Visual arts of Chicago
Visual arts of Chicago refers to
Early days: before the War
The
Only a year later the African-American
For many years the Art Institute of Chicago regularly held annual exhibits of local artists,[7] but these ended decades ago. Mary Agnes Yerkes, (1886–1989), was an American Impressionist painter and one such exhibitor at AIC from 1912-1915. Born in Oak Park, she studied at the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts, where she also taught, and then at the currently named School of the Art Institute of Chicago.[9] She is noted for her plein-air painting while camping the American West and its National Parks.
Interbellum: Chicago arts between the World Wars
The time period between the World Wars witnessed an outpouring of artistic creativity in Chicago, led by artists of the calibre of
.The Chicago art scene was not strictly an all-boys club however;
1940s
Early evidence of Chicago's unique style came with
1950s: individuality, realism, surrealism
Claes Oldenburg was born in Sweden and only spent a few years in the 1950s in Chicago, but he sold his first works here, 5 pieces at the 57th Street Art Fair for $25.[14]
Post-War art in Chicago was more figurative and less abstract than the
1960s
Claire Zeisler, a fiber artist, switched from weaving to large, free-standing fiber sculptures which "redefined the art form".[13]
The Chicago Imagists
In the late 1960s, a group of former students of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, many of whom had been mentored by teacher-artist Ray Yoshida,[15] organized a series of exhibits at the Hyde Park Art Center. Their art was notable for its surrealism and cartoon-influenced grotesques.
Strictly speaking, they were three different groups: The earliest was the "Monster Roster", which included Cosmo Campoli, Leon Golub, Nancy Spero, and Karl Wirsum; then the "Hairy Who", which included Art Green, Gladys Nilsson, and Jim Nutt; and finally the Chicago Imagists, which included Roger Brown, Ed Paschke, and Barbara Rossi.[3]
According to Imagist Ed Paschke, the Imagists felt liberated by a lack of critical coverage. "There was a sense that no one much cared what we did here. We weren't going to get a whole lot of national attention. We could do what we wanted to do."[13] After Paschke's death, in 2004, a New York critic infamously said that Paschke's "contribution to the art of his time was somewhat obscured by his distance from New York."[16] At that same time, Chicago artists Tony Fitzpatrick and Wesley Kimler and art consultant Paul Klein stirred outrage when they reported that not a single Chicago museum had any of Paschke's work on display (a claim that was later disputed).[17]
In 1972 the Chicago Imagists were given recognition in a show at the
The Chicago Surrealist Group
Under the leadership of Penelope and Franklin Rosemont, the Chicago Surrealist Group came together with both artistic and political ideals.[19] In 1976 the group played a major role in organizing the World Surrealist Exhibition at the Gallery Black Swan.[20]
1970s
Chicago produced several
Chicago artists internationally
Over the last few decades, many contemporary Chicago artists have become internationally successful. A persistent problem for the development of art scenes in Chicago has been the fact that, in the past, a large number of artists began in Chicago, but had to relocate elsewhere before gaining attention. Curator Robert Cozzolino sees this positively, stating that we must "recognize a powerful Chicago diaspora." Such artists include Claes Oldenburg, Elizabeth Murray, Richard Estes, Robert Indiana, Joan Mitchell, Georgia O'Keeffe, and many others.[22]
Although no overarching theme or style characterizes Chicago's contemporary art, many contemporary critics contend that institutional support has favored Neo-Conceptual work almost to exclusion. Chicago art is nevertheless diverse and pluralistic, as is art in general. Contemporary Chicago artists continue to explore personal styles. Although abstraction has never been as strong in Chicago as in New York, there are noteworthy Chicago abstract artists, such as William Conger, who paints brightly colored, sprightly designs, and Rodney Carswell, whose work is more formal and cooler; and conceptual artists such as photographer Jeanne Dunning and installation artist Kay Rosen.[23] Chicago's other notable contemporary artists are too numerous to name; but a few who would make any list are Kerry James Marshall, Dan Peterman, Gregg Bordowitz, Julia Fish, Wesley Kimler, Tony Fitzpatrick and Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle.
