Art Institute of Chicago Presents INVISIBLE MAN: GORDON PARKS AND RALPH ELLISON IN HARLEM, 5/21
Featuring over 50 never-before-seen objects, including photographs, contact sheets, and manuscripts, Invisible Man: Gordon Parks and Ralph Ellison In Harlem will be on view at the Art Institute of Chicago from May 21 toAugust 28, 2016 . The exhibition provides an in-depth look at two understudied collaborations, executed in 1948 and 1952, that aimed to bring to national consciousness the black experience in postwar America, with Harlem as its nerve center. Gordon Parks (1912-2006), a renowned photographer and filmmaker best known for his photo-essays for Life magazine, and Ralph Ellison (1913-1994), author of one of the most acclaimed novels of the 20th century, Invisible Man (1952), are both major figures in American Art and literature. The two friends, united by a shared vision of racial injustices and a belief in the communicative power of photography, sought to counter stereotypical representations of African American life that filled mainstream publications in their day.
Art Institute Chicago Presents Two Solo Exhibitions from Indian Contemporary Women Artists, Dayanita Singh and Nilima Sheikh
In the coming weeks, the Art Institute will present two solo exhibitions devoted to the illuminating work of two contemporary women artists from India: Dayanita Singh and Nilima Sheikh. Though pursuing radically different projects—the life of eunuch Mona Ahmed in Delhi and the contested valley of Kashmir—these artists represent the vitality and diversity of contemporary art in India. The work of photographer Dayanita Singh will be on view in Gallery 292 through June 1, 2014, and Nilima Sheikh: Each Night Put Kashmir in Your Dreams will be presented from March 8 through May 18, 2014 in Galleries 182–184.
Two Female Contemporary Indian Artists Featured in First Exhibitions at Art Institute
In the coming weeks, the Art Institute will present two solo exhibitions devoted to the illuminating work of two contemporary women artists from India: Dayanita Singh and Nilima Sheikh. Though pursuing radically different projects-the life of eunuch Mona Ahmed in Delhi and the contested valley of Kashmir-these artists represent the vitality and diversity of contemporary art in India. The work of photographer Dayanita Singh will be on view in Gallery 292 through June 1, 2014, and Nilima Sheikh: Each Night Put Kashmir in Your Dreams will be presented from March 8 through May 18, 2014 in Galleries 182-184.
Photo Flash: First Look at The Art Institute of Chicago's Snap Gala
This year's Snap Gala, benefiting the Photography Gala Fund—the largest single source of acquisitions support for photography at the Art Institute—was a record-breaking success. On Saturday, October 19, guests were awed by the elegant, glowing centerpieces featuring vintage slides, as well as a curtain of slides hanging from the second floor balcony made by INDO (http://theindoprojects.com/). Attendees posed in sets of classic photographs from the Art Institute's acclaimed permanent collection during cocktail hour, as well as photo booths during dessert. Alexander Gilkes—Chief Auctioneer, Phillips and Founder, Paddle 8—ran a lively and theatrical auction that capped off the evening.
Art Institute Announces WHEN COLLECTING WAS NEW Exhibition Through May
After the isolated beginnings of a market in the early 20th century, photography emerged as a respected and collectible medium in the 1970s--driven by the viability of commercial photography galleries, increasing auction sales, and the establishment or promotion of autonomous curatorial departments in museums such as the Art Institute of Chicago (where photography became a separate department in 1974). Longtime Art Institute supporter Robert A. Taub's wide-ranging collection charts photography's changing and innovative role as a market force in the 1970s and 1980s. When Collecting Was New: Photographs from the Robert A. Taub Collection, on view at the Art Institute through May 12, 2013 in Galleries 1-4, presents over 100 works from Mr. Taub's collection and is complemented by loans from private collectors and works from the museum's permanent collection. This fresh presentation of classic and overlooked material includes a wall with no fewer than seven different prints of Dorothea Lange's iconic Migrant Mother (1936); a gridlike, historically accurate installation of Garry Winogrand's masterpiece portfolio, Women Are Beautiful (1974); and never-before-seen photographs by Joel Sternfeld taken in the later 1970s at the Ford Motor Company.