A graphic, editorial overview of art, artists, and visual art events, found in and around Chicago over the course of the preceding months. All artwork copyright original artists; all photography copyright Paul Germanos.
CourtneyBlades
Above: CourtneyBlades’ partners, Mickey Pomfrey, left, and Blake Cameron Harris, right, in the gallery for the opening reception of “Definitely Living, Likely Cognitive,” on August 9, 2013.
Above: “Medium Cool” art book fair organizer Ria Roberts, right, with Matthew Richardson, left, in CourtneyBlades.
Mickey Pomfrey is one of a relatively small number of people I encounter on a regular basis at gallery openings in Chicago. In spite of that fact, I’d never before brought a camera to the space (CourtneyBlades) which he runs with Blake Cameron Harris. And it was only because I happened to take photographs there on August 9, 2013, that Ria Roberts noticed me, and reminded me to attend Medium Cool: a new art book fair with which she’s involved.
Bea Fremderman, Brian Khek, and Micah Schippa
“Definitely Living, Likely Cognitive”
August 9 – September 1, 2013
CourtneyBlades
1324 W. Grand Ave.
Chicago, IL 60642 http://courtneyblades.com/
Medium Cool
Above: Tom Burtonwood shares his 3-d printed book–which itself “prints” by means of being folded upon some plastic material.
Above: Yuri Stone for The Renaissance Society at the University of Chicago.
Above: Vincent Uribe feigns interest in my shenanigans while the ladies of LVL3 ignore me. In truth, everyone smiled for the first picture; this was the fifth picture.
Medium Cool
(art book fair)
12:00 — 8:00 PM
August 11, 2013
Prairie Production
1314 W. Randolph St.
Chicago, IL http://medium-cool.net/
LVL3
Above: Chelsea Culp and Katy Cowan.
Above: Matt Nichols and Josue Pellot.
Whether called collaboration, the pairing of artists or galleries is now at least as common as food trucks outside, or bars within, our local venues.
“2 of a kind”
June 29 – July 21, 2013
LVL3
1542 N. Milwaukee Ave, 3rd Floor
Chicago, Illinois 60622 http://lvl3gallery.com/
The Mission
Above: Yhelena Hall’s upper-gallery installation joining a helium-supported wooden craft with wall-mounted video.
Above: Joshua Albers’ lower-gallery (Sub-Mission) projected video installation.
Yhelena Hall’s da Vinci-like creation is built from fabric stretched over a frame, which method of construction reminds a Chicago resident of Linda Warren’s artist Juan Angel Chavez. But, maybe, within Warren’s stable the better comparison is to Conrad Freiburg–for as helium escapes its imperfect balloon, Hall’s wooden machine has a self-destructive potential.
Joshua Albers and Yhelena Hall
PARALLELS / A Collaboration with ACRE Residency, Part 2
August 2 – 24, 2013
The Mission
1431 W. Chicago Avenue
Chicago, IL 60642 http://themissionprojects.com/
Linda Warren Projects
Above: The framing device “Undecagon Tripod,” 2013, at the center of Freiburg’s kinetic, wood installation.
Like Yhelena Hall at The Mission, Conrad Freiburg chose to present freestanding, three-dimensional objects made largely of wood, in the company of smaller, wall-mounted graphic works, which in this case are still images rather than video. Unlike Hall, around the perimeter of gallery interior Freiburg set a race, which in turn carries bearings or marbles as such activity is initiated by visitors. Four years ago, in June of 2009, Monica Herrera arranged a similar work at 65GRAND, there observed with an additional audio component: falling marbles “played” upon successive wooden elements with each drop in elevation.
Conrad Freiburg
“Before the Grave and Constant”
June 7 – August 10, 2013
Linda Warren Projects
327 N. Aberdeen (151)
Chicago, IL 60607 http://lindawarrenprojects.com/
Monica Herrera
Above: A visitor interacts with Monica Herrera’s installation in 2009.
Eliza Fernand, Jodie Mack, Monica Herrera
“post-scarcity”
Curated by Thea Liberty Nichols
65GRAND
June 19 – July 25, 2009
1378 W. Grand Ave. (old location)
Chicago IL 60622-6450
Chicago Artists’ Coalition
Above: Audience members interact with Jake Myers at his cardboard sports bar.
Above: Attendees model the available Mothergirl costumes.
Above, left-to-right: Jessica Harvey, Kera MacKenzie, and Jenny Buffington at the “pARTicipatory” opening on August 9, 2013.
