On April 29th, Justin, Robbie, Esteban, and I woke up to attend a brunch over at the Rhona Hoffman Gallery of Chicago, as well as the Walsh Gallery, in the west loop area.

Rhona Hoffman's exhibition was entitled "COMMEMORATING 30 YEARS
1976 - 2006: PART TWO 1980-1990" This year marks 30 years for Rhona Hoffman as a gallerist in Chicago. It seems fitting to celebrate this significant anniversary with a series of exhibitions and installations that pay homage to the art and artists who have been the lifeblood and substance of the gallery's existence. The gallery is presenting many of the artists work in a roughly chronological fashion, according to the era they first exhibited.

Below is an image of the Franz West piece that the gallery had on display:

On March 16th Walsh Gallery presented photography and sculpture by Beijing-based artist duo the Gao Brothers. "From China with Love" is an investigation into the effects of Chinese urbanization on the spirit. The show ran from March 16 to April 28.
Below is an image of one of the photographs that were exhibited at Walsh Gallery:

After attending the open galleries and the brunches that were held there, we headed over to the Merchandise Mart for a final viewing of the shows. We got a chance to take a look at the New Insight Show which was an exhibition of artwork by promising young contemporary artists curated by Susanne Ghez, Director of the University of Chicago, Renaissance Society. New InSight was comprised of artwork from 24 graduate students at 12 of the country’s most influential Master of Fine Arts programs, which included the following:

California Institute of the Arts (Cal Arts)
Carnegie Mellon University
Cranbrook Academy of Art
Hunter College (City University of New York)
Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA)
Rhode Island School of Design (RISD)
San Francisco Art Institute (SFAI)
School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC)
University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA)
University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC)
University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign (UIUC)
Yale University

In the middle of our afternoon we quickly switched plans and location so that we could attend the opening of Dusseldorf-based artist Katharina Grosse (b. 1961, Germany) at the Renaissance Society located on the University of Chicago campus. Engaging a range of surfaces, including aluminum, canvas, paper, and existing architectural elements, the site-specific abstract paintings are executed in a manner that emphasizes color over brushwork, movement over stasis, and transience over permanence. This is the first one-person exhibition in the Midwest for the artist.

Here is an image of her installation:

At 6:30 pm that day we attended the Blanc International Fashion Show. Blanc is a contemporary runway presentation highlighting the worlds top designers and the citys most distinguished retailers who paint the canvas with a modernist approach to fashion. We were invited to experience the Spring/Summer 2007 collections brought to life through ten individual designer segments at the first ever International Fashion Event during Art Chicago.

Once the fashion show was over, we drove to the North end of Chicago on Lake Shore Drive to get a bite to eat in the Indian/Pakistani part of town called "Devon".

This was the drive:

and here we can see how happy Neil and Esteban are to have eaten quite a delicious meal:

Our last event of the weekend occurred at the home of Dr. Dan Berger and Mr. Matthew Piechowski. The two gentlemen, who are very fine collectors of art, opened their beautiful home located just outside of Chicago in the neighborhood of Roger's Park for a private viewing. Their collection includes but is not limited to works by Roger Brown, Rashid Johnson, Mr. Imagination, Bernard Williams, Kehinde Wiley, and William Hawkins. Dr. Berger served as the Chair of Collections and Acquisitions Committee for the Intuit Show here in Chicago.

In the photographs below you can see images taken of that joyous night with Dan Berger, Robert Cooper, Mr. Imagination, Robert MacNeill, Matthew Piechowski, Justin Polera, Esteban Schimpf, Bernard Williams, and myself. We are standing in front of one of their Roger Brown Paintings and holding in our hands the many sculptures done by none other than Mr. Imagination...




The night concluded with a fun car ride taking all our friends home, the weekend was long and exciting and we all needed a good night's sleep.

Posted by Samia at 12:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

I woke up early that morning to attend a brunch where the Art Fairs were being held. Christopher G. Kennedy who is the president of Merchandise Mart Properties, Inc. organized this morning event.


below is a picture of the Merchandise Mart advertising its "Artropolis" event:

and here is a picture of a banner inside the actual venue, advertising the Intuit Show:

After the morning brunch I attended the C6 Symposium at the Jay Pritzker Pavilion
in Millennium Park, Chicago. The inaugural Symposium C6 THE ART WORLD IS FLAT
"Globalism—Crisis and Opportunity" brought together an international group of socially engaged artists, scientists, curators, technologists, patrons and cultural entrepreneurs who are confronting the new challenges and possibilities of our profoundly interconnected world.
To read more about the C6 Symposium follow the attached link: http://symposiumc6.com/



After attending the Syposium I headed back over to the Merchandise Mart to see the Hubbard Street Dance Company perform in a tented area outside of the mart, for one of the special events being held in line with Art Chicago.

