And now, the harder discussion unfolds, what I most appreciated and was engaged by this past year, in the galleries and non-profit art spaces that form the nexus of the Chicago arts community.
As always, there was much I took in this past year that engaged me deeply. There were also those shows that left me feeling cold, surprisingly unmoved, and even rather disappointed, with their missed opportunities and down right failures. While I'll elect not to share those, suffice to say, this is to be expected when such diversity of talent and exploration is taking place. And yet the experiment stays riveting as a result. Chicago remains for me a true hothouse of artistic opportunity; to see it emerge, play out, and engage or fail keeps me both on my toes, and truly excited about what is still to take place.
What follows is a list, again in no specific order of preference, of the shows I saw this past year, at galleries and non-profit spaces in Chicago, that most captivated me, and left me thinking (and sometimes even breathing) hard:
Molly Zuckerman-Hartung, Negative Joy, and Vivian Maier, Vintage Prints, at Corbett vs. Dempsey
Nazafarin Lotfi, Circles, at Tony Wight Gallery
The charm of quasi-parallel lines, a group show, and Mickalene Thomas' group show, tete a tete, at Rhona Hoffman Gallery
Elijah Burgher, Geoffrey Todd Smith, Looker, and Richard Hull at Western Exhibitions
Antonia Gurkovska, Index, at Kavi Gupta Gallery
Christy Matson, The sun doesn't show through the mist until noon, at Alderman Exhibitions
John Opera, People places and things, and the group show, Sea Change, at Andrew Rafacz Gallery
I Surrender, an anniversary retrospective, at Devening Projects and Editions
Karen Reimer's amazing retrospective, Endless Set #1399, and the group exhibition curated by John Neff and Pamela Fraser, Spectral Landscape, at Gallery 400.
There were many honorable mentions as well; shows that I still appreciate greatly. These include the fantastic Chicago biennial curated by Dawoud Bey at Hyde Park Art Center; the wonderful group exhibition curated by Edmund Chia, Did you see heaven: Spectra at Peregrine Program; Jerome Acks' smooth square, soft circle, and Shane Huffman's Sense and Sensibility, both at 65Grand; Aspect Ratio's introduction to Chicago, which included both Gilad Ratman's and Brian Zanisnik's wonderful exhibitions; Kirsten Stoltmann's solo exhibition at New Capital; Karolina Gnatowski's fantastic piece, sounding off against all that testosterone, at Monique Meloche Gallery; Noelle Allen's first solo show in quite some time, at Carrie Secrist Gallery; Zachary Buchner's and Pete Skvara's solo exhibitions at Andrew Rafacz Gallery; Dutes Miller's quite lovely solo show at Western Exhibitions; and just for plain fun, Show Room/Odie Off, at threewalls.
And as always, some need to bid farewell to the passing of important spaces. A very sad goodbye to Golden, which after a series of really wonderful exhibitions, closed down its Chicago space, to focus solely on its Manhattan space. A true loss.
Nevertheless, it was a truly fine year indeed.
Friday, December 28, 2012
2012: The Chicago Museum Exhibitions I Most Enjoyed
As 2012 quickly comes to an end, I again find myself thinking back on the exhibitions I saw this year that stayed with me, particularly the ones that led me to think deeply about their featured works and what they were saying. The following list of shows, in no real order of preference, truly caught my interest and reminded me why I am a collector and true fan of contemporary practice:
Together, the Art Institute of Chicago and the Renaissance Society featured two quite wonderful exhibition pairings, that offered scope of history and representation to these artists' work: Dawoud Bey's tandem shows provided a perspective on his practice that read openly and just beautifully. I continue to be in awe of his eye and his conceptual voice. And Dahn Vo's "We the People" surprised me with its elegance. The presentation of the component pieces in the Pritzker Garden was just sublime. And the use of the Oriental Institute at the University of Chicago was genius - it's component pieces were incredibly well situated. The work opened up in a fascinating dialog with the spaces, and left me very pleased.
The Lichtenstein retrospective at the Art Institute of Chicago was truly one of this year's highlights. James Rondeau's love letter to this artist's vast practice and its strong linearity further reminded me why I was captivated by the work back when I was much younger, and remain so today.
Afterimage at the DePaul Art Museum was a truly exciting exhibition. To see the works of many artists, across time, who I have come to both appreciate deeply and respect immensely, was an opportunity of pleasure. From the beautiful selections of work by the Imagists, to their legacies who are engaging us now with their emotion and vision - this show just got it right.