When I hold a camera to my face and look through the viewfinder I’m blind to the room around me, so that it’s especially surprising to be struck at that moment. I write here with authority as I’ve suffered the aforementioned indignity on multiple occasions. On August 9, 2013, for the second time at one of Myers’ openings, someone threw something at me while I was taking a picture. If the games, and food, and liquor, all now frequently available at gallery openings, have served to draw in a certain sort of person then, maybe, they’ve done so only at the cost of another sort of person. After six years of work on this photographic project, my patience has been exhausted.
“pARTicipatory”
HATCH Projects Residents: Chaz Evans, Amber Ginsburg, Mothergirl, Jake Myers, Hoyun Son, and Latham Zearfoss
HATCH Curatorial Residents: Meredith Weber and Anna Trier, a/k/a the Happy Collaborationists
August 9 – August 29, 2013
Chicago Artists’ Coalition
217 N. Carpenter St.
Chicago, IL 60607 http://chicagoartistscoalition.org/
Sonnenzimmer
Above: Acclaimed coronet player Josh Berman, foreground, nagged by my mother, background. It’s better him than me.
Above: Nick Butcher, right, gave my mother, left, a Tecate, and she seemed concerned.
Sonnenzimmer print and design studio is Nadine Nakanishi and Nick Butcher. On July 14, 2013, Nick and Nadine held a sort-of art benefit / garage sale, during which Michael Bingaman (electronics), Josh Berman (cornet), Anton Hatwich (double bass), and Matt Schneider (guitar) played music. There, I bought a big Taschen contemporary art compendium for three dollars, and got a Design Bureau magazine for free. Everyone was cool! And John Corbett was there–because he’s really good about attending these things. Even my mother was happy.
“On the patio at Sonnenzimmer”
10:00 AM – 6:00 PM
July 14, 2013
Sonnenzimmer
3605 N. Damen Ave., Rear
Chicago, IL 60618 http://www.sonnenzimmer.com/
Columbia College Chicago: Portfolio Center – Industry Events
Above: Nick Albertson
The scale of the event was overwhelming. The quality of almost all of the work was very high. I spent most of my time with those presenters who seemed to have a fine arts orientation. Rikki Levine, above, was something of an exception as she seemed (?) most interested in travel and documentary work. But, her book (portfolio) looked too good to ignore. Whether they knew it, not a few graduates produced material recalling John Opera or Jessica Labatte. And I should have been yet more forceful in my exhortation to go out and look at what’s being made here and now.
Columbia College Chicago
Portfolio Center – Industry Events
“Photography Review”
May 16, 2013
Studio East
1006 S. Michigan Ave.
Chicago, IL 60605
Allan Sekula
Above: A visitor at the entry to “Polonia and Other Fables” seen engaged with one of Sekula’s photographs during the opening reception in 2009.
Allan Sekula died on August 10, 2013 after a long struggle with cancer.
Allan Sekula
“Polonia and Other Fables”
September 20 – December 13, 2009
The Renaissance Society
5811 S. Ellis Avenue
Bergman Gallery, Cobb Hall 418
Chicago, Illinois 60637 http://renaissancesociety.org/site/
Chicago Art Department
Above: “Mr. Grief” by Meg Noe.
“&again&again”
Jeffery Austin, Marne Provost, Kimberly Kim, Meg T. Noe, Jonathan Pivovar, John Brookes Turner
Curated by Jonathan Pivovar
Supported by Columbia College Chicago’s Photography Department
July 12 – 14, 2013
Chicago Art Department
1932 South Halsted #100
Chicago, IL 60608 http://www.chicagoartdepartment.org/
Amanda Ross-Ho
“THE CHARACTER AND SHAPE OF ILLUMINATED THINGS”
Organized by MCA Curator Julie Rodrigues Widholm.
July – November, 2013
MCA Chicago Plaza Project
The Museum of Contemporary Art of Chicago
220 E. Chicago Ave. (MVDR Drive)
Chicago IL 60611 http://www.mcachicago.org/
Frogman Gallery / Pop-Up Art Loop
Above: Dmitry Samarov (painting) at left, curator Gwendolyn Zabicki at center, and Noah Vaughn (photo print) at right, in “Never a lovely so real,” opening night.
The Chicago Loop Alliance deserves credit for the good work it’s done in offering such opportunities to people like Gwendolyn Zabicki.
