Our Art Picks are created in collaboration with The Visualist, Chicago’s leading visual arts calendar, and cross-promoted through Windy City Times, one of the longest locally-published LGBTQ weeklies with a national reach. Click here to get our Art Picks and latest articles delivered to your inbox monthly.
The image above is by Yesenia Bello from the exhibition Tender as the language, an ACRE show at Ignition project space, opening on January 17th.
This is a growing list, so check back often for new additions.
_
Thurs, Jan 2, 7-10pm
Listen Up! Story Night
The Pilsen Art House: 1756 W 19th St
Free
Fri, Jan 3, 5-8pm
Tracing Faults
Chicago Artists Coalition: 2130 W Fulton St
Free
Fri, Jan 3, 6-9pm
Lucid
Gallery Studio Oh!: 4839 N Damen Ave
Free
Sat, Jan 4, 9-10am
Genealogy and Local History Orientation
Newberry Library: 60 W Walton St
Free
Sat, Jan 4, 10am-6pm
4 Día de Los Reyes Mercado at Que4 Radio
2643 W Chicago Ave
Free
Sat, Jan 4, 11;30am-5pm
Writer’s Studio Write-In at the Arts Incubator
Arts Incubator: 301 E Garfield Blvd
Free
Sat, Jan 4, 12-5pm
Sis, U Belong Here: Manifest 2020
6018NORTH: 6018 N Kenmore Ave
Donation
Mon, Jan 6, 7-9pm
Nance Klehm: Soil-Look, Soil-Listen
Inga: 1740 W 18th St
Free
Tue, Jan 7, 12-1pm
Curator Tour: Water After All
Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago: 220 E Chicago Ave
Free
Tue, Jan 7, 6-7:30pm
American Sign Language Tour and Tea: Direct Message
Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago: 220 E Chicago Ave
Free
Wed, Jan 8, 5:30-8pm
Growing Cities Film Screening + Panel
Garfield Park Conservatory: 300 N Central Park Ave
Free
Wed, Jan 8, 7-10pm
Anthony Sims: Embodying the Black Experience Through Performance
Links Hall: 3111 N Western Ave
Free
Thurs, Jan 9, 12-1pm
Six Modernists in Mexico at Midcentury
The Art Institute of Chicago: 111 S Michigan Ave
Free
Thurs, Jan 9, 6-7pm
Claire Finch: Kathy Acker (1971-1975)
The Seminary Co-op Bookstores: 5751 S Woodlawn Ave
Free
Thurs, Jan 9, 6-8pm
Emmanuel Pratt, Sweet Water Foundation
Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts: 4 W Burton Pl
Free
Thurs, Jan 9, 6-8pm
Edo: Memories Museum
Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts: 915 E 60th St
Free
Thurs, Jan 9, 6:30-8pm
From Here to There: Artist Talk: Stories That Move Us
Spertus Institute for Jewish Learning and Leadership: 610 S Michigan Ave
Free
Thurs, Jan 9, 6:30-8pm
L1 Creative Business Accelerator Applicant Info Session and Tour
Green Line Performing Arts Center: 329 E Garfield Blvd
Free
Fri, Jan 10, 12-6pm
Radical Print Shop with William Estrada
PO Box Collective: 6900 N Glenwood Ave
Free
Fri, Jan 10, 7-9pm
Re: Acker
M. LeBlanc: 3514 W Fullerton Av
Free
Fri, Jan 10, 5-7:30pm
Gordon Parks: This Land Is Your Land
Rhona Hoffman Gallery: 1711 W Chicago Ave
Free
Fri, Jan 10, 5-8pm
This Scrim Became One
Aspect/Ratio: 864 N Ashland Ave
Free
Fri, Jan 10, 6-9pm
Gloria Bravo: La Resistencia
ARC Gallery: 1463 W Chicago Ave
Free
Fri, Jan 10, 6-10pm
Comfortably Bananas
Vault Gallerie: 2015 S Laflin St
Free
Fri, Jan 10, 6-10pm
Dean La Prairie: Messenger
Uri-Eichen Gallery: 2101 S Halsted St
Free
Fri, Jan 10, 6-10pm
Alexandra Antoine: Nou La
Chicago Art Department: 1926 S Halsted St
Free
Fri, Jan 10, 6-10pm
The Petty Biennial.2
NYCH Gallery: 2025 S Laflin St
Free
Fri, Jan 10, 6-9pm
Beyond Reach: Selva Aparicio & Valentina Zamfirescu
Roots & Culture: 1034 N Milwaukee Av
Free
Fri, Jan 10, 5-8pm
Female Trouble & The Tapestries
Western Exhibitions: 1709 W Chicago Av
Free
