We can create our own community, but I think Chicago is lacking the serious collectors (or they’re hiding or something). We want to show in top-tier galleries and get a fair price for our work as well as the recognition that that garners. There doesn’t seem to be much here to sustain the commercial side of things. The Peoria Street and Apt. Gallery scene flourishes, because the paricipating artists aren’t looking to make a living from their work. They’ve created a community, show to each other and to hipsters, friends, etc. There is also a fair amount of exchange with other similar communities in other cities, but it’s a party scene. It does not support itself. It needs outside funding from grants, day jobs, etc. The other alternative is the CAC community. It’s not really self-sustaining either. It’s essentially a group of people showing their work in bars, coffee shops store fronts, street fairs. Some people do make some side money, but that hardly makes it a profession. Recognition is only among their peers and friends.
Building your own community is sort of a “build it and they will come” model. I am not convinced that the “they” are here. I think we really have to seriously look elsewhere to exhibit while doing all we can to get something going here.
It’s possible that something can happen, but we need buy-in from the institutions and big players (prominent critics, collectors, curators, etc.). Perhaps we can reach out to them for support — convince them that there are worthy artists creating work in Chicago. We need someone to champion artists on the national and world scene — another Dennis Adrian. Then the word can get out that Chicago has something going on. We need more than just a bunch of hungry artists.
June 11th, 2008 at 3:39 pm
I think it’s very sad if we need to “convince” the institutions and big players that there are worthy artists in Chicago.
June 11th, 2008 at 3:45 pm
In general it bugs me that we artists seem to have to do everything ourselves, when it comes to anything non-consensus.
June 11th, 2008 at 4:00 pm
I’m excited about this new art magazine in Chicago called Proximity. Great articles and great layout. This is a step in the right direction for the overall art community.
June 12th, 2008 at 10:39 am
We have a community, it’s growing and as long as the work is so good that it cannot be ignored and there are people to write about it intelligently, this will become more than the rather large farm town that it is.
June 13th, 2008 at 8:45 am
Ted, I agree with you overall but are you throwing in a little hyperbole with “large farm town” or do you feel it’s that bad?
June 13th, 2008 at 5:00 pm
Norbert, perhaps a little…. but in this case I have lived in small ranching and farming towns at times in my life and there is much more that joins Chicago to those kinds of places than to New York or LA….
Did you catch the price of pork bellies, corn and soy beans this morning?
June 13th, 2008 at 5:34 pm
Thanks for the heads up on Proximity, I’ll check it out. I could be (very well may be) wrong but since the demise of New Art Examiner there hasn’t been any art magazines coming out of the Midwest. I used to read Review out of KS but that was a few years ago. Local coverage and energy is a hopeful sign.
July 8th, 2008 at 8:41 am
From the perspective of the Art Institute or the Museum of Contemporary Art, there’s no compelling reason for them to buy-in. They’ve got all the attendance they want, they’ve got all the attention they want showing the work of the “big” boys and girls; they’ve got the “blockbuster” disease that afflicts all museums now. The MCA will say that they’ve got the 12 by 12. The Terra Museum ended up being a disappointment.
July 8th, 2008 at 1:17 pm
I think the buy-in for the big institutions is creating a world art center that they would be a major part of, rather than being an outpost for other art centers. At the “Meet the Curators” panel discussion last year, Dominic Molon said that they only look at artists who have been out of school for no more than five years for the 12 x 12. This makes it more or less a show of student work. There is hope, though with the Art Institute’s inclusion of Chicago work in the new wing. Perhaps, the others can follow that lead.
July 15th, 2008 at 6:51 pm
I was always under the impression that Chicago had quite a bit of serious art going on…but yes, I think that more needs to be done and not only in Chicago but everywhere in the Midwest. There are a lot of intriguing artists in Milwaukee and Madison that are completely overlooked as well.
July 17th, 2008 at 4:10 pm
Yes, there are some great centers in art around Chicago. I’m for every city being a center for Culture and especially art. This is why it is even more important for Chicago to become an international art center. It can only help to bring attention to some of the smaller centers around here.
Philadelphia seems to have more importance in the art world, though has its own identity. I think this is largely because of its proximity to New York.
If Chicago can live up to what it could be, it might help the other smaller cities as well.
Chicago needs to rebuild its infrastructure. It’s happening, so I have hope.