“Never a lovely so real”
Clarissa Bonet, Dmitry Samarov and Noah Vaughn
Curated by Gwendolyn Zabicki
Pop-Up Art Loop from the Chicago Loop Alliance
Sponsored in part by Columbia College Chicago
July 11, 2013
Frogman Gallery
108 N. State St. (Block Thirty Seven, First Floor)
Chicago, IL 60603 http://gwendolynzabicki.com/home.html
Chicago Artists Coalition
Above: Jordan Martins in his projection, opening night.
Above, left-to-right: Nick Butcher (half of Sonnenzimmer), Jennifer Salim, E. Aaron Ross, and Aaron Delehanty standing in a projection by Theodore Darst at the Chicago Artists Coalition’s “Natural Fallacy” opening.
“Natural Fallacy”
Noelle Allen, Theodore Darst, Brent Fogt, Jordan Martins, Nicholas Sagan, and Matthew Schlagbaum
Curated by MK Meador
July 12 – August 1, 2013
Chicago Artists Coalition
217 N. Carpenter St.
Chicago, IL 60607 http://jordanmartins.com/
threewalls
Above: MSHR a/k/a Brenna Murphy & Birch Cooper performing an electronic audio work in their installation.
Above, left-to-right: Abigail Satinsky, Lauren Basing, and Shannon Stratton, a/k/a threewalls, on the occasion of their last opening at 119 N. Peoria Street, Chicago.
Thanks to Abigail, Lauren, and Shannon for playing along. I’m sorry that I didn’t get a better shot of you three together. Good luck and best wishes…
“Binary Lore”
Edie Fake and MSHR a/k/a Brenna Murphy & Birch Cooper
June 28, 2013
threewalls
119 N. Peoria, #2C
Chicago, IL 60607 http://www.three-walls.org/
Firecat Projects
Gil Leora
“In Between Drinks”
June 28, 2013
Firecat Projects
2124 N. Damen Ave.
Chicago, IL 60647 http://www.firecatprojects.org/
Smart Museum
It’s too bad that a piece which suggests many questions related to resource allocation within the context of non-European, urban poverty, here found available for view in the lobby of a free, teaching museum, was ignored in an article entitled “Marginalizing Chicagoans’ Access to Culture” at Newcity.
Gigi Scaria
“City Unclaimed”
Sponsored by BMO Harris Bank
January 19 – December 8, 2013
The David and Alfred Smart Museum of Art
5550 S. Greenwood Ave.
Chicago, IL 60637 http://smartmuseum.uchicago.edu/
EXPO / Public Chicago
Above, left-to-right: Duncan Mackenzie, Caroline Picard, Richard Holland, a/k/a Bad at Sports.
EXPO Chicago
Gallery Announcement
May 14, 2013
Public Chicago
1301 N. State
Chicago, IL 60610 http://expochicago.com/
Johalla Projects
Above: Jessica Taylor Caponigro’s “There in a Darkness,” 2013, coal in cast glycerine soap.
Above: Aimee Quinkert, curator, at left, and Jessica Taylor Caponigro, artist, at right, foreground; “What Was, Was I” and “II” on wall, background.
It’s the third of Jessica Taylor Caponigro’s installations which I’ve seen, each of the three having been abstracted from both architectural and also literary sources. The comparison between works made over time (a span of several years) is interesting, and maybe best reveals her intent.
Jessica Taylor Caponigro
“Black Damp”
Curated by Aimee Quinkert
May 11 – June 2, 2013
Johalla Projects
1821 W. Hubbard St., Suite 209
Chicago, IL http://www.johallaprojects.com/
Rhona Hoffman
Fred Sandback: Sculptures
April 26 – June 1, 2013
Rhona Hoffman Gallery
118 N. Peoria St.
Chicago, IL 60607 http://www.rhoffmangallery.com/
Columbia College Industry Events BFA Open Studios
Above, left-to-right: Columbia College BFA Seniors Brianna Baurichter, Corinna Cowles, and Nicki Penz with artwork.
Above: Madeleine Lowery with artwork in studio.
Columbia College
Industry Events
Fine Arts Open Studios
5:00 – 8:00 PM
April 18, 2013
1006 S. Michigan Ave.
Chicago, IL
The Storefront
Above: An overhead view of Erik Wenzel’s Artforum installation “Fernweh,” as seen within Brandon Alvendia’s The Storefront gallery, on the show’s opening night.
Wenzel, like Fake, above, and Andre, in the previous article, has made use of the floor for the purpose of presenting modular units in a grid pattern. Here the invitation to the audience to walk upon the artwork is wanted to be especially cheeky: an institution (magazine) and a commercial appropriation of culture resources (gallery ad) are both trodden upon, which action symbolically mimics Wenzel’s own “progress” through the real and metaphysical worlds of art.