Industry of the Ordinary's mid career retrospective, Sic transit gloria mundi, at the Chicago Cultural Center, proved again how clearly tied to the present a team of curators can be at this Chicago gem. A really captivating presentation of this collective's creative conscience.
Two exhibitions at the Museum of Contemporary Art proved to be strong favorites, as well. The introduction to Jimmy Robert's practice really caught me by surprise, with its lyricism and simple beauty. His videos, photographs, and constructions together provided a glimpse at a deeply considered exploration of self within the world, that seared with its sensuality and intelligence. And Helen Molesworth's "This Will Have Been: Art, Love, and Politics in the 1980s" took me back home, to the years that formed my activism and engagement with art. I was often left reexperiencing the raw emotions I first felt on seeing many of these artists for the first time, and was reminded again and again how clearly new and real the love and anger were when these pieces were created and exhibited. It was an truly apt time to bring this work forward.
Finally, I will add that the AIC ended the year quite well with the Steve McQueen retrospective and the first museum exhibition for Hito Steyerl. Both of these artists specialize in video, from quite divergent perspectives. However, each has taken this medium forward in quite daunting ways, and the two shows dance nicely together. Bravo.
Together, the Art Institute of Chicago and the Renaissance Society featured two quite wonderful exhibition pairings, that offered scope of history and representation to these artists' work: Dawoud Bey's tandem shows provided a perspective on his practice that read openly and just beautifully. I continue to be in awe of his eye and his conceptual voice. And Dahn Vo's "We the People" surprised me with its elegance. The presentation of the component pieces in the Pritzker Garden was just sublime. And the use of the Oriental Institute at the University of Chicago was genius - it's component pieces were incredibly well situated. The work opened up in a fascinating dialog with the spaces, and left me very pleased.
The Lichtenstein retrospective at the Art Institute of Chicago was truly one of this year's highlights. James Rondeau's love letter to this artist's vast practice and its strong linearity further reminded me why I was captivated by the work back when I was much younger, and remain so today.
Afterimage at the DePaul Art Museum was a truly exciting exhibition. To see the works of many artists, across time, who I have come to both appreciate deeply and respect immensely, was an opportunity of pleasure. From the beautiful selections of work by the Imagists, to their legacies who are engaging us now with their emotion and vision - this show just got it right.
Industry of the Ordinary's mid career retrospective, Sic transit gloria mundi, at the Chicago Cultural Center, proved again how clearly tied to the present a team of curators can be at this Chicago gem. A really captivating presentation of this collective's creative conscience.
Two exhibitions at the Museum of Contemporary Art proved to be strong favorites, as well. The introduction to Jimmy Robert's practice really caught me by surprise, with its lyricism and simple beauty. His videos, photographs, and constructions together provided a glimpse at a deeply considered exploration of self within the world, that seared with its sensuality and intelligence. And Helen Molesworth's "This Will Have Been: Art, Love, and Politics in the 1980s" took me back home, to the years that formed my activism and engagement with art. I was often left reexperiencing the raw emotions I first felt on seeing many of these artists for the first time, and was reminded again and again how clearly new and real the love and anger were when these pieces were created and exhibited. It was an truly apt time to bring this work forward.
Finally, I will add that the AIC ended the year quite well with the Steve McQueen retrospective and the first museum exhibition for Hito Steyerl. Both of these artists specialize in video, from quite divergent perspectives. However, each has taken this medium forward in quite daunting ways, and the two shows dance nicely together. Bravo.
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Why I Am Not Board Certified
I am not, nor likely to become, a board certified clinical neuropsychologist. I have toyed with the idea, going as far as to apply and get accepted for taking the written examination. I have all the appropriate training and background. And I strongly recommend that my trainees consider pursuing the ABPP/ABCN (cf., American Board of Professional Psychology/American Board of Clinical Neuropsychology) option. To support that, I have even become an affiliate of the American Academy of Clinical Neuropsychology (AACN), the home of board certified neuropsychologists with ABPP credentials. But when it comes to actually completing the process, I continue to balk and hold back. And despite dabbling with the idea of pursuing ABPP status in Child and Adolescent Psychology (which I still may do), I remain ambivalent at best about board certification in clinical neuropsychology. Perhaps it is time to share why ...
