Created in collaboration with The Visualist, Chicago’s leading visual arts calendar, Sixty’s Art Picks is a wide selection of Midwest arts events, handpicked for our audience of artists, cultural workers, and curators, prioritizing the spaces and events of historically marginalized peoples. Our list is broad but by no means comprehensive; please look at venue calendars to find more events.
All times are listed in Central Standard Time unless otherwise noted. Click here to get our Art Picks and latest articles delivered to your inbox monthly. You can find Art Picks from previous months here.
Before attending any in-person events, we hope you’ll read this open letter cowritten by a group of disabled queers to the Chicago party community, demanding COVID-safe protocols and mindful gathering to protect the most vulnerable members of our community during the COVID-19 pandemic. The goal of this letter is to reach organizers who plan events and cultivate spaces for queer community building and joy. Please remember to mask; the pandemic is on-going.
Solo Series by Lakin Akintola “The Fragrance of Colors”
October 10, 6-9pm at Gallery Guichard (Bronzeville, Chicago)
Rear View Mirror Sessions: Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway
October 15, 6-9pm at Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts (Washington Park, Chicago)
ETERNALRETURN
Open through October (Closes November 8) at cam.contemporarie (Pilsen, Chicago)
Click a button below to jump to a specific week of events.
Wednesday, October 1, 12:30-1:30pm
Art Lovers Book Club
FIGGE ART MUSEUM: 225 W Second St, Davenport, IA
Free
Wednesday, October 1, 5-6:30pm
Patchbent Session: Sarah Belle Reid
Experimental Sound Studio: 5925 N Ravenswood Ave, Chicago
Pay what you can
Wednesday, October 1, 5-8pm
artist talk & exhibition reception: Narciso Meneses Elizalde
PS1 Northside: 229 N Gilbert St, Iowa City, IA
Free
Wednesday, October 1, 5-6:30pm
VOICES: Suneil Sanzgiri
Gallery 400: 400 S Peoria St Chicago
Free
Wednesday, October 1, 7pm
Drone Rodeo: Zander Raymond and Clem Leek
The Hideout: 1354 W Wabansia Ave, Chicago
Free
Wednesday, October 1, 7-8pm
LUX presents Privacy & Eroticism with Carta Monir, Kate Wagner and Asya Sağnak
Pilsen Community Books: 1102 W 18th St, Chicago
Free
Wednesday, October 1, 7:30pm
SOUND/TEXT
PS1 Close House: 538 S Gilbert St, Iowa City, IA
Free
October 2-5, 2025
Sheboygan Film Festival
Various downtown Sheboygan locations
$0-10
October 2-December 3, 2025
Celluloid Is Out: Queer Freedom and Subculture of the 1970s
Doc Films at the University of Chicago: 1212 E 59th St, Chicago
Free
October 3-December 13, 2025
At The Last Sky
THE LUMINARY: 2701 Cherokee St St. Louis, MI
Free
Friday, October 3, 11-11:45am(EST)
Wonder Walk: Artful Autumn
Kalamazoo Institute of Arts: 314 S. Park Street, Kalamazoo, MI
Free
Friday, October 3, 5:30-7:30pm
Ofrendas Educator Workshop
Detroit Institute of Arts: 5200 Woodward Ave. Detroit, MI
Free
Friday, October 3, 7pm
Friday Night Live! Thomas X
Detroit Institute of Arts: 5200 Woodward Ave. Detroit, MI
Free
Friday, October 3, 7pm
poïsons: a trans reading series
Loaves & Witches: 6034 N Broadway, Chicago
Free
Friday, October 3, 7-8pm
Dorothy’s First Annual: Homo Homecoming!