Erik Wenzel
“Fernweh”
April 20 – May 12, 2013
The Storefront
2606 N. California Ave.
Chicago IL 60647
Vertical Gallery
Above: Work by Dmitry Samarov, center; Steve Seeley, at right.
Above: Vertical Gallery, exterior.
“The Economics of Art 2013”
Dmitry Samarov, Ian Ferguson, Julie Murphy, Steve Seeley, and Jimmy Bunnyluv, along with Anthony Freda, Dave Pressler, David Cooper, El Gato Chimney, Hernan Paganini, Klub7, Raudiel Sanudo and Ruel Pascual.
August 3 – 31, 2013
Vertical Gallery
1016 N. Western Ave.
Chicago, IL 60622 http://verticalgallery.com/
Everyone knows that going to a museum or a gallery is usually more trouble than it’s worth. What, with all the disapproving glances, heady talk and questionable wine selections. Wouldn’t it be easier just to look at art while you shop? Or during your morning commute to the Loop?
Citizens of Chicago, have no fear. Murals and public commissions are popping up all over (and around) the city. Just this past week the CTA announced the seven artists commissioned to beautify North Side Red Line stations. Lynn Basa (renowned public artist and my former boss) posted this mock-up for her Byzantine glass mosaic that will adorn the Argyle stop on facebook. Basa, who [literally] wrote the book on public art commissions mentioned to me this weekend that she is elated to be creating a public work in her hometown.
Basa mock-up for the Argyle station.
As if the CTA commissions weren’t enough, some of my very favorite Miami artists from Jim Drain to Bhakti Baxter have been descending on the town of Rosemont to complete murals in a new mall scheduled to open sometime this summer. For reasons beyond my comprehension, the ever-relevant New York Times devoted print space to this “ambitious” project. What’s the T? has heard that the mall will also feature an Alvaro Ilizarbe piece that is “his sistine chapel” and worth the trip to the mall-seum. See you there?
Chicago artist, Josh Reames, working on the Drain mural.
Threewall’s ‘Power of Ten’ was a party for way more.
Those artists sure do clean up nice!
Screw Basel and Venice, the Threewalls 10th anniversary benefit this weekend was on point! The Power of Ten at Salvage One had everything – food, drinks, crazy antiques and baubles, steampunk-style old-timey tin-types, circus performers, drink, dancing, a silhouette cutting artist, music, drinks, and even some art.
Even though we still don’t know where they’re moving (do they even know where they’re moving to?!), here are ten fabulously done-up attendee’s in honor of the power of ’10’:
Threewalls Programming Director, Abby Satinsky with artist and curator, Anthony Romero. Abby’s dress is just killer and La Croix continues to trend.
Auction guest curators and Chicago fashion icons, Ben Foch and Chealsea Culp of New Capital with Threewalls Director Shannon Stratton.
Formerly featured on Who Wore it Better, the daper Daniel Tucker and Anthony Stepter.
Artist Jason Lazurus flanked by up-and-comers Raven Munsell and Jesse Malmed. LOVING the seersucker suit!
Totally Trending
Face paint was definitely a big winner at the ACRE Block Party last Saturday, June 8th.
Header image features a detail of Samantha Bittman‘s Emerald, 2013 (Acrylic on hand-woven textile, 15 x 12 inches) on view at Thomas Robertello Gallery through August 3rd.
Consistently referred to as the worse post office in the world, the Roberto Clemente Branch of the USPS in Logan Square is a wonderfully ‘brick’ building, not in material but in shape. Thats not to say it’s shaped like a brick, but the bricks become different shapes. I say this because brick is on display, not for what it wants to be – sorry Lou Kahn – but for what it tries to simulate. It’s like when Neo sees Agent Smith shrouded in binary code – parts to whole, whole to parts, but without the make-up.
Post office exterior.
Usually used as a traditional building material, mostly flat and controlled through joining patterns, bricks do not become cylindrical columns, filleted edges, curves, almost tapestry like frames for tall beautiful window displays of people waiting two hours for a package, like at the RCPO. Opened in 1937, this building threw me for a loop because I dated it later, but the deco interior and amazing mural insice should have been more of an indication.
The mural in all it’s glory.
