CAC member: $45

Emerging/Student Category, CAC member: $35

PLEASE NOTE: We cannot reserve a spot in the exhibition for you until

ALL of the required items have been received, including payment.

The Chicago Reader reports that Laura Harper, executive director of the Chicago Artists Coalition, has resigned “for personal reasons” after only eight months at the post. Her last day had been July 31st. Read more in Deanna Isaacs’ Reader story here.