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.
This is a growing list, so check back often for new additions.
Featured
Tues, November 7, 7pm
No Assholes Issue 10 Release Party!
Uncharted Books (2630 N Milwaukee Av)
Free
Sat, November 11, 10am-12pm
In Defense | Section 1. POC
Threewalls (2738 W North Ave)
Free
Sun, Nov 12, 2-5pm
DIY Townhall + Let’s Make A Plan
The Dojo
Free
November 16-19, 2017
Chicago Art Book Fair 2017
Chicago Athletic Association Hotel (12 S Michigan Av)
Free
November 25-27th
Connect South Shore
Various Locations on 71st Street
Free
November Art Picks
Wed, November 1, 6-7pm
Seema Kohli: In Silence, the Secret Speaks
Midway Studios (929 E 60th St)
Free
Wed, November 1-10, 2017
First Nations Film Festival FA17
Various locations, see full schedule
Thur, November 1, 6-7pm
Seema Kohli: In Silence, the Secret Speaks
Midway Studios (929 E 60th St)
Free
Thur, November 2, 5-8pm
Alejandro Figueredo Díaz-Perera: Love is a Rebellious Bird
Aspect Ratio (864 N Ashland)
Free
November 2-4, 2017
Homocore Chicago 25
DfbrL8r (1463 W Chicago Ave)
Free
Thurs, November 2, 3-8pm
38th Annual Dia de los Muertos
Elevarte Community Studio (1119 W Cullerton St)
Free
Thurs, November 2, 6-7:30pm
Harold Mendez
Gallery 400 (400 S Peoria St)
Free
Thurs, November 2, 6-10pm
2017 Baile de las Calaveras
Bridgeport Art Center (1200 W 35th St)
Free
Thurs, November 2, 7pm
City Bureau’s Soap Box Ball
Co-Prosperity Sphere (3219 S Morgan)
$45-55
Thurs, November 2nd, 5pm
Reproduction of Race and Racial Ideologies Workshop: ”Making All Black Lives Matter”
Barbara Ransby, Professor of History, African-American Studies, and Gender and Women’s Studies at the University of Illinois at Chicago
Center for the Study of Race, Politics, and Culture (5733 S University Av)
Free
Thurs, November 2, 8:30pm
The Therapy Sessions with Dushko Petrovich and Jen Delos Reyes
Hungry Brain (2319 W Belmont Ave)
Free
November 3-12, 2017
Gallery Weekend Chicago 2017
Various locations
Free
Fri, November 3, 4:30-9:30pm
School of the Art Institute of Chicago Graduate Open Studios
The School of the Art Institute of Chicago (36 S Wabash Ave)
Free
Fri, November 3, 5-8pm
Faith Wilding: Un-Natural Parables
Western Exhibitions (1709 W Chicago Ave)
Free
Fri, November 3, 6-8pm
At The Biennial: A Live Critique
The Arts Club of Chicago (201 E Ontario St)
Free
Fri, November 3, 6-9pm
social distortion
Chicago Artists Coalition (217 N Carpenter St)
Free
Fri, November 3, 6-9pm
Hand Eye
ACRE (1345 W 19th St)
Free
Fri, November 3, 6-10pm
SHOW OFF: People Who Collect
Miller Beach Arts & Creative District (540 S Lake St, Gary, IN)
Free
Fri, November 3, 6-8pm
At The Biennial: A Live Critique
The Arts Club of Chicago (201 E Ontario St)
Free
Fri, November 3, 7-11pm
AMFM Presents: The Jazz Series
Silent Funny (4106 W Chicago Ave)
$5-7
November 3 – December 16, 2017
Sarah Lee and Noah Singer: Control & Contrast
Mission (1431 W Chicago Av)
Free
Fri, November 3, 7pm
Film Screening + Discussion: Tom Freeman of the North
South Side Community Art Center (3831 S Michigan Av)
Free
November 3 – December 16, 2017
the Undersphere
a collaborative installation by Lindsey French and Rosalynn Gingerich
Mission (1431 W Chicago Av)
Free
November 4 – December 3
Hervé Guibert: How could it be otherwise?