The changes in the bricks attitude is mad postmodern, but it was done at the mid-stage of American modernism, lending itself to the deco ideas of streamline. That would explain the curvaceous bod on this beauty, but not her brick dress. Beauty might be only skin deep, but when you use rounded bricks to complete a homogenous cladding of a building that could have been expressed in steel or another more plastic material, you’re trying to say something about normal buildings out there, namely ‘who cares what the brick wants to be.’
Located at 2339 N California Ave, Chicago, IL 60647
SLAC studios take hold on Milwaukee Ave
Artists revitalize storefronts in advance of MAAF
If you live in Logan Square you’ve probably been wondering what happened to that garrish pink bakery on Milwaukee Avenue near the Spaulding Blue Line stop. Unwilling to let it lay dormant, Gwendolyn Zabicki, founder and director of the South Logan Arts Coalition is putting this and other vacant storefronts on Milwaukee Avenue to use. SLAC’s studios will be open to the public with exhibitions featuring a total of 40 artists during the 2013 Milwaukee Avenue Arts Festival, June 28-30th.
What’s the T? caught up with Zabicki and some of the SLAC artists for sneak peek of what SLAC has in store for MAAF:
Location to Station: Help my ACRE homies fulfill their vision quest to super rad places like Cahokia. The artists are all super talented, and the “perks” for donating are real sweet.
ACRE Kitchen: ACRE does a lot of intangible things for the over 90 artists who visit the residency in Wisconsin each summer, but one of the most substantial and delicious parts of the program is feeding everyone twice a day. Anyone who’s been to ACRE knows the food is awesome, fresh, sustainable, all that jazz and the staff is tireless. Help ACRE help you! Plus it’s tax deductible. Hurry! There’s only a few days left!
Work by Mark Aguhar, Claire Arctander, Nina Barnett, Jeremy Bolen, Elijah Burgher, Edie Fake, Pamela Fraser, Tiffany Funk, R. E. H. Gordon, Steve Hnilicka, Kasia Houlihan, Mark Kent, Young Joon Kwak, Andrew Mausert-Mooney, Marianna Milhorat, Tim Nickodemus, Aay Preston-Myint, Juana Peralta, Macon Reed, Colin Self, Michael Sirianni, Nathan Thomas, Neal Vandenbergh, Xina Xurner and Isaac Fosl-Van Wyke, Allison Yasukawa, Gwendolyn Zabicki, and Latham Zearfoss.
Gallery 400 is located at 400 S. Peoria St. Reception Friday, 5-8pm.
Ahoy everyone! It’s that time again, the weekend is almost here. In the relentless march toward Art Chicago, there are another slew of TTF (through the fair) shows opening this weekend, primarily concentrated in River North. This weekend I also have work in VideoStore7.375x4x1 at The Op Shop in Hyde Park, which, by the way, has one of the creepiest basements in the entire world. But none of that is on the Top 5. Here’s what is…
Go and hang out inside a miniature model of the Hagia Sophia. Just think of it as your “safe place.” Hagia Sophia (the model at Spoke, not the Basilica in Istanbul) was created by Gwendolyn Zabicki. This is the closing reception, and your last chance!
Spoke is located at 119 N. Peoria. Closing reception is Saturday from 6-9pm.
Ok, so, I haven’t seen any images from the show, but how can I not pick this? An entire show that exists solely as a tribute to the Last Unicorn? So awesome. Watch out for the Red Bull, and stay away from the sea shore, if you know what I mean.
The Tattoo Factory is located at 4441 N. Broadway. Reception is Friday from 7-11pm.
Version Fest is back my friends. This yearly art-stravagaza organized by Co-Prosperity Sphere will be popping up all over in the next couple weeks. Head on down and check out this WPA-inspired print event.
The Chicago Tourism Center is located at 72 E. Randolph St. Reception is Friday from 5-7pm.
Paintings by Susanna Coffey that aren’t self portraits? That’s right. Stop on by Edmund’s place, but be sure to write down the number (#727), it can be a little are to find, as the building is HUGE.
Peregrineprogram is located at 500 W. Cermak Rd., #727. Reception is Friday from 6-9pm.
If you haven’t already been to Tony’s new place, here is another opportunity with a star line-up: Walead Beshty, Sebastiaan Bremer, Daniel Gordon, Tamar Halpern, Barbara Kasten, Sara VanDerBeek, and James Welling in In a Paperweight. In the South Gallery: Home for Hobo Too, work by Allison Schulnik.
Tony Wight Gallery is located at 845 W. Washington Blvd. Reception is Friday from 5-8pm.
