Guerrilla Truck Show 2012 brings designers to the West Loop
Art and design lovers swarmed Fulton Market Tuesday night for the eighth annual Guerrilla Truck Show. As always, Morlen Sinoway Atelier put on the event, which benefited Design Industries Foundation Fighting AIDS (DIFFA). U-Hauls and trailers became showrooms for art, furniture, bikes, accessories and other designs by professionals and students alike.
This year's notable exhibitors included Michael Schafer, a retired plastic surgeon who makes sculptures using only found materials like wood, old rakes or panels of glass abandoned in a basement; Levi Borreson, who builds bikes by hand in Bridgeport; and Harrington College of Design professor Peter Klick, whose experimental design class put together a game of “human Tetris” inside its truck. Learn more in our slideshow, above.
Road Trips | Springfield, St. Louis, Eureka Springs + Crystal Bridges
For TOC’s current “Road Trips” issue, I wrote about my recent trip to Bentonville, Arkansas, to see the Crystal Bridges of American Art. During the five-day/four-night journey, my traveling companions and I stopped along the way to experience several other cultural destinations. Read a briefing after the jump:
Hull-House announces Vice Lords exhibit
Today, Hull-House Museum announced a soon-to-open exhibit on Chicago gangs, titled "Report to the Public: An Untold History of the Conservative Vice Lords."
According to Hull-House education coordinator Lisa Junkin, "The Conservative Vice Lords were incorporated as a not-for-profit organization during the late 1960s by Vice Lords members who decided to enter the civic realm." Junkin adds: "This exhibition doesn't glorify or demonize gangs...rather, it challenges widely held views of gang members as unredeemable thugs through an untold story of the Conservative Vice Lords fighting for the life of their community."
The exhibition, a collaboration between the museum and former gang members, includes objects, videos and audio interviews. At the opening, visitors can meet former CVL members. The exhibit, located off site from the Hull-House, opens June 22, 5:30–8pm at Art In These Times (2040 N Milwaukee Ave).
Art and Design | This weekend’s late-breaking art events
There are approximately 118 Art & Design events happening this weekend. Check our listings for details, and read about a few free or cheap openings and events that didn't make it into print after the jump.
Art and Design | This week’s late-breaking art events
There are approximately 120 Art & Design events happening this weekend—check our listings for details—but please note that some venues will close due to the holiday weekend, so double-check before heading out. Read about a few free or cheap openings and events that didn't make it into print after the jump.
Ebony Fashion Fair exhibition coming to Chicago History Museum
The late fashion icon Eunice Johnson gets her due with a 2013 exhibition at Chicago History Museum. Today the museum announced that the exhibit, featuring clothing from the Ebony Fashion Fair show produced by Johnson, will open in March 2013.
I'm pretty excited to see this exhibit realized. Johnson—with her unrelenting devotion to the modern—had an unparalleled eye for design, color, line and, when it came to fashion, new and exciting silhouettes. The Chicago History Museum show, while not yet fully conceived, plans to feature 60 garments from the Ebony Fashion Fair collection, including "haute couture significant to late 20th century fashion."
The exhibition also delves into the cultural significance of the Ebony Fashion Fair runway show. Produced by Johnson, it was known as the first couture and prêt-à-porter show aimed at African American women. Johnson sourced prominent designers of the time, including Oscar de la Renta, Christian Dior, Stephen Burrows, Yves Saint Laurent, Patrick Kelly, Christian Lacroix, Valentino Garavani, Roberto Cavalli and Pierre Cardin. Ebony Fashion Fair started in 1958, but, knowing Johnson's eye for design, every piece in the exhibition will look like the next hottest thing. I can already hear the clicking of Louboutin's lining up in the Chicago History Museum's grand entryway.
Art and Design | This week’s late-breaking art events
There are supposed to be more than 125 Art & Design events happening this weekend—check our listings for details—but please note that some venues are making last-minute decisions to close due to the NATO summit, so double-check before heading out. (The Art Institute of Chicago and Museum of Contemporary Art are both closed Sat 19–Mon 21. Around Town editor Madeline Nusser has compiled a list of other museum closures here.) Read about a few free or cheap openings and events that didn't make it into print after the jump.
Museum closings for NATO
Unless you've been hiding under a rock, you know many Loop services and buildings will close during NATO. But I'm a bit surprised at the recent spate of museum closings, which include the Chicago History Museum—located well outside the Loop/McCormick Place NATO epicenter.
For culture lovers and rock-hiders, here's a list of closings, plus what to see (a buncha new shows!) when museums reopen.
Museum Field Museum
Closing on Sunday, May 20 and Monday, May 21
What to see when it reopens The museum's first large-scale art exhibit, "Nature’s Toolbox: Biodiversity Art and Invention," opens May 22. "Extreme Mammals," a traveling American Museum of Natural History New York exhibit that explores out-there animals, opens May 26.
Museum The Art Institute of Chicago
Closing on Saturday, May 19; Sunday, May 20; and Monday, May 21
What to see when it reopens "Roy Lichtenstein: A Retrospective" opens Tuesday, May 22
Museum The Adler Planetarium
Closing on Saturday, May 19; Sunday, May 20; and Monday, May 21
What to see when it reopens "Welcome to the Universe," the newest Grainger Sky Theater show, opens Friday, May 25
Museum Shedd Aquarium
Closing on Saturday, May 19; Sunday, May 20; and Monday, May 21
What to see when it reopens "Jellies" extends its run through 2013
Museum Chicago History Museum
Closing on Sunday, May 20 and Monday May 21
What to see when it reopens "Magic" opens Saturday, June 9
Art and Design | This week’s late-breaking art events
There are more than 120 Art & Design events happening this weekend. Check our listings for details, and read about a few openings and lectures that didn't make it into print after the jump. All are free.
Dawoud Bey | The One
In this week's issue, photographer Dawoud Bey tells TOC about two new exhibitions devoted to his work. (The Art Institute of Chicago unveiled "Harlem U.S.A." today. "Picturing People" opens at the Renaissance Society Sun 13.) One of my favorite series by the Chicago artist is "Class Pictures," which presents portraits of teenagers from six high schools across the U.S. alongside the students' autobiographical statements. Bey's explanation of how he created these photographs didn't make it into print, but it's worth reading:
