Chicago Artists Resource

Vincent Dermody

What advice would you pass on to young artist curators just starting out?

"Today I'm out wandering, turning my skull into a cup for others to drink wine from. In this town somewhere there sits a calm, intelligent man, who doesn't know what he's about to do!"
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Jeremiah Ketner

How do artists use the web to create networks and develop exhibition opportunities?

Having a website that I built from scratch and maintaining it as often as possible is probably one of the most beneficial things that one could do. During grad school, I was still rather unfamiliar with simple things like working with Photoshop to get my artwork documented and ready for print. Just getting out of the studio to spend a few minutes on sending out email was a chore and was not really considered as a useful networking tool at the time. more...

Gosia Koscielak

How do you foster an interaction between the local and the international scene with your gallery?

The beginning of my international career in art was established in the 80's at the Rekwizytornia (The Property Room) Gallery, at the Contemporary Theatre in Wroclaw/Poland. At the time I was organizing many international exhibitions including presentations of legendary Richard Demarco, Director of the Edinburgh International Festival of Music, Drama and Dance from Scotland and Jurgen Blum Kwiatkowski, Director of the Museum Modern Art Hunfeld from Germany. I also organized exhibitions of Italian artistic group from Bergamo, and other artists from Germany, Netherlands, and Sweden. more...

Judy Ledgerwood

Can you address the continual output that is expected of a successful mid-career artist?

There are many challenges to being an artist and making time for studio practice is one of the most difficult. As I've matured, my life has become increasingly complex with responsibilities as a parent, teacher, homeowner, perpetual home restorer and most recently, Chair of the Department of Art Theory and Practice at Northwestern University. Balancing multiple commitments is a little like spinning plates on sticks, equal parts skill and dumb luck. I have developed a few strategies that help sustain my studio practice and insure that I have 5-6 hour blocks of time to focus on my work. To preserve this time, I make careful choices about what I have to do. It means that things that I would like to do, or should do, often remain on the "to do" list for months at a time. more...

Teena McClelland

How do events, happenings and other collaborations influence your practice and what strategies do you use to successfully propose exhibitions of your work?

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Alamo & Costello

What is your most successful strategy for getting your work out there?

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Lowell Thompson

On Being Black and An Artist in Chicago.

“Momma, don’t let your babies grow up to be artists”, somebody once wrote. And...what?...it was “Cowboys”?
”Don’t let your babies grow up to be COWBOYS”
Are you sure? I would have sworn it was artists.
It’s a lot tougher being an artist - in Chicago at least - than being a
cowboy. And if you think it’s tough being an artist, try being a Black one.
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