Fri, Jan 10, 7-10pm
Intimacies and Influence
Open House Chicago: 740 N Ogden Av
Free
Sat, Jan 11, 12-1pm
Remember Where You Are: Curator’s Tour
DePaul Art Museum: 935 W Fullerton Ave
Free
Sat, Jan 11, 1:30-2:30pm
Exhibition Tour by Phyllis Bramson
Elmhurst Art Museum: 150 S Cottage Hill Ave
Free
Sat, Jan 11, 5-8pm
Silke Otto-Knapp: In the waiting room
The Renaissance Society: 5811 S Ellis Av
Free
Sun, Jan 12, 11am-2pm
Closing Reception: Benjamin Larose
Material: 2025 W Belmont Av
Free
Tue, Jan 14, 6-7:30pm
How and Why to Write and Publish a Memoir
Harold Washington Library: 400 S Peoria St
Free
Tue, Jan 14, 6-8pm
Home Video Day
Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago: 220 E Chicago Ave
Free
Wed, Jan 15, 6-8pm
Surviving the Mic: Writing Workshop
Hyde Park Art Center: 5020 S Cornell Ave
Free
Wed, Jan 15, 6:36pm
United in Anger (Jim Hubbard, 2012)
No Nation: 1542 N Milwaukee Av, Fl 2
Free
Thurs, Jan 16, 5-6:30pm
Diane Simpson
Art Theory Practice, at Northwestern University: 1880 Campus Dr, Evanston
Free
Thurs, Jan 16, 6-7:30pm
Continuous Span: Christie Helm, Danielle Andress, Charlie Manion, Jessica Pierotti, Noelle Africh, and Monica Plioplyte
Hyde Park Art Center: 5020 S Cornell Av
Free
Thurs, Jan 16, 7pm
Elizabeth Bradfield & Antonia Contro: Theorem
Poetry Foundation: 61 W Superior St
Free
Fri, Jan 17, 3-4pm
All Mushrooms Are Magic
Harold Washington Library: 400 S State St
Free
Fri, Jan 17, 5-8pm
Spring 2020 Exhibitions at the 5th Floor Gallery
5th Floor Gallery: 929 W Harrison St
Free
Fri, Jan 17, 5-9pm
Annual Clearance Sale!
Project Onward: 1200 W 35th St Fl 4
Free
Fri, Jan 17, 5-8pm
New Formations: Nicolás Combarro, Hannah Hughes and Lilly Lulay, Aimée Beaubien
Catherine Edelman Gallery: 1637 W Chicago Av
Free
Fri, Jan 17, 6-9pm
Tender as the Language
Ignition Project Space: 3839 W Grand Ave
Free
Fri, Jan 17, 5-8pm
Bettina von Zwehl: Meditations in an Emergency
Catherine Edelman Gallery: 1637 W Chicago Av
Free
Fri, Jan 17, 7-10pm
Backyard Stories
062: 1029 W 35th St
Free
Fri, Jan 17, 5-9pm
Okunola Jeyifous: S is for Soul Sister
Arts Incubator: 301 E Garfield Blvd
Free
Fri, Jan 17, 6-8pm
Kuumba Lynx Open Mic
Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago: 220 E Chicago Ave
Free
Sat, Jan 18, 9-10am
Newberry 101: An Introduction to Research at the Newberry
Newberry Library: 60 W Walton St
Free
Sat, Jan 18, 5-8pm
Shannon Finley: END OF LINE
Carrie Secrist Gallery: 835 W Washington Blvd
Free
Sat, Jan 18, 6-9pm
José Santiago Pérez: Palacios (fantasy structures)
Roman Susan: 1224 W Loyola Ave
Free
Sat, Jan 18, 3-6pm
Staged Reading of Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye
Historical Quaker House: 5615 S Woodlawn Av
Free
Sat, Jan 18, 12-2pm
Petty Biennial.2: Align & Manifest Workshop
Heaven Gallery: 1550 N Milwaukee Av
Free
Sun, Jan 19, 9pm-4am
For Frankie! A Celebration of his 65th Birthday
Metro Chicago: 3730 N Clark St
$20
Sun, Jan 19, 3-6pm
Anne Harris: Thirty-nine Eyelids
Goldfinch: 319 N Albany Av
Free
Mon, Jan 20, 6-8pm
Forms and Features: Ode (Poetry Foundation)
Compound Yellow: 244 Lake St
Free
Tue, Jan 21, 7pm
Open Door Series: Patrick Durgin & Kristiana Rae Colón
Poetry Foundation: 61 W Superior St
Free
January 21-April 5, 2020
Modernisms: Iranian, Turkish, and Indian Highlights from NYU’s Abby Weed Grey Collection
Block Museum of Art: 40 Arts Circle Drive, Evanston
Free
Wed, Jan 22, 6:30-8pm
Tax Tips for Artists & Freelancers
LATITUDE: 1821 W Hubbard St, Ste 207
Free
Wed, Jan 22, 6:30-8pm
