DEPARTMENT OF CULTURAL AFFAIRS AND SPECIAL EVENTS
2020 EXHIBITION SCHEDULE
Highlights include retrospectives of work by African American Painter Robert Colescott and Cuban Printmaker Belkis Ayón (1967-1999)
Chicago Cultural Center – 78 E. Washington St.
All
exhibitions at the Chicago Cultural Center, 78 E. Washington Street,
are presented by the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events
(DCASE). Gallery and building hours are Monday–Friday, 10am–7pm, and
Saturday–Sunday, 10am– 5pm; closed holidays. Admission is FREE. For
information, visit chicagoculturalcenter.org, and follow us on Facebook,
Twitter and Instagram @ChiCulturCenter.
Chicago Architecture Biennial
Through January 5, 2020
Throughout the Chicago Cultural Center and across Chicago
See
exhibitions, performances, films and talks at the 2019 Chicago
Architecture Biennial and explore how architecture shapes our
communities, cities and environment. As the largest exhibition of
contemporary art, architecture and design in North America, the third
edition of the Biennial features over 80 contributors from more than 20
countries. More than 40 sites and 100 organizations across Chicago will
partner with the Biennial, serving as host venues and producing
independent exhibitions and programs throughout the neighborhoods. For
information, visit chicagoarchitecturebiennial.org.
Luis Sahagun: Both Eagle and Serpent
February 1–April 26, 2020
Michigan Avenue Galleries, 1st Floor East
Known for his intricate
and fantastical paintings and sculptures built from silicone, lumber,
drywall, concrete and hardware, Luis Sahagun creates symbols that
represent working-class immigrants in the United States. In Both Eagle and Serpent, this solo exhibition artfully
confronts the vile national rhetoric aimed at immigrants, migrants and
the other, as an act of cultural reclamation to spotlight Latinx
narratives of resilience and self-determination.
Curated by Teresa Silva.
In Flux: Chicago Artists and Immigration
February 15–May 10, 2020
Exhibit Hall, 4th Floor North
First presented by 6018 North in spring 2019, under the title 'Living Architecture,' 'In Flux is
a large-scale, multidisciplinary exhibition that highlights the
influence and impact of immigrant artists on Chicago. The exhibition
responds to the current political climate to highlight how Chicago was
built with immigrant labor, particularly in the arts, and is
continuously shaped today by exemplary immigrant artists. With over 20
contemporary artists, In Flux: Chicago Artists and Immigration illustrates a living and evolving legacy between past and present work by Chicago immigrants in art and design.
NKAME: A Retrospective of Cuban Printmaker Belkis Ayón (1967-1999)
February 29–May 24, 2020
Sidney Yates Gallery, 4th Floor North
The
first U.S. retrospective of the work of Belkis Ayón, the late Cuban
visual artist and printmaker who mined the founding myth of the
Afro-Cuban fraternal society of Abukua to create an independent and
powerful visual iconography. The exhibition’s 47 prints encompass a wide
range of the artist’s graphic production including her signature
calligraphy technique, a printing process combining materials of various
textures and absorbencies.
Curated
by Cristina Vives and organized by the Belkis Ayón Estate, Havana,
Cuba, with the Station Museum of Contemporary Art. Exhibition tour
management by Landau Traveling Exhibitions, Los Angeles, California.
What Flies but Never Lands?
May 23–August 9, 2020
Michigan Avenue Galleries, 1st Floor East
Considering
the present-day experience of time, the multi-disciplinary works
inspect the idea of time and challenge its dominant Western, capitalist
orders. The group exhibition includes work by Bethany Collins, Jacabo
Zambrano, Hu’ong Ngo, Max Guy, Saranoa Mark, Cathy Hsiao and Amina Ross.
Curated by Minh Nguyen.