Curated by Dr. Dan Berger and John Neff
Iceberg Projects (7714 N Sheridan Rd)
Free
Sat, November 4, 3:30 – 4:30pm
Saturdays at the Bank: Archiving Workshop V with Maggie Brown
Stony Island Arts Bank (6916 S. Dorchester Av)
Free
Sat, November 4, 5-8pm
Saturdays at the Bank: Duane Powell
Stony Island Arts Bank (6916 S. Dorchester Av)
Free
Nov 5 – Dec 9
FlexSpace Presents Liz McCarthy: The Pen
Riverside Art Center (32 E Quincy St, Riverside, IL)
Free
Sat, November 4
Daniel Hojnacki: Where House Used To Be
Comfort Station Logan Square (2579 N Milwaukee Ave)
Free
Sat, November 4, 10am-5pm
Fabiola Jean-Louis: Rewriting History: Paper Gowns and Photographs
DuSable Museum of African American History (740 E 56th Pl)
Free
Sat, November 4, 1-2pm
Karen Reimer
moniquemeloche (2154 W Division St)
Free
Sat, November 4, 2-3pm
Love Us Or Leave Us Alone: Kalup Linzy
Tiger Strikes Asteroid Chicago (319 N Albany Ave)
Free
Sat, November 4, 2-5pm
Japanese Indigo and Mokume Workshop
Japanese Culture Center (1016 N Western Ave)
$60
Sat, November 4, 4-5pm
OpenICE
Corbett vs. Dempsey (1120 N Ashland Ave)
Free
Sat, November 4, 6-7pm
In Conversation: Judy Chicago and Jayna Zweiman
Gordon Parks Arts Hall (5815 S Kimbark Ave)
Free
Sat, November 4, 6-10pm
Danez Smith and Eve L. Ewing
Women & Children First Bookstore (5233 N Clark St)
Free
Sat, November 4, 6pm-12am
Queer Film Series: Episode 3: Part I
Hume (3242 W Armitage Ave)
Free
Sat, November 4, 7-10pm
Bienvenidos Tú Y Yo
The Overlook Place (3323 W Armitage Ave)
Free
Sat, November 4, 7:30-9pm
Searching for Surfaces
Vertical Gallery (1016 N Western Ave)
Free
Sat, November 4, 7-9pm
Peanut Gallery Poetry Night #9/Sung Yim Book Release
Peanut Gallery (902 N California Ave)
Free
Sat, November 4, 9:30pm-2:30am
SILENT PARTY CHICAGO “House Edition”
The Promontory (5311 S Lake Park Ave)
Free
October 15 – November 5, 2017
John Knight: Identity Value + Matt Morris: Copycat Killer
Julius Caesar (3311 W Carroll Av)
Free
November 5 – April 18th
Urban Griot
Hyde Park Art Center (5020 S Cornell Av)
Free
Sun, November 5, 1-3pm
Restorative Healing Through Ancestral Altars
Rootwork Gallery (645 W 18th St)
$25
Sun, November 5, 3-5pm
Children of the Wall Artist Talk and Concert: Bill Walker Suite
Hyde Park Art Center (5020 S Cornell Ave)
Free
Mon, November 6, 8:30pm
Salonathon: How to Listen
Beauty Bar (1444 W Chicago Av)
Free
Tues, November 7, 7pm
The Edge of Each Other’s Battles: The Vision of Audre Lorde
Presented by South Side Projections
DuSable Museum of African American History (740 E 56th Pl)
Free
November 7, 5pm
Forms and Features: Translation
Gallery 400 (400 S Peoria)
Free, RSVP required
Tues, November 7, 5-7pm
Chase Strangio: What Can the Law do for LGBT Rights?
The Center for the Study of Gender and Sexuality (5733 S University Ave)
Free
Tues, November 7-12, 2017
Forms and Features: Translation
Gallery 400 (400 S Peoria St)
Free
Wed, November 8, 7:30pm
Subject to Change: Trans Poetry and Conversation
Women and Children First Bookstore (5233 N Clark St)
Free
November 8, 5-6:30pm
Visiting Artist Talk: Fred Moten
Harris Hall (1881 Sheridan Rd)
Free
November 8, 5pm
Beyond One Chicago: Resisting Divisions of the Prison Industrial Complex
University of Illinois at Chicago, Student Services Building (1200 W Harrison St)
Free
Wed, November 8, 12-1pm
Where is Asia in Asian Art?
