Michael Workman

This week in Chicago, the art world stirs from the ministrations of a sleepy summer spent elsewhere to a September already painfully overbooked and quickly spilling into October and even November. It all starts this Friday, when the gates are thrown open and that annual horserace known as the fall openings gets underway. Many alt-spaces have smartly timed their openings to occur on the night before or after Friday, when the art-viewing opportunities keenly outweigh available time to see it all (see the listings section for a full accounting). The commercial gallery trail starts for many in River North, then on to Fulton and Lake Streets, slowly winding through at eight-thirty and nine o'clock onto the sidewalks lining either side of Peoria Street between the 118 and 119 buildings, and on from there to area nightclubs like the Victor Hotel for some after-partying. Savvy travelers will need a roadmap to help them navigate it all, so here's an at-a-glance overview of some of the city's most notable shows.

Since most of this weekend's activities center on the West Loop, we'll restrict our suggestions to just a few choice River North picks: visitors should approach much of the art experience in this area walk-in style. There's plenty to surprise, such as the Josh Garber show "Pulse" and the "Smells Like Cologne" exhibition curated by Yound Sun Han at Zolla-Lieberman Gallery. Lieberman Gallery was a pioneer in the neighborhood, leading the way for the vast population of galleries that came to define the neighborhood as an art district, and the space continues to register taste-making muscle. Garber's organic shapes wear a surface skin studded with little metal studs, simultaneously chic and intransigently (though meekly) modernist at a time when the contemporary reigns supreme. At I-Space, those with a political bent will want to check out the "Underfire" exhibition, a show organized by Ryan Griffis that explores "the organization and representation of contemporary armed conflict."

Then it's on to the West Loop, starting with the Fulton/Lake Street contingent such as the EC Brown and Renee Gory show, "The Longest Piss" at Butcher Shop/Dogmatic Gallery. Visitors will recognize these two artists as the force behind the California Occidental Museum of Art, otherwise known as COMA. An exhibition space run out of their apartment, COMA has become a kind of ultimate alternative-art-insider's salon. While alternative art doesn't get the kind of market reception this weekend's built to strive after, it's a chance for a breath of fresh air outside the market mainstream. There are too many other shows to discuss in-depth, but make sure to add stops into the newly merged Packer/Schopf Gallery (an alliance of Aron Packer and the former Schopf Gallery) for "Soft Opening II," and the Robert MacDonald and Todd Mattei show at the year-old rowlandcontemporary.

At Washington and Peoria, start at the show of new work by Chris Johanson at Kavi Gupta Gallery. It's arguable that Los Angeles-based Johanson helped make this gallery's critical reputation, so effective was he in setting what was widely understood as a new aesthetic standard, at its height through perhaps late 2004. Though his cultural influence may be on the wane, he's sure to always serve up something interesting. Then it's the final leg of the evening, starting with either the 118 or 119 buildings. I suggest 118, since the 119 building's usually where the party ends up. One of the most anticipated openings is at Rhona Hoffman Gallery: a new series of works by Kehinde Wiley, "Scenic." Wiley's Baroque portraits of made iconographic imagery of everyday hip-hop fashion is daring in its willingness to court the cutting edge. Then make sure to check out the new solo show by Laura Mosquera at Monique Meloche Gallery; she's one of the gallery's longtime stable of artists. And check out Diane Christiansen's solo at gescheidle. This Chicago artist has been toiling in near-obscurity for too long, and was wisely picked up by this gallery at the height of her expressive range. Prolific and fearless, expect a wide range of media, from sculpture to animation, painting, drawing and installation.

Finally, across the street at 119, you'll have quite a selection from which to choose: there's Scott Fife at Bodybuilder and Sportsman Gallery, Juan Perdiguero: "Perros Fragmentados" at Three Walls and Josh Mannis, "The Dawn of Man" at 40000. Bodybuilder is opening Fife in its new space in the building; it ceded its old space to 40000, a recent transplant from Wicker Park. In Mannis' first solo, he uses photomontage to incorporate the imagery of National Geographic and Abu Ghraib. Fife fashions eerily poxied paens to art and pop-culture stars such as Jackson Pollock and Diana Ross in zombie-like busts and drawings. Perdiguero's drawings on photographic paper with etching ink replace the human figure with greyhound dogs to tell a story of a humanity gripped by existential longing. All in all, an auspicious start for a city that, at the close of summer, desperately needs to find its place in the sun.

Josh Garber and "Smells Like Cologne" show at Zolla-Lieberman Gallery, 325 West Huron, (312)944-1990, through October 14. "Underfire" shows at I-Space, 230 West Superior, (312) 587-9976, through October 7. EC Brown and Renee Gory show at Butcher Shop/Dogmatic, 1319 West Lake, (312)666-4566, through October 7. "Soft Opening II," shows at Packer/Schopf Gallery, 924 West Lake, (312)432-1630, through October 14. Robert MacDonald and Todd Mattei show show at rowlandcontemporary, 1118 West Fulton Market, (312)421-6275, through October 8. Chris Johanson shows at Kavi Gupta Gallery, 835 West Washington, (312)432-0708, through October 14. Kehinde Wiley shows at Rhona Hoffman Gallery, 118 North Peoria, (312)455-1990, through October 14. Laura Mosquera shows at Monique Meloche Gallery, 118 North Peoria, (312)455-0299. Diane Christiansen shows at gescheidle, 118 North Peoria, (312)654-0600. Scott Fife shows at Bodybuilder and Sportsman Gallery, 119 North Peoria, (773)235-7297, through October 14. Juan Perdiguero shows at Three Walls, 119 North Peoria, (312)432-3972, through October 14. Josh Mannis shows at 40000, 119 North Peoria, (312)738-0179, through October 7.

(2006-09-05)

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