Opening Passages: Photographers Respond to Chicago and Paris
Part of Art Design Chicago
May 4—October 6, 2024
Chicago Cultural Center, Exhibit Hall, 4th Floor North
Chicago Cultural Center > Visual Art Program > Exhibitions > Past Exhibitions > Opening Passages: Photographers Respond to Chicago and Paris
Opening Passages brings together ten photographic series by French and American artists that survey the dynamic social landscapes of Chicago and Paris. American artists include Marzena Abrahamik, Jonathan Michael Castillo, zakkiyyah najeebah dumas o’neal, Tonika Johnson, and Sasha Phyars-Burgess, while the French are Gilberto Guiza-Rojas, Karim Kal, Assia Labbas, Marion Poussier, and Rebecca Topakian.
This multi-venue exhibition also features site-specific installations in venues and community spaces spread across the city, including 6018|North (Edgewater), BUILD Chicago (Austin), and Experimental Station (Woodlawn). These various activations throughout the city feature work that directly resonates with the neighborhoods where the venues are situated and speak to the socio-cultural themes that structure the overall exhibition, which reflects on urban divisions, cultural identity, immigrant experiences, waterfronts and green spaces, and the built environment. The exhibition centers stories from the margins, forming a visual collage of life within these two global cities.
Opening Passages: Photographers Respond to Chicago and Paris is organized by Villa Albertine in Chicago, curated by Carl Fuldner in association with Pascal Beausse from the Centre national des arts plastiques and Clément Postec from the Ateliers Médicis. It is supported by the Terra Foundation for the American Arts, Albertine Foundation chapter in Chicago, the Department of Cultural Affairs of the City of Chicago and the Institut Français.
Opening Passages: Artists Respond to Chicago and Paris is part of Art Design Chicago. It is organized by Villa Albertine in Chicago, curated by Carl Fuldner in association with Pascal Beausse from the Centre national des arts plastiques and Clément Postec from the Ateliers Médicis. It is supported by the Terra Foundation for the American Arts, Albertine Foundation chapter in Chicago, the Department of Cultural Affairs of the City of Chicago, the Institut Français, the Alliance française de Chicago and the France Chicago Center at the University of Chicago.
Newcity Article (May 30, 2024): Villa Albertine’s Long Reach: A Review of “Opening Passages—Photographers Respond to Chicago and Paris”
Programming Schedule
Wednesday, August 14
6-8pm
Opening Passages with Ladies Who Lit & The Paris Novel
Exhibit Hall, 4th Floor North
Join Ladies Who Lit at the Chicago Cultural Center (Exhibit Hall, 4th Floor North) to explore the exhibition, on view through August 24, and then join in for a panel conversation informed by themes and anecdotes from the book, moderated by LWL founder Kaylen Ralph and featuring Opening Passages exhibiting photographer zakkiyyah najeebah dumas-o'neal and Elizabeth Cummings, Director of Pubic Engagement at the Richard H. Driehaus Museum, which will be informed by themes and anecdotes from the book.
Thursday, June 6
6-7:30pm
Diana Solís and Victoria Martinez in Conversation, moderated by Risa Puleo
Chicago Rooms, 2nd Floor North
Join us for a public conversation between current Chicago Cultural Center exhibiting artists Diana Solís (Images on which to build, 1970s - 1990s) and Victoria Martinez (Braiding Histories). Risa Puleo, independent curator and PhD candidate at Northwestern, will moderate the conversation between these two Pilsen-based artists.
Wednesday, May 8
12-1pm
Gallery Talk
Exhibit Hall, 4th Floor North
Join us for a Gallery Talk inside the exhibition Opening Passages: Photographers Respond to Chicago and Paris at the Chicago Cultural Center.
Curators Carl Fuldner and Pascal Beausse (Cnap) will host a conversation between Jonathan Michael Castillo, Gilberto Güiza-Rojas, Tonika Lewis Johnson, Karim Kal and Marion Poussier. The discussion will focus on documentary strategies for representing communities.
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Open Daily, 10am–5pm
Exhibitions close 15 minutes before the building closes
(Closed Holidays)
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