Many individuals had private viewings of their art collections because so many people were in town for the large art event. After attending the performance of the Hubbard Street Dance Company we headed over to the house of Contemporary Artist Nick Cave who invited people over to visit his collection. It was a wonderful evening full of excitement.

About Nick Cave....
"New York Times art critic Roberta Smith wrote of Nick Cave’s solo show at the
Shainman Gallery (NYC) last November, “Whether Nick Cave’s efforts qualify as
fashion, body art, or sculpture...they fall squarely under the heading Must Be Seen to
Be Believed.” Cave has resided as chair of SAIC’s fashion department since 2005, and
is a practicing artist who was the recipient of several prestigious awards in 2006. One of fifty-four American artists to receive a $50,000 fellowship from United States Artists, he was also named the recipient of an Artadia Award in the Visual Arts for artists working in Cook County, IL, and was given a $50,000 Joyce Foundation Award to fund the exhibition of his solo show Nick Cave: Soundsuits at the Chicago Cultural Center, which allowed for the creation of several dozen new pieces for the exhibition." (taken from http://www.saic.edu/pdf/news/pdf_files/release_saicfashion07.pdf)

Below is a sound suit by artist Nick Cave:

The night wasn't over yet though (I told you this would be a rather lengthy blog) as we headed over to another collection viewing, we ran into a protest that was occurring just south of Chicago's Soldier Field. It was the protest called "Invisible Children" in which more than 60,000 Americans Nationwide protested the horrors of Joseph Kony and his army against children in Uganda. They did this to end the enslavement of child soldiers in Uganda, who spend every night of their lives sleeping in cardboard boxes. They did this through the awareness and aggressive campaigning of the US government. One more thing to note about this event, was that children taking part in the protest spent the night sleeping in their own cardboard box houses to raise awareness in regards to the events occurring in Uganda.

Below are the images that I managed to take, it was a powerful sight to encounter:

Our last event of the night was a visit to the collection of Mr. and Mrs. Patrick Blackburn. They had an absolutely beautiful array of outsider art which included one of my favorite artists, William Hawkins. The event was lovely and a great way to conclude the evening.


Below are images of that visit to the Blackburn's home:

And that's all folks! It was a very long and celebratory weekend...in due time this tale will continue...

Posted by Samia at 3:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Now that I've given a brief explanation of the Art Fairs, I will continue on to all that occurred that weekend.

On April 27, 2007 I met up with my friend, Justin Polera who is on the committee for the Intuit Show. Together the four of us, Esteban Schimpf, Robert MacNeil, Justin and myself, headed to the home of Larry Fields, to view his private art collection of contemporary art. Larry Fields is the inheritor of Marshall Fields and the Field Museum here in the city of Chicago. We were absolutely astonished to view his collection which included but were not limited to works by Richard Serra, Allora and Calzadilla, Lari Pittman, Ed Ruscha, Matthew Barney, and a beautiful Sol Le Witt that faced the Northern window.

After attending the event at Mr. Field's home, we headed over to the west loop where many of the galleries had their openings. The pictures below are of our visit to the Kavi Gupta Gallery, Carrie Seacrest Gallery, and the Nova Gallery of Chicago.

after the gallery visits, we headed over to the Debonaire Social Club in which Bridge held a reception, the photos are below:

The night ended with a quick pit stop of midnight tacos!

Posted by Samia at 4:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Hey everyone, first off I'd like to apologize for the delay...due to finals here at the school I have been extremely bombarded with papers, sculptures, and drawings all due this week! it is absolutely wild!!!

What I am about to do is a recap of my weekend from two weeks ago, I think that everyone would enjoy seeing what I experienced during the weekend of April 27-30. During that weekend at the Merchandise Mart here in Chicago, I attended several events.

About the events---
Art Chicago: an annual contemporary and modern art fair, presents the world's leading galleries and artists in a thriving, international city with a rich artistic legacy, a sophisticated community of art dealers, collectors and curators, and a diverse cultural identity. Under new management since 2006, Art Chicago makes its new home at the world renowned Merchandise Mart, America's epicenter of high design and luxury goods.

The Intuit Show---
The best of folk and outsider art can be found this fall in Chicago at the third annual Intuit Show of Folk and Outsider Art. One of the premier outsider art events in country and the only of its kind in the Midwest, this sale and exhibition features art from 40 of the leading dealers in folk and outsider art from across the country. The show is the primary fundraiser for Intuit, a nonprofit art center with a mission to promote appreciation for self-taught art forms that have emerged outside of established academic traditions.

Bridge Art Fair---
Art is our only criteria. Our focus is on emerging and new contemporary work in all media. This includes but is not limited to painting, prints, photography, sculpture, installation, drawing, film, video, new media and conceptual art.The goal of the Bridge Art Fair, an international exposition of new art, is to broaden the exposure of emerging and contemporary art and artists by providing a cost-effective showcase for the best in new art from both established and emerging galleries, ateliers, storefronts, artist collectives and artist-run spaces.

Posted by Samia at 12:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)