Jin Lee: Views & Scenes
June 8–August 2, 2020
Chicago Rooms, 2nd Floor North
This
one-person exhibition by highly respected Chicago photographer Jin Lee
features a series of photographs that closely examine landscapes and
built environments around Chicago. The exhibition brings together four
bodies of work: Train Views – images made during the artist’s weekly
2-hour Amtrak commute between Chicago and Bloomington/Normal; Great
Water – views of Lake Michigan taken from a single location on the South
Side of Chicago; Salt Mountains – images of piles and mounds of salt
and dirt found on storage sites around the city; and Weeds – a
collection of portraits of wild plants that grow in alleys and empty
lots in a neighborhood.
Art and Race Matters: The Career of Robert Colescott
June 20–September 27, 2021
Sidney Yates Gallery and Exhibit Hall, 4th Floor North
As
the first comprehensive retrospective of Robert Colescott (1925-2009),
one of America’s most compelling and controversial artists, this
exhibition will present 75 total works throughout 53 years of his career
that both bring to the surface and challenge racial stereotypes.
Co-curated
by Lowery Stokes Sims and Matthew Wesley and organized by Raphaela
Platow, the Contemporary Arts Center’s Alice & Harris Weston
Director and Chief Curator. Major support for the exhibition tour has
been provided by the Henry
Luce Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, The Sotheby’s
Prize, and Richard Rosenthal; the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual
Arts for the research phase of the exhibition and the exhibition itself;
and the Harold & Arlene Schnitzer CARE Foundation for its support
of the catalogue. The exhibition presentation in Chicago is made possible through support from the Terra Foundation for American Art.
Jeremiah Hulsebos-Spoffoard: League of Nations
September 5, 2020–January 5, 2021
Chicago Rooms, 2nd Floor North
League of Nations is
a new body of work examining power structures and copies through
architectural installation and sculpture. The show is anchored by a new
installation based on Hans Meyer and Hans Wittwer’s unbuilt 1927
proposal drawing submitted for the headquarters of the League of Nations
in Geneva, Switzerland.
An Instrument in the Shape of a Woman
September 5, 2020–January 3, 2021
Michigan Avenue Galleries, 1st Floor East
Three
women – Leslie Baum, Diane Christiansen and Selena Trepp – present
individual bodies of work with a shared interest in color and form.
Animations will enliven the exhibition space with new media.
Curated by Anne Morse.
Re:Center 2020/ Chicago Parks as Learning Labs for Civic Engagement and Cultural Stewardship
October 24, 2020–January 31, 2021
Exhibit Hall, 4th Floor North
A grant-funded initiative of the Chicago Park District, Re: Center has
sought to build a process that encourages artists, park staff, and
citizens to collaboratively develop community-centered arts and cultural
programs at their local park. Through the display of images, field
notes, cultural asset maps and learning tools collected and created over
the past five years, as well as a gathering space that will host
dialogues, workshops and game play, the exhibition engages participants
in reimagining the cultural resources of their communities for the
present/future while also considering how public spaces like parks can
be hubs for creative thinking and doing that result in pleasure,
leisure, learning, revitalization and social justice.
Programmed in collaboration with the Chicago Park District’s Arts & Culture Unit
Design Museum of Chicago at Expo 72 – 72 E. Randolph St.
Exhibitions
at Expo 72, 72 E. Randolph St., are presented by the Design Museum of
Chicago. Building hours are Monday–Friday, 10am–6pm, and
Saturday–Sunday, 11am–4pm; closed holidays. Admission is FREE. For
information, visit designchicago.org.
Great Ideas of Humanity
February 22–April 19, 2020
Design Museum of Chicago, at Expo 72,
A reimagining of a stunning mid-century advertising campaign by Chicago-based Container Corporation of America, Great Ideas of Humanity highlights
a broad spectrum of human thought and reminds us that sometimes looking
to the past helps us to comprehend the present. Chicago’s vibrant
public art culture shares many features with the campaign: both are
meant for broad public consumption, are collaborative, are bringing art
to people and are meant to inspire. This iteration of Great Ideas focuses on iconic murals to inspire work generated by Chicago high school students.