Dorothy: 2500 W Chicago Ave, Chicago
Free
Saturday, October 4-5, 11am
Chicago Ceramics Crawl
Various studios across the city: Chicago
Free
October 4, 2025-January 18, 2026
Lisa Alvarado: Meeting of winds
Joslyn Art Museum: 2200 Dodge St, Omaha, NE
Free
Saturday, October 4, 9am-5pm
Queer History Symposium at Gerber/Hart
Gerber/Hart Library & Archives: 6500 N Clark St, Chicago
Free
Saturday, October 4, 10:30-11:30am(EST)
Drag Story Hour with Prince Brentlee and Aqua Marie!
Indy Reads: 1066 Virginia Ave, Indianapolis, IN
Free
Saturday, October 4, 10am-12pm
Comics: Draw Your Own Story (Ages 9–12)
Joslyn Art Museum: 2200 Dodge St, Omaha, NE
Free
Saturday, October 4, 11am-6pm
Pretty Good Fest
Chicago Athletic Association: 12 S Michigan Ave, Chicago
Free
Saturday, October 4, 12pm
AfroFuturist Weekend 10 Day 4: ‘Afrofuturism Now’ – Chicago Artist celebrating and advancing Afrofuturism in 2025 Gathering
Elastic Arts: 3429 W Diversey Ave, #208, Chicago
Free
Saturday, October 4, 1-2pm
“Aliza Nisenbaum: Día de los Muertos” Exhibition Tour
Des Moines Art Center: 4700 Grand Ave, Des Moines, IA
Free
Saturday, October 4, 2-8pm
tianguis
Chicago Art Department: 1926 S Halsted St, Chicago
Free
Saturday, October 4, 5:30-8pm
Fixed
Purple Window Gallery: 2233 S Throop St Unit 845, Chicago
Free
Saturday, October 4, 6pm
Closing Exhibition Celebration: We Are All Artists
Marie | Wesley: 1122 West 63rd St, Chicago
Free
Sunday, October 5, 12-5pm
Terrain Biennial 2025 Block Party
Alt_: 5645 W Corcoran Pl, Chicago
Free
Sunday, October 5, 2-4pm
HCL Art/Access Lab: Open Lab | Tsehaye Hébert and Terri Lynne Hudson
Experimental Station & Zoom: 6100 S Blackstone Ave, Chicago
Free
October 8, 2025- March 8, 2026
Tacita Dean: Blind Folly
Columbus Museum of Art: 480 E Broad St, Columbus, OH
Free
Wednesday, October 8, 6pm
Joan Jonas
Art Institute of Chicago: 111 S Michigan Ave, Chicago
Free
Wednesday, October 8, 7-9pm
For the Sun After Long Nights: The Story of Iran’s Women-Led Uprising
Women & Children First: 5233 North Clark St, Chicago
Free
Thursday, October 9, 5-7pm
Wichita National All Craft Media Opening Reception
MARK ARTS: 1307 N Rock Rd, Wichita, KS
Free
October 9-November 1, 2025
House of the Exquisite Corpse V: Blood & Puppets
Steppenwolf Merle Reskin Space: 1624 N Halsted St, Chicago
$21-46
Thursday, October 9, 6-8pm
Sharon Hayes: Ricerche: four
Siskel Film Center: 164 N State St, Chicago
$5-13
Thursday, October 9, 6-8pm
Ballet Quad Cities Performance
FIGGE ART MUSEUM: 225 W Second St, Davenport, IA
Free
Saturday, October 11, 11am-12pm
The Prairie as Pattern: Learning from Reservation-Era Beadwork
Saint Louis Art Museum: One Fine Arts Drive, Forest Park, St. Louis, MI
Free
Saturday, October 11, 2pm
Mizna Film Series, Iranian Classics: October
Walker Art Center: 725 Vineland Pl, Minneapolis, MN
$6-8
Saturday, October 11, 5-9pm
Object Lessons
T Mari Gallery: 1023 N Western Ave, Chicago
Free
Saturday, October 11, 6-9pm
Manifestations
HAZ Room: 1706 S Halsted St, Chicago
