Don’t try a home cure! Photography lovers should head out on the town for this year’s bout of gallery mania that promises to grip the city Sept. 9, the kick-off of the fall art-exhibit season.
The festivities don’t end then. The Chicago Photographic Print Fair opens Sept. 23 at the Chicago Cultural Center, bringing together works in all price ranges offered by galleries and dealers from around the country. The fair features a discussion with Danny Lyon, famous for his 1960s Chicago documentary photos of motorcycle clubs.
Mark Oct. 21 in red pen on your calender as well. That’s when Harry Callahan, a maestro of the medium, returns to Chicago for an exhibit at the Ehlers Caudill Gallery
September
Continuing. Beacon Street Gallery, Uptown Hull House, 4520 N. Beacon St. “Offerings to the River Goddess” features photojournalist Bob Richards’ witty and animated documentary images of the Garifuna Founders’ Day Festival in Belize. The Garifuna are of African, Carib and Indian descent. Through Sept. 30. Free. 312-561-3500 or 708-232-2728.
8. Ehlers Caudill Gallery, 750 N. Orleans St. “Picture Perfect: 20th Century Master Photographers” combines great hits from the history of photography and new works by gallery photographers. Prints by Paul Strand, Alfred Stieglitz, Brassai, Robert Frank, Walker Evans, Diane Arbus, Ilse Bing, Irving Penn, Bob Thall, Sandra Newbury and Holly Roberts will be included. Opening reception 5-8 p.m. Sept. 9. Through Oct. 15. Free. 312-642-8611.
8. David Adler Cultural Center, 1700 N. Milwaukee Ave., Libertyville. “Jim Fraher-Portraits” presents Fraher’s insightful portraits of artists, craftspeople, folk and blues singers and others. Through Oct. 8. Opening reception 5-7 p.m. Sept. 8. Free. 708-367-0707.
9. Gallery 954, 954 W. Washington St. “Barbara Crane: Sticks and Stones.” Crane has explored a litany of innovative photographic approaches during her career. Her recent large-format image sequences both fracture and recompile reality, generating new perspectives and stunning visual scrolls in the process. Through Oct. 15. Opening reception 5-8 p.m. Sept. 9. Free. 312-563-0305.
9. Allerton Hotel, Michigan Avenue at Huron Street. “Prints/Chicago ’94.” This annual exhibition and art fair for works on paper features photographs as well as original drawings, prints and watercolors. Rare Japanese hand-colored photographs are among 20,000 works brought together by 26 dealers across the country. Everything is for sale. Through Sept. 11. $25 for Friday’s champagne preview, weekend admission and a lecture on Depression-era American prints. Per day admission: $5. 312-243-6481.
9. Catherine Edelman Gallery, 300 W. Superior St. “Shelby Lee Adams: Appalachian Portraits” features Adams’ poetic documentary of Appalachian life in mountain villages cut off from mainstream society. Adams has been documenting home funerals, family gatherings and people on their porches for more than 18 years. Through Oct. 8. Opening reception 5-7 p.m. Sept. 9. Free. 312-266-2350.
9. I space, Chicago gallery of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 230 W. Superior St. “Kevin Kennedy: Other Stories” presents Kennedy’s mixed media photographs and sculpture. Through Oct. 8. Opening reception 5-7 p.m. Sept. 9. Free. 312-587-9976.
10. Museum of Contemporary Photography at Columbia College Chicago, 600 S. Michigan Ave. “Susan Rankaitis: Abstracting Technology, Science and Nature,” a retrospective. Rankaitis’ photographic hybrids combine painting, collaging, sculpture and mathematical equations. She layers visual information to create huge, heraldic pieces that explore the ethics of technology and the implications of genetic engineering and other scientific issues. Through Nov. 12. Opening reception 5-7:30 p.m. Sept. 9. The artist will be at the reception and will offer a gallery talk at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 20. Exhibit: free. Gallery talk: $5 for non-members. 312-663-5554.
10. Klein Art Works, 400 N. Morgan St. “Misha Gordin: Doubt/New Photographs.” Gordin’s male nudes examine themes of isolation and anonymity by depicting lone figures photographed within a desolate, moonlit landscape. Through Oct. 8. Opening reception 2-6 p.m. Sept. 10. 312-243-0400.
10. Chicago Cultural Center, 78 E. Washington St. “Hortus Conclusus: Photographs by Paul Stapp.” Stapp’s black and white and color photographs document enclosed gardens that carry on an ancient tradition of glorifying nature while containing it. Through Nov. 6. Free. 312-346-3278.
17. Chicago Cultural Center. “Larry Sultan: Pictures From Home.” Sultan explores post-war family life in 40 years of snapshots, memorabilia, stills from home movies and other media. His work explores family dynamics and some of the underlying myths of family life as characterized by the American Dream. Through Nov. 6. See previous listing.
17. Art Institute of Chicago, Michigan Avenue at Adams Street. “The Perfect City: Photographs of Chicago by Bob Thall.” Thall’s arresting photographs of Chicago emphasize the spatial illusions and visual mysteries generated by layered urban environments. Through Dec. 4. Admission: $6.50 for adults, $3.25 for seniors, students and children over 5. Free on Tuesdays. 312-443-3600.
17. Art Institute of Chicago. “The Reckless Moment.” Great photographers often flirt with chaos and risk their own reputations to leap beyond photographic convention. The exhibit exemplifies a partnership of creativity and calculated recklessness in works by Weegee, Cindy Sherman, Gilles Peress and Andre Kertesz. Through Nov. 27. See above listing.