All-City Visual Arts 2020 Exhibitions
May 4–June 7, 2020
Design Museum of Chicago at Expo 72
Art
and design share many of the same building blocks. By making art,
students are also practicing communication, creative problem-solving,
risk-taking and self-expression. This year, the Design Museum of Chicago
has the opportunity to exhibit work by hundreds of Chicago Public
School students. The All-City Visual Arts Programs provide a unique
opportunity to showcase student achievement in visual and media arts and
exhibit their work in highly-visible, public exhibition spaces in
Chicago. The high school exhibition showcases 2D, 3D and digital artwork
by students in grades 9-12 and the elementary exhibition features work
by students from pre-K through 8th grade.
All Together Now: Sound × Design
August 1, 2020–January 3, 2021
Design Museum of Chicago at Expo 72
In
celebration of the City of Chicago’s Year of Chicago Music in 2020, the
Design Museum of Chicago is planning a blind juried exhibition to
collect and highlight a body of work from visual artists, musicians and
designers. The work displayed in the gallery at Expo 72 will incorporate
or be inspired by music (in an abstract way), allow for the performance
of music in and of itself (like the design of an instrument) or be used
to sell or brand music (like a logo or packaging.) By integrating
contemporary and historic work, All Together Now celebrates the integral part music plays in Chicago’s creative culture.
Growing Community
Through May 10. 2020
City Gallery at the Historic Water Tower, 806 N. Michigan Avenue
A
celebration of community managed green spaces throughout Chicago.
Curated by the City of Chicago's Department of Planning and Development,
in collaboration with NeighborSpace and part of the Chicago
Architecture Biennial 2019-2020.
Temporary Exhibitions Outdoors in Millennium Park – 201 E. Randolph St.
Millennium
Park is located on Michigan Avenue, bordered by Randolph St. to the
north, Columbus Dr. to the east and Monroe St. to the south. Access to the park is free and open to the public daily, 6am–11pm. For information, visit millenniumpark.org and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @Millennium_Park.
Luftwerk, Requiem: A White Wanderer
Sound Installation: January 31 – February 2, 2020, 11am–6pm
Sound Walks: Friday, January 31, 12:15pm; Saturday, February 1, 4pm (family oriented) and 8pm; Sunday, February 2, Noon
Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion
Requiem: A White Wanderer is
an ongoing project by Luftwerk inspired by Larsen-C, a 120-mile long
crack that ran along the Antarctic ice shelf and broke into a
trillion-ton iceberg named A 68 in 2017. White Wanderer translates
seismic data from this ailing iceberg into an emotional experience,
connecting the public to the urgency of climate change. Over the course
of 2019 as part of their Outer Ear Residency at Experimental Sound
Studio, Luftwerk has been working in collaboration with Katherine Young
to create a musical composition for orchestra and voice based on these
sonic signals. This composition will premiere in two concerts presented
alongside a sound installation in the lattice of Millennium Park’s Jay
Pritzker Pavilion.
Presented by the Millennium Park Foundation
Edra Soto: Screenhouse
Through Fall 2021
Millennium Park, Boeing Gallery North
Constructed
from approximately 400 charcoal-hued, 12-inch cast concrete blocks, the
10-foot high pavilion-like structure comes out of Soto’s ongoing series
exploring symbolic transplants of iron grills and decorative concrete
screen blocks found throughout the Caribbean and the American South.
These decorative screens, known as rejas and quiebrasoles, are ubiquitous in Soto’s birthplace in Puerto Rico. In Screenhouse, Soto transforms the quiebrasol form
from a planar screen that divides public from private into a nearly
fully enclosed, free-standing structure that functions as both a
sculptural object and a social gathering place.
Presented by the Millennium Park Foundation
Christine
Tarkowski: “When we call the Earth by way of distinction a planet and
the Moon a satellite, we should consider whether we do not, in a certain
sense, mistake the matter. Perhaps- and not unlikely - the Moon is the
planet and the Earth the satellite! Are we not a larger moon to the
Moon, than she is to us?”