Free
Saturday, October 11-13, 9-6pm
Hyde Park Used Book Sale
Kimbark Plaza Shopping Center, Chicago
Free
Saturday, October 11, 10am-12pm
Know Your Rights Training
Westside Justice Center: 601 S California Ave, Chicago
Free
Saturday, October 11, 7pm
Charmaine Lee Attic Talent (Darin Gray / Robert Beatty)
William A. Kerr Foundation: 21 O’Fallon St, St. Louis, MO
Free
Sunday, October 12, 10:30am-1pm
Art Workshop: Ukrainian Pysanky Holiday Egg Decoration
Des Moines Art Center: 4700 Grand Ave, Des Moines, IA
$45
Sunday, October 12, 12-3pm (EST)
2025 Levitt VIBE Indianapolis Music Series: October Concert
Tube Factory campus: 1125 Cruft St, Indianapolis, IN
Free
Sunday, October 12, 2-4pm
Chicago Sukkah Design Festival
James Stone Freedom Square: 3615 W Douglas Blvd, Chicago
Free
Tuesday, October 14, 6-8:30pm
Day of Remembrance
Chicago Teachers Union HQ: 1901 West Carroll Ave, Chicago
Free
October 15-26, 2025
The 61st Chicago International Film Festival
Various Locations Chicago
$17-400
Wednesday, October 15, 2025, 1 pm
Let’s Talk About Art: Elizabeth Catlett
The Art Institute of Chicago
Free
Thursday, October 16, 5-9pm
Art in Words – The Loft@Mia: The Harlem Renaissance & Its Influences
Minneapolis Institute of Art : 2400 3rd Ave S, Minneapolis, MN
Free
Friday, October 17, 6:30pm
BEACH BALL
Beach Museum of Art: 701 Beach Ln, Manhattan, KS
$125+
Saturday, October 18, 8am-6pm
Quilt Exhibitions Bus Tour
Wisconsin Museum of Quilts and Fiber Arts: N50W5050 Portland Rd, Cedarburg, WI
Free
Saturday, October 18, 11am-1pm
Prison Trauma Healing Circle
Walls Turned Sideways: 2717 W Madison St, Chicago
Free
Saturday, October 18, 5-8pm
SK Reed: The Unreal
United Colors: 611 N 6th St Kansas City, KS
Free
Sunday, October 19, 2-5pm
Natasha Mijares: a mascletà for burning and flowering
Leisure: 2444 W Division St, Chicago
Free
Sunday, October 19, 8pm
Elastro: Cole Pulice, Angel Bat Dawid, Bill Harris
Elastic Arts: 3429 W Diversey Ave, #208, Chicago
$10-15
Tuesday, October 21, 1apm-2:30pm
Ice Actions at Arts Venues
Lawyers for the Creative Arts: Online
Free
Wednesday, October 22, 10am-4pm
Intermediate Weaving with Kallia Walkowiak
Wisconsin Museum of Quilts and Fiber Arts: N50W5050 Portland Rd, Cedarburg, WI
Free
October 23-November 2, 2025
The Crucible
Shelton Auditorium at Butler Arts Center: 1000 W 42nd St, Indianapolis, IN
$24+
October 24, 7-10pm(EST)
Mary-Ann Monforton: Heart Land
MOCAD: 4454 Woodward Ave, Detroit, MI
Free
October 24, 6-10pm(EST)
ALTÆRITY: Opening Event and NIJC Fundraiser
The First Presbyterian Church of Chicago: 6400 South Kimbark Avenue Chicago, IL
Free
October 24, 7-10pm(EST)
Brushes with the Beyond: A Halloween Happening
MSU Broad Art Museum: 547 E Circle Dr, East Lansing, MI
Free
Friday, October 24, 11pm
The Rocky Horror Picture Show
Century II Performing Arts & Convention Center: 225 W Douglas Ave, Wichita, KS
$20+
Friday, October 24, 7pm-10pm
Freedom Sounds: Tavares Strachan and Hanif Abdurraqib in Conversation + First Look Party