Sullivan Galleries (36 S Wabash Ave)
Free
Wed, November 8, 6-8pm
Forms and Features: Celebrating the South Side of Chicago: Part 1
DuSable Museum of African American History (740 E 56th Pl)
Free
Wed, November 8, 6:30-8:30pm
Jehanne Dubrow and Emily Yoon
City Lit Books (2523 N Kedzie Blvd)
Free
Wed, November 8, 7pm
“Double Vision” Dinner
with Steve Reinke, Anthony Stepter, Jesse Malmed, and Derrick Woods-Morrow chat about their show, Flat Rate Shipping
Roots + Culture (1034 N Milwaukee Av)
$40
Wed, November 8, 7pm
Made in L.A. / Hecho en Los Angeles
Casa Michoacán (1638 S. Blue Island)
Free
November 9 – 12, 2017
A-Squared Asian American Performing Arts Festival
Links Hall (3111 N. Western Avenue)
$15-20
November 8-12, 2017
Beyond One Chicago: Resisting Divisions of the Prison Industrial Complex
University of Illinois at Chicago, Student Services Building (1200 W Harrison St)
Free
Thurs, November 9, 6pm
Kevin Young: Bunk, Humbug, and Fake News
Paul Robeson Theatre (7059 S South Shore Dr)
$10-15
Thurs, November 9, 6pm
The Films of Ana Mendieta
Conversations at the Edge (164 N State St)
Free
Thurs, November 9, 7pm
Born in Flames
Harper Theater (Harper Court, 5238 S Harper Av)
Free
November 9-12
Black Mental Wellness Weekend
$0-10
Thurs, November 9, 12-2pm
First Nations Film and Video Festival FA17: UIC
Gallery 400 (400 S Peoria St)
Free
Thurs, November 9, 5:30-7:30pm
Teach In: CPS Curriculum on Police Torture and Reparations
Jefferson Park Library (5363 W Lawrence Ave)
Free
Thurs, November 9, 5-7:30pm
The Secret Life of Indigenous Archives
Newberry Library (60 W Walton St)
Free
Thurs, November 9, 6-7:30pm
Bani Abidi
Gallery 400 (400 S Peoria St)
Free
Thurs, November 9, 6-8pm
Queer Visions
Young Chicago Authors (1180 N Milwaukee Ave)
Free
Thurs, November 9, 7-9:30pm
Born in Flames
The Harper Theater (5238 S Harper Ave)
Free
Thurs, November 9, 7-11pm
Brujos World Premiere
National Museum of Mexican Art (1852 W 19th St)
Free
Thurs, November 9, 6:30-7:45pm
LCA’s LawSmart Workshop
Hyde Park Art Center (5020 S Cornell Ave)
Free
Thurs, November 9, 7:30pm
Thank You For Coming: Play
The Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago (220 E Chicago Ave)
$30
November 10-15, 2017
Dolores
Gene Siskel Film Center of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (164 N State St)
$6-11
Fri, November 10, 6pm
Chris Zain: Admission of Aggregate
Roman Susan (1224 W. Loyola Av)
Free
Fri, November 10, 8pm
Code Switch: Eve Ewing and Hari Kondabolu
Harris Theater (205 E Randolph Dr)
$15-75
November 10 – January 7, 2018
Opening Reception: Fri, November 10, 6-8pm
Brown People Are the Wrens in the Parking Lot
Logan Center Gallery (915 E 60th St)
Free
Fri, November 10, 7-10pm
Between the Staples
Chicago Publishers Resource Center (858 N Ashland Ave)
Free
Fri, November 10, 7-10:30pm
Artists’ Talk: Altar Call. The Architecture of Black Sacred Space
Rootwork Gallery (645 W 18th St)
Free
November 11-12, 2017
CPG Publishers Fair
Elastic Arts (3429 W Diversey Ave)
Free
Sat, November 11, 12-1:50pm
Fight to Win: Shrinking Prisons / Strengthening Communities
Trinity United Church of Christ (400 W 95th St)
Free
Sat, November 11, 1-3:30pm
2017 Eyeworks Animation Festival
Block Museum (40 Arts Circle Dr)
Free
Sat, November 11, 2-2:45pm
Colossal Creators Presents: Understanding Social Capital
Gideon Welles (4500 N Lincoln Ave)
Free
Sat, November 11, 2-4pm
Dreaming Bigger in Strange Time
Woman Made Gallery (2150 S Canalport Ave)
Free
Sat, November 11, 6pm-12am
Queer Film Series: Episode 3: Part II
The Learning Machine (3145 S Morgan St)
Free
Sun, November 12, 1-5pm
Super Sunday at Hyde Park Art Center
Hyde Park Art Center (5020 S Cornell Ave)
Free
Sun, November 12, 2:30-5pm