Painters
Sculptors, textile art
Cat Chow constructs dresses out of subversive materials.[33] Neil Goodman is known for largely abstract bronze sculpture that ranges from still-life compositions and free-standing works to wall and floor installations to monumental public art.[34][35] Richard Hunt sculpts ruggedly abstract commentaries on social issues.[3] Kerry James Marshall paints and sculpts multi-media works commenting on African-American life.[13]
Photography
These same impulses also appeared in Chicago's lively
Illustration, printmaking
Contemporary
Public art
Chicago had a revival, dating to the 1960s, of public mural art, involving local artists and community members.[39] The Wall of Respect was one of the murals to spark this explosion. The mural was first painted in 1967 by the Visual Arts Workshop of the Organization of Black American Culture (OBAC). It is considered the first large-scale, outdoor community mural, which spawned a movement across the U.S. and internationally.[40]
In recent year's Chicago mural scene has exploded with projects like The B Line,[43] the Wabash Arts Corridor,[44] The Brown Walls Project,[45] and The Mile of Murals.[46]
Jeff Zimmerman paints photorealistic portrait murals, which can be found in various neighborhoods and restaurants in Chicago and Cincinnati.[47]
Irreverence, satire
Chicago has a strong tradition of satirical, even grotesque art and illustration. The early books of
Self-taught artists and Outsider Art
"Chicago emerged early on as an outpost for
Manierre Dawson was an early self-taught artist, who began painting abstracts in 1910. He was invited to display in the Armory Show.[13]
In the 1990s, a group of Chicago collectors, including Bob Roth, founder of the Chicago Reader, and Ann Nathan and Judy Saslow, both of whom opened acclaimed galleries, organized Intuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art, which leads tours of Midwestern self-taught artists and has its own exhibition space.[4]
Paul Waggoner, an eccentric himself, was an art dealer and champion of outsider art.[55]
Carl Hammer, an art dealer in Chicago, has handled much strange, figurative outsider art, including the epic novel, illustrated with hermaphroditic girls traced from coloring books, of Henry Darger, and the naive portraits of society ladies of Lee Godie. Hammer also represents Mr. Imagination, a self-taught bottlecap muralist.[4] Mr. Imagination, whose work is in several museums, also participated in the 2007 public art project, "Cool Globes: Hot Ideas for a Cooler Planet".[56]
Troubles and controversies
In the 1980s, the
On April 15, 1989, the same night that the Hyde Park Art Center celebrated its 50th anniversary, a devastating fire destroyed most of an entire block of important galleries and art spaces in the River North gallery district.[4][57]
In spring of 1996, the Feigen, Inc. gallery's exhibit of Gregory Green's "10,000 Doses" and "Recipe for Making 'LSD' in the Kitchen" was raided by the Chicago police, who confiscated and broke open the artworks. No drugs were found.[4]
In 1996 the
Visual arts coverage
Chicago Gallery News, a magazine founded in 1982 by Natalie van Straaten to cover the openings of the 'Original 16' group of galleries that had moved to or opened around Superior and Huron Streets in Chicago, continues to promote local and regional exhibitions and art openings. It has continually been published in print three times a year since its founding, listing gallery shows and events. Ginny Berg Van Alyea took over as publisher in 2007 and has featured interviews with artists, gallery owners, art collectors and other members of the art community. CGN continues to be the publication of record for the arts in Chicago and the region. Currently the magazine and website feature over a 100 galleries and art spaces, as well as an art services directory.[59]
In the last decade, the major /national print publications based Chicago have ceased seriously covering the visual arts. In 2009, the Chicago Reader, an alternative weekly newspaper, reduced its formerly complete art listings of galleries and museums and regular art reviews by Fred Camper to "a smattering of listings and pictures".[60] The Chicago Tribune, one of Chicago's two major newspapers, never had gallery or art listings and fired its sole dedicated fine arts reporter, Alan G. Artner, in 2009.[17] And the Chicago Sun-Times, the other of Chicago's two major newspapers, has no gallery or art listings and no dedicated arts reporter, although Kevin Nance has covered some fine art issues along with movies and popular culture.
Gallery Guide was a bi-monthly magazine with a Chicago/midwest edition which was similar in that it covered local arts listings, but it was published from New Jersey by Blouin Media and ultimately folded.
Additionally, The New Art Examiner (from Chicago) and Dialogue magazine (Columbus, Ohio) reported on Chicago and midwestern arts communities until they both folded in 2002, though the New Art Examiner relaunched in 2015'[61]
However, smaller online and print publications have continued to cover the art scene in Chicago and have increased dramatically in number in recent years. Since 1988,
Additionally, Chicago Artists Resource, launched by the Department of Cultural Affairs in 2005, provides articles on visual art in addition to providing resources and tools for Chicago artists.
Local artists' interests are represented by the Chicago Artists' Coalition, a nonprofit advocacy organization, which has a monthly newsletter, the Chicago Artists' News.
See also
- Culture of Chicago
- List of museums and cultural institutions in Chicago
- Visual arts of the United States
- Chicago Public Art Group
- EXPO Chicago
External links
References
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- ^ a b c d Diane Thodos, "Self-Portraits 2000", New Art Examiner, May–June 2001, Vol. 28, no. 8-9, p. 92
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