Columbus Museum of Art at The Pizzuti: 480 East Broad Street, Columbus, OH
$20+
October 25, 2025-January 18, 2026
Manuel Álvarez Bravo: Collaborations
Des Moines Art Center: 4700 Grand Ave, Des Moines, IA
Free
Saturday, October 25, 10am-12pm
Peanut Butter & Jelly Roll Competition
Wisconsin Museum of Quilts and Fiber Arts: N50W5050 Portland Rd, Cedarburg, WI
Free
Saturday, October 25, 7-10pm
Mick Sterling Presents: Elton John with Strings
Owatonna Arts Center: 435 Garden View Ln, Owatonna, MN
$50
Saturday, October 25, 2pm-7pm
Oddball Market
Empty Bottle: 1035 N. Western Ave., Chicago, IL
Free
Saturday, October 25, 1pm
Pictures at a Surreal Exhibition. A projected score by Renee Baker performed by the Great Black Music Ensemble
Hyde Park Art Center: 5020 S Cornell Ave, Chicago, IL
Free
Saturday, October 25, 9pm
Dr. Fresch – Haunted Hospital
Russell Industrial Center: 1600 Clay St, Detroit, MI
$49.50-$56
Saturday, October 25, 9pm-11pm
Haunted Hollywood Party – With Kasan Belgrave at The Scarab Club
Scarab Club: 1217 Farnsworth Street Detroit, MI
$39.19
Thursday, October 30, 9pm
Dracula’s Halloween Special! with Madeline Goldstein / Ronnie Stone / More Ephemerol / Sindy Vicious / DJ Juliens / Video Waste
Empty Bottle: 1035 N. Western Ave., Chicago, IL
$33.17
Thursday, October 30, 6pm-8pm
OPEN A.I.R – Bonfire & Open Mic
The #BreathingRoom Space: 1434 W 51st St, Chicago, IL
Free
Friday, October 31, 9pm
Halloween Karaoke
Cafe Mustache: 2313 N Milwaukee Ave., Chicago, IL
Free
Friday, October 31, 7:30pm
Halloween Dance Party with Heart of Chicago Soul Club
Color Club Ballroom: 4146 North Elston Avenue, Chicago, IL
$18.03
Friday, October 31, 7pm-9:30pm
Red Room Experience: Halloween Edition
Communication Studio: Communication 1741 Commercial Ave, Suite 8, Madison, WI
$50
Through October 8, 2025
El Anatsui, Nick Cave, Myrlande Constant, and José Parlá: Crosscurrents
Library Street Gallery: 1260 Library St, Detroit
Free
Through October 10, 2025
Kaneko & Mallozzi: Sonic Speculations in the Documents of Postwar Japanese Art
Audible Gallery at Experimental Sound Studio: 5925 N Ravenswood Ave, Chicago
Free
Through October 18, 2025
Chris Taylor & Eileen Woods: Head Count
Sean Christopher Gallery Ohio: 815 North High St, Columbus, OH
Free
Through October 18, 2025
THE STRETCH: SAM DIENST
The Weather Station: 658 Main Street, Lafayette, IN
Free
Through October 31, 2025
Faye Yingfei Liang: Air Crash Report
CWAC Exhibitions: 5540 S Greenwood Ave, Chicago
Free
About the image maker: Ian Carstens (he/him) is a writer, filmmaker and curator based in the Midwest. His work explores temporality, non-human aliveness, multiplicity, as well as critiques of the archive, lens-based art forms and cultural institutions. He is the lead curator/filmmaker of Glass Breakfast, an ongoing archival project. His work has been published with Burnaway, Sugarcane, The Pulp, Ruckus Journal, Fugue Literary Journal and Sixty Inches From Center.
