CULTUREINDEX THE SCENE
CULTUREINDEX THE SCENE The vast open space, whose interior environment was designed by local architect Jeanne Gang – an exhibition of her firm’s work was on view at the Art Institute of Chicago (111 South Michigan Avenue; artic.edu) earlier this year – was punctuated with Mylar cones flaring down from the ceiling. Local artists made a strong showing (both in and around the booths), and the more than 120 participating galleries had remarkably ample room to breathe. Speaking to a rapt cluster of VIPs (including Mayor Rahm Emanuel), Expo president and director Tony Karman called the fair “a Chicago story” and spoke of his desire to make the event, and the city, a global destination for contemporary art; Madeleine Grynsztejn, Pritzker director of the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago (220 East Chicago Avenue; mcachicago. org), asked everyone to do their part in making this a “win” and “buy, buy, buy!” Chicago’s academic institutions have always had great arts programmes – the School of the Art Institute being the chief conservatory among them – but the city’s never had the far-reaching, internationally KAVI GUPTA Gupta, who also runs a satellite space in Berlin, is the dealer to watch, representing Chicago superstars like Theaster Gates. His second gallery opened in the city in the spring. kavigupta.com From left: Gaylen Gerber collaborative project Das Institut, on view at the MCA this summer; Abelardo Morell’s photograph of a Texas desertscape; installation by Chicago artist Theaster Gates at the MCA on view until October recognised, self-perpetuating scene of New York, London, Los Angeles or Berlin . The new and improved art fair is but one of several developments creating something of a moment in the Windy City. For starters, Emanuel has emphasised the arts from the get-go: after taking office in 2011, he had the city’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events draw up the first new long-term Chicago Cultural Plan in more than 25 years. Meanwhile, the Art Institute and its slick new Renzo Piano-designed Modern Wing continue to anchor the city’s out-of-town cultural draw. Upcoming and current museum exhibits include a retrospective show dedicated to camera obscura master Abelardo Morell (until 2 September) and another on the Impressionists – from Manet to Monet – and their work relating to fashion HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE WEST LOOP GALLERY DISTRICT ANDREW RAFACZ Rafacz’s eight-year-old gallery plays host to both emerging and midcareer artists, among them John Opera, Scott Wolniak and Jason Lazarus. andrew rafacz.com CARRIE SECRIST Secrist celebrated her 20th year in business in December with a show featuring the gallery’s eclectic roster, which includes renowned photographer David Maisel. secristgallery.com (opening 26 June and running until 22 September). The tastes and visions of the MCA’s new curatorial team are finally hanging on the walls, and internationally renowned artists like Theaster Gates (whose “13th Ballad” exhibition is currently on view at the MCA) and Kerry James Marshall (widely considered to be one of the greatest figurative painters of our time) are living, working and, most importantly, staying in Chicago even as their careers take off. The city’s small but worthy crop of local galleries is actively seeking out ways to bolster visibility. Before the Armory Show, before Frieze New York, before Art Basel Miami Beach, Art Chicago was the stateside destination for presenting and selling the best in international contemporary art. But new management and, eventually, a new inland location thrust the quality downward. And as other fairs quickly ascended, major galleries started to sit out Chicago. Organisers pulled the plug in 2011, saying, “It is our conclusion that the great majority of the art-fair market in the RHONA HOFFMAN Hoffman sells and exhibits works by major 20th-century innovators. On exhibition now, works by the late conceptual architect/artist Gordon Matta-Clark. rhoffmangallery.com FROM LEFT: COURTESY OF GAYLEN GERBER AND THE ARTISTS/MCA CHICAGO; © ABELARDO MORELL/COURTESY OF EDWYNN HOUK GALLERY, NEW YORK.; COURTESY OF KAVI GUPTA 38 departures-international.com
CULTUREINDEX - I N T E R N AT THE RETURN OF DANIEL CLOWES D E PA R T U R E S at I O N A L The latest from Chicago’s dynamic gastronomy scene online . C O M m o r e S e e On June 29, the MCA welcomes back native son and graphic artist Daniel Clowes with the exhibition “Modern Cartoonist: The Art of Daniel Clowes”, which debuted last year in Oakland, California, where he now resides. A regular cover artist for the New Yorker, he first gained celebrity with his alternative comic-book series Eightball, which spawned his coming-of-age novel Ghost World. Released in 1997, the book has since become a cult classic, inspiring both a movie starring Scarlett Johansson as well as an Aimee Mann song. The MCA exhibition, running until 13 October, will feature 125 original drawings and artefacts. Illustration for The New Yorker in May 2009 The 18th cover of Clowes’s Eightball comic COURTESY OF THE ARTIST AND OAKLAND MUSEUM OF CALIFORNIA United States has gravitated toward the coasts.” Karman, a former vice president of Art Chicago, set out to prove them wrong with Expo. His approach included an international roster, strong sponsors (like Mercedes-Benz), institutional partners (like MCA) and returning to the Navy Pier locale. Chicago is known for having a few excellent, dedicated collectors, but a strong fair is vital in feeding the city’s greater art-world ecosystem by bringing in outside buyers. Indeed, for many gallerists, local support isn’t enough. “Way more than 50 per cent of my clientele is not from the Midwest,” says longtime gallerist Monique Meloche, who, with 11 other Chicago dealers, founded Gallery Weekend Chicago (galleryweekendchicago.com) in 2011 in an effort to give collectors another reason to come to the city. Last year’s Gallery Weekend coincided with Expo, with 15 galleries offering studio visits, private dinners and events to select VIPs, in addition to an array of programming open to the public. Under former mayor Richard Daley, “there was this push to make the city a destination for outsiders ”, Theaster Gates says. Now, it seems, the city is looking for ways to support its artists so they don’t leave to get “discovered” in New York or Los Angeles. Local institutions are aiding in this, too. The MCA, for instance, under the direction of Michael Darling, is incorporating a wider range of local artists alongside established international heavyweights; they include Chicagobased conceptual painter Gaylen Gerber (until 1 September) and cartoonist Daniel Clowes (see above) running back-to-back with an exhibition by Belgian multimedia artists Jos de Gruyter and Harald Thys (opening 12 October). Changes are afoot at the Renaissance Society (5811 South Ellis Avenue; renaissancesociety.org), too, an exceedingly well-reputed art space at the University of Chicago; its longtime executive director, Susanne Ghez, stepped down in January. The inaugural fair was a hit, judging by the crowds and convivial mood, but the big question was whether there would be many sales. Younger galleries, like San Francisco’s Jessica Silverman, sold out their booths – “I’ll definitely be back,” she says – as did local mainstays like Kavi Gupta, who sold out and then some. (No surprise, really; it’s been a hot few years for the dealer.) Bigger, more established New York and international galleries were a bit hesitant to call the fair a success, reporting far fewer sales (though Zurich’s Galerie Gmurzynska unloaded a US million Yves Klein). But, as Gupta suspects, that could actually be a testament to the high quality of the work. “All the Chicago collectors came out and lots were buying, but people were shocked by how much good material there was,” he says, adding that it will help with the draw in the next few years. And moneyed art lovers from Chicago and beyond will be better prepared. departures-international.com 39