Know Your Rights: A Toolkit for Cultural Producers
Chicago Artists Coalition: 2130 W Fulton St
Donation
Wed, Jan 22, 6pm
West Side Wednesdays Open Mic
MLK Exhibit Center: 1558 South Hamlin
Free
Thurs, Jan 23, 7pm
Cinema 53: The Graduates with Bernardo Ruiz and Eve Ewing
Harper Theater: 5238 S Harper Ave
Free
Thur, Jan 23, 7-10pm
Rafiki, introduced by Erin Moore
Logan Center for the Arts: 915 E 60th St
Free
Fri, Jan 24, 6-9pm
Velvet
Leather Archives & Museum: 6418 N Greenview Av
Free
Fri, Jan 24, 6pm
Harold Mendez: The years now
Logan Center Exhibitions: 915 E 60th St
Free
Fri, Jan 24, 7-8:30pm
A Night with the Shabistan Film Archive
The Block Museum: 40 Arts Circle Dr, Evanston
Free
https://www.facebook.com/events/2529756177294721/
Fri, Jan 24, 5-8pm
Return to the Everywhere
Weinberg/Newton Gallery: 688 N Milwaukee Ave
Free
Jan 25, Feb 1, Feb 8, 2pm
Tiny Vibrating Strings @ Rhino Fest 2020
Prop Prop Thtr: 3502 N Elston Av
$15
Sat, Jan 25, 3pm
HERstory of Hairatage
Haitian American Museum of Chicago: 4654 N Racine Av
Free
Sun, Jan 26, 1:30-3pm
Panel Discussion: Azadeh Hussaini, ‘ArchiWalls’
Evanston Art Center: 1717 Central St
Free
Sun, Jan 26, 1-3pm
Reading the Black Library: Jonathan Holloway and avery r young
Stony Island Arts Bank: 6760 S Stony Island Av
Free
Mon, Jan 27, 6 pm
Exhibitions for Social Justice Discussion with Elena Gonzales and Michael Christiano
University of Chicago, Harris School of Public Policy: 1307 E 60th St
Free
Tues, Jan 28, 12-1pm
Becoming the Breeze: Curator Tour
Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago: 220 E Chicago Ave
Free
Tues, Jan 28, 6-7:30pm
In Progress: Mlondi Zondi
Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago: 220 E Chicago Ave
Free
Wed, Jan 29, 6-7pm
Gallery Tour in American Sign Language
The Art Institute of Chicago: 111 S Michigan Ave
Free
Wed, Jan 29, 6-7:30pm
Gallery Talk with Julia Fish, Sarah Herda, and Dan Wheeler
DePaul Art Museum: 935 W Fullerton Ave
Free
Wed, Jan 29, 4-7pm
Slowly, With Care Reception + Talk
O’Connor Art Gallery (Dominican University): 7900 Division St, River Forest
Free
Thurs, Jan 30, 8-9pm
Ligia Lewis Water Will (in Melody)
Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago: 220 E Chicago Ave
$10-30
Thurs, Jan 30, 7pm
We Tell Film Series: Environments of Race and Place
Logan Center for the ArtsL 915 E 60th St
Free
Thurs, Jan 30, 6-7:30pm
Creative Capital Award Info Session
Hyde Park Art Center: 5020 S Cornell Av
Free
Thurs, Jan 30, 6-8pm
Five Works: Cathy Hsiao Opening
Mana Contemporary: 2233 S Throop St
Free
Thurs, Jan 30, 6-8pm
What I really want to tell you…
Mana Contemporary: 2233 S Throop St
Free
Fri, Jan 31, 6-8pm
Soundtrack: Jared Brown
Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago: 220 E Chicago Ave
Free
Fri, Jan 31, 10am
Afro-Instrumentality
Open Studio Project: 903 Sherman Ave, Evanston
Free
Fri, Jan 31, 7-11pm
In A Room With Many Windows: Gwendolyn Zabicki
Heaven Gallery: 1550 N Milwaukee Av
Free
Fri, Jan 31, 7-11pm
Presence and Absence
Heaven Gallery: 1550 N Milwaukee Av
Free
Fri, Jan 31, 7-9pm
Twice as Nice (1989) with Jessie Maple
The Block Museum: 40 Arts Circle Dr, Evanston
Free
__
Featured Image: Taken from the exhibition Tender as the language, an ACRE exhibition at Ignition project space, opening on January 17th. In the image a hand holds onto a small grey and yellow circle at the lower right side, a white and orange piece of fabric wrapped around the upper right side, pulling to the left of the image. All set against a dark grey background.