Through Fall 2021
Millennium Park, Boeing Gallery South
Christine Tarkowski’s work is as extravagantly conjured as its title, taken from the 18th-century
British astronomer William Herschel. The startling presence of
candy-colored hand blown glass boulders suspended above and about
earthbound boulders evokes a strange, yet elemental landscape–ironically
similar to our environment, both natural and built. The installation,
set down in the midst of the highly manicured garden of Millennium Park,
seems a gentle critique of how cities build, manipulate, and re-present
natural forms. Presented by the Millennium Park Foundation
Temporary Exhibitions Outdoors along the Chicago Riverwalk
The
Chicago Riverwalk, a 1.25-mile promenade through the heart of downtown,
is managed by the Chicago Department of Fleet and Facility (2FM) with
programming from the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events.
Access to the space is free and open to the public daily, 6am–11pm. For information, visit chicagoriverwalk.us.
Kwong Von Glinow and UB Studio: Give me a minute, please!
Coming June 2020
Chicago Riverwalk between Franklin and Lake Streets
As part of Designing a Better Chicago, a
collaborative initiative organized and supported by NeoCon and theMART,
the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE)
and the Design Museum of Chicago, the award-winning architects and
designers Kwong Von Glinow and UB Studio will bring their unique
creative vision to the project site. Aimed at highlighting, leveraging
and supporting Chicago’s vast design legacy, talent and resources,
Designing a Better Chicago will also include the Design Impact Grant
Program, which will recognize individuals or organizations using design
for civic good.
Alberto Aguilar: Echo Hecho Fresco
Chicago Riverwalk under the Columbus Bridge
“After
spending time on the Riverwalk I’ve come to understand it as a
transient space. This zigzag pattern, which moves in multiple
directions, reflects the constant movement of people through the tunnel,
cars on the bridge above, boats below, as well as the river’s flow. I
used Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) traffic and pedestrian
paint, which in a sense makes it a mural for the people. It’s simple in
design but complex in its arrangement of color value. Applied with a 4”
roller, it has an immediacy which reveals my moves and accidents. Made
with a grid, it’s also regulated and measured, allowing the eye to make
up for its imperfections. Now that you’ve seen it up close, I recommend
viewing the mural from the opposite side of the river.”—Alberto Aguilar,
2019
Ebony G. Patterson:...between the below…
Chicago Riverwalk just east of Michigan Avenue
“With
an ongoing interest in conversations around sites of violence and
witnessing, I have been thinking a lot about remnants: the things left
behind and which mark the
presence of bodies that were once here. These five vanitas-inspired
compositions explore the garden as a metaphor and a site. The garden as
something that acts as a grave, holding evidence of bodies that
once marked the space. In these images, we are faced with the evidence
of objects left behind that tell us something about those who once
held or occupied them, above, below, beneath. They are “shrines” that
ask: Where? Who? When?” – Ebony G. Patterson, 2019
Courtesy of Monique Meloche Gallery
Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events
The
Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events is dedicated to
enriching Chicago’s artistic vitality and cultural vibrancy. This
includes fostering the development of Chicago’s non-profit arts sector,
independent working artists and for-profit arts businesses; providing a
framework to guide the City’s future cultural and economic growth, via
the 2012 Chicago Cultural Plan; marketing the City’s cultural assets to a
worldwide audience; and presenting high-quality, free and affordable
cultural programs for residents and visitors.
Millennium Park Foundation
The
Millennium Park Foundation, a private, philanthropic nonprofit partner,
was created in 1998 to support the City of Chicago’s efforts in the
design, construction, and curation of Millennium Park. It is the steward
of Millennium Park’s internationally-recognized icons and public
features. These include the prestigious Jay Pritzker Pavilion and
dramatic BP Pedestrian Bridge, world-renowned Cloud Gate and Lurie
Garden, iconic Crown Fountain, and exquisite Boeing Galleries for public
art exhibitions. Through its ongoing development initiatives, the
Millennium Park Foundation is dedicated to keeping Millennium Park a
free, accessible and equitable venue for all Chicagoans today, and for
generations to come.