2nd Sunday Open House and Volunteer Orientation
Read/Write Library Chicago (914 N California Ave)
Free
Sun, November 12, 3-4:30pm
On “Futures of Black Radicalism”
The Seminary Co-op Bookstores (5751 S Woodlawn Ave)
Free
Sun, November 12, 2-5pm
DIY Townhall + Let’s Make A Plan
The Dojo
Free
Sun, November 12, 2-5pm
Karen Finley’s Welcome Home: Creative Resistance, Belonging, and Safe Spaces
Alphawood Gallery (2401 N Halsted st)
Free
Tues, November 14, 7-9pm
Parallax: Women on the Undefined
Volumes Bookcafe (1474 N Milwaukee Ave)
Free
Wed, November 15, 6pm
Vulnerability and the LGBTQ Community
Museum of Contemporary Photography (600 S Michigan Ave)
Free
Wed, November 15, 6-8pm
Forms and Features: Celebrating the South Side of Chicago: Part 2
Poetry Foundation & Poetry Magazine (61 W Superior St)
Free
Wed, November 16, 10am-4pm
North American Risograph Conference 2017
Chicago Design Museum (108 N State St)
Free
Wed, November 16, 6-9pm
Sondra Perry
Gene Siskel Film Center of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (164 N State St)
$6-11
Wed, November 16, 6-9pm
The Assata’s Daughters Fall Fête
Kitchen Chicago (324 N Leavitt St)
Free
Wed, November 16, 7-10pm
Fan Jian: Still Tomorrow
Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts (915 E 60th St)
Free
Thurs, November 16, 5pm
Reproduction of Race and Racial Ideologies Workshop: ”Painting Redemptive Black Labor: Art, Ethiopianism, the Great Migration, and the Political-Theological Problem of Analogy”
Kai Parker, PhD Candidate in History at the University of Chicago
Center for the Study of Race, Politics, and Culture (5733 S University Av)
Free
Thurs, November 16, 7-10pm
Fan Jian: Still Tomorrow
Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts (915 E 60th St)
Free
Thurs, November 17, 6-9pm
Trunk Show + No Coast Editions
Sector 2337 + The Green Lantern Press (2337 N Milwaukee Ave)
Free
November 17-19
Poetry Day: No Blue Memories
Harold Washington Library (400 S State St)
Free
Sat, November 18, 10am-4pm
TSJ Annual Curriculum Fair: Our Power is Dangerous
North Grand High School (4338 W Wabansia Ave)
Free
Sat, November 18, 10am
Harlem Fine Arts Show
Malcolm X College (1900 W Jackson Blvd)
$50-75
Sat, November 18, 4-10:30pm
New Blood XI
Links Hall (3111 N Western Ave)
Free
Sat, November 18, 8-11pm
Alejandro Acierto: from nothing, a process of making
DfbrL8r (1463 W Chicago Ave)
Free
Sat, November 18, 1:30-2:30pm
Hebru Brantley: Forced Field
Elmhurst Art Museum (150 S Cottage Hill Ave, Elmhurst)
Free with museum admission
Sat, November 18, 7-10pm
An Evening at Chez Nous
Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts (915 E 60th St)
Free
Wed, November 22, 9pm-12am
Blk Wednesday with Jamila Woods + more
Metro Chicago (3730 N Clark St)
$15
Fri, November 24, 6:30-10pm
Queer Lines
Chicago Art Department (1932 S Halsted St)
$15
Tue, November 28, 6:30-8:00pm
Welcome Reception + Artist Talk for 2017-18 Artists-in-Residence
Arts Incubator (301 E Garfield Blvd)
Free
Wed, November 29, 4:30-6pm
Indigenous Artists in Collaboration: A Conversation
Block Museum (40 Arts Circle Dr, Evanston)
Free
Wed, November 29, 6-8pm
Zackary Drucker
Ferguson Lecture Hall (600 S Michigan Ave)
Free
Thurs, November 30, 6pm
Allan Wexler: Absurd Thinking – Between Art and Design
Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts (4 West Burton Place)
Free
Through December 10, 2017
Dapper Bruce Lafitte: Kingpin of the Antpin
Curated by Matt Arient
Intuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art (756 N Milwaukee Av)
Free
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Featured Image: Audre Lorde, taken from South Side Projection’s event, The Edge of Each Other’s Battles: The Vision of Audre Lorde at DuSable Museum on November 7th.