17. Art Institute of Chicago. “Issues and Identities: Recent Acquisitions of Contemporary Photography” features the varied documentary and studio approaches of 17 well-known photographers concerned with humanitarian themes. Included are photographs by Susan Meiselas, Gilles Peress, Sabastiao Salgado, Lucas Samaras and Cindy Sherman. Through Nov. 27. See above listing.
17. Chicago Historical Society, Clark Street at North Avenue. “Bricks and Mortar: Catholic Churches and Chicago Neighborhoods” recreates a historic Chicago church with color photos enlarged to 8-foot panels. Historic and contemporary photographs, documents and artifacts representing many churches celebrate Chicago’s ethnic diversity and the 150th anniversary of the founding of the Chicago archdiocese. Through April 30. Admission: $3 for adults, $2 for seniors and students, $1 for children. Free on Mondays.
23. Chicago Cultural Center, Chicago Photographic Print Fair. More than 25 dealers are bringing in famous works and some little-known gems from across the country and across the history of photography. There’s also a book sale and showings of rare films by Laszlo-Moholy Nagy, founder of the New Bauhaus school, which evolved into IIT’s Institute of Design. Vintage prints (1937-1952) by institute teachers and students will be on exhibit and offered for sale.
The discussion with Danny Lyon, Saturday night after the showing of his film “Media Man,” is free with purchase of a weekend pass. Photographer Anne Tucker offers workshops on collecting and “Looking at Photographs.” Through Sept. 25. Opening reception: 6-9 p.m. Sept. 23. Admission: reception and weekend pass, $15; weekend pass, $10; workshop, $35 (advance registration required). For tickets and reservations call 708-328-6994.
30. DuSable Museum of African American History, 740 E. 56th St. “Chicago Portraits.” Lewis Toby’s photographs honor 57 of Chicago’s unsung heroes and reflect the diverse cultural mix of the city. Essays and a video documentary accompany the show. Through Oct. 29. (The exhibit will travel the city in the coming year.) Admission: $3 for adults, $2 for students and seniors, $1 for children, free on Thursdays. 312-947-0600.
October
1. Barrington Area Arts Council, 207 Park Ave., Barrington. “A Thousand Words” features photographs, sculpture and jewelry by six Illinois artists. Photographic images are also an integral part of the jewelry. Through Oct. 29. Opening reception 7-9 p.m. Oct. 6. Free. 708-382-5626.
14. Printworks, 311 W. Superior St. “Ninna Nanna” presents Italian artist Mario Giacomelli’s stark, searing exploration of old age, illness and death. Through Nov. 12. Free. 312-664-9407.
14. Catherine Edelman Gallery. “Lynn Geesaman: New Work.” Geesaman’s impressionistic color photographs of European parks and gardens continue her studies of solitude and symmetry found in the landscape. Through Nov. 12. Opening reception 5-7 p.m. Oct. 14. See above listing.
21. Ehlers Caudill Gallery. “Harry Callahan: Vintage Prints.” Callahan’s photographs of his wife Eleanor, multiple exposures and abstract landscapes of the Chicago lakefront forged a style of photography associated with IIT’s Institute of Design, where he taught in the 1950s. Callahan, 81, will be in Chicago for the opening reception 5-7 p.m. Oct. 21. Through Dec. 3. See above listing.
21. Gallery 954. “Eileen Cowin: Land Mines and Other Stories.” Cowin stages provocative social and psychological dramas about relationships and photographs them with a dreamlike cadence. Opening reception 5-8 p.m. Oct. 21. Through Dec. 3. See above listing.
November
4. Stuart B. Baum Photography, 1415 W. Wrightwood Ave. “Men in America” features a selection of prints published in Chicago photographer Tom Arndt’s new book. The documentary project offers a compassionate and upbeat look at men of all ages, races and walks of life. Through Dec. 31. Open house 5-8:30 Nov. 4. Free. 312-528-0081.
12. Museum of Contemporary Art, 237 E. Ontario St. “Jeanne Dunning” presents the Chicago artist’s photographic works and a video installation. Dunning’s recent, unsettling close-ups of food and body parts play on the tension between attraction and repulsion while challenging visual perception. Through Dec. 31. Admission: $5 for adults, $2.50 for seniors and students, free on Mondays. 312-280-2671.
12. Chicago Cultural Center. “Great Chicago Stories: Photographs by Tom Maday.” Sixty Chicago notables posed for Maday’s black and white portraits to accompany a text of their favorite Chicago stories. The result is a poignant and entertaining living history of a city. Included are portraits of Joseph Cardinal Bernardin, Gwendolyn Brooks, Irv Kupcinet, Ed Paschke, Studs Terkel and Oprah Winfrey. Through Jan. 8. See above listing.
18. Catherine Edelman Gallery. “Survivors/Anima: James Balog.” Balog’s photographs on view show animals as isolated survivors of the threat of extinction and portray the emotional similarities between human beings and chimps as they interact. Through Dec. 23. See above listing.
18. Chicago Cultural Center. “Stephen Deutch: Sculpture/Photographs.” Deutch, one of Chicago’s most prominent commercial photographers from the 1930s onward, has pursued numerous personal documentary and art projects as well. Among them are his sensuous carved wooden sculptures and nude photographs, both on exhibit. Through Dec. 23. See above listing.
A photo safari for children
Kids 3 and over are invited to take photographs on an adventuresome Photo Safari at Lincoln Park Zoo from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Sept. 11. The zoo will provide a single-use camera and a coupon for free developing for each child. There will be a photo safari game, entertainment and dinner, drinks and snacks. Tickets: $5 for zoo members and $10 for non-members. Adults must accompany children and purchase a ticket as well. Phone reservations must be made by Sept. 6. 312-935-6700.