First, and perhaps most important to my ambivalence, is the fact that at this time, there are three (yes, three) boards jockeying for some kind of position and status in the area of clinical neuropsychology. Two of these boards are now affiliated: ABN (the American Board of Professional Neuropsychology) and ABPdN (the American Board of Pediatric Neuropsychology), although each has in the past been a separate entity, competing for attention. Now, I am a pediatric neuropsychologist, so it might be wondered, why not go for that board as certification of my skills? Perhaps the easiest way to answer is to say that ABPdN appears to be a board without much of a mandate, or even any consistent constituency, making the option for membership unpalatable at best and still perhaps even suspect at worse. None of the key researchers, teachers, or mentors in the area of pediatric neuropsychology, with whom I have any relationship, have any connection with this board, and as such, the leaders of the organization appear to have little to no organizational support for their efforts or actions. In contrast, ABCN is a component of the ABPP, which holds strong support within organized clinical psychology. It however does not truly sit as a welcome home for me, as someone who first and foremost identifies as a clinical psychologist, who then specializes in neuropsychology. I find that it often emphasizes the small constituent parts of practice, as opposed to the broader gestalt of working with individuals, particularly children and adolescents, from a holistic perspective. I remind myself that this may be an error of perception; but it is a worry that sits heavily with me. And keeps me a bit skeptical in turn.
Second, I recognize that I represent an aspect of the profession that remains somewhat suspect, to my peers outside of the academy. I identify strongly as an academic, who integrates research with practice. I work within a University setting where I undergo repeated reviews of my effort and progress - my scholarship and the success of my practice are simultaneously reconsidered, as part of my reappointment process, every five years. By both a group of my professional peers and by my colleagues more broadly across the medical disciplines. This leaves me feeling that the imprimatur of board certification is really a bit superfluous. I have to go through a review of my work and my identity as an expert more often than I would ever do so within the framework of board certification. And in a manner that ultimately feels more rigorous, given the breadth of the review. It again may be a matter of perception, but it also weighs heavily when I think about the process of taking a written test, mostly about adult functioning and its assessment, and then submitting for review my work as an evaluator, and then undergoing a three hour interview. I find that it leaves me sitting in a place of tension, that I am not quite willing to expand.
Lastly, I really wonder what it all will do for me in the end. I have jumped hard and high through numerous hoops to date. I agree that licensure is only one step of the process, but as a published, funded, and well sought out expert -- I believe that I have already shown that I am a worthy representative of my disciplines. I have the credentials that I need already well in place, it seems. Is having one more -- the sign that my colleagues have allowed me into their club -- really going to change anything? I believe that I have already been accepted into the club. Having some additional letters after my name, and another professional society bill to pay each year, isn't really going to do much more.
I remain open to reconsideration of this belief. But for now, I admit that I am really much too busy to worry about it, when push comes to shove.
Second, I recognize that I represent an aspect of the profession that remains somewhat suspect, to my peers outside of the academy. I identify strongly as an academic, who integrates research with practice. I work within a University setting where I undergo repeated reviews of my effort and progress - my scholarship and the success of my practice are simultaneously reconsidered, as part of my reappointment process, every five years. By both a group of my professional peers and by my colleagues more broadly across the medical disciplines. This leaves me feeling that the imprimatur of board certification is really a bit superfluous. I have to go through a review of my work and my identity as an expert more often than I would ever do so within the framework of board certification. And in a manner that ultimately feels more rigorous, given the breadth of the review. It again may be a matter of perception, but it also weighs heavily when I think about the process of taking a written test, mostly about adult functioning and its assessment, and then submitting for review my work as an evaluator, and then undergoing a three hour interview. I find that it leaves me sitting in a place of tension, that I am not quite willing to expand.
Lastly, I really wonder what it all will do for me in the end. I have jumped hard and high through numerous hoops to date. I agree that licensure is only one step of the process, but as a published, funded, and well sought out expert -- I believe that I have already shown that I am a worthy representative of my disciplines. I have the credentials that I need already well in place, it seems. Is having one more -- the sign that my colleagues have allowed me into their club -- really going to change anything? I believe that I have already been accepted into the club. Having some additional letters after my name, and another professional society bill to pay each year, isn't really going to do much more.
I remain open to reconsideration of this belief. But for now, I admit that I am really much too busy to worry about it, when push comes to shove.
A week full of art to come
The upcoming week is one of much activity on the art front, with the premier of EXPO Chicago on Wednesday, coupled with multiple events and openings tied to this year's iteration of Gallery Weekend Chicago. As I prepare for the onslaught of viewing and socializing that will unfold, I am taking a bit of a step backward, and perusing through the offerings that will most likely occupy my energy and time; a process of taking in the big picture and deciding how the internal details will potentially come together. That this set of events coincides with the Days of Awe (Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur) is an interesting coincidence; for it ensures that much of what I will be contemplating and focusing on will be how the spirit and will are manifest in multiple forms of creativity. Repentance and redemption will be strongly considered through a very different lens than in years past.
Tonight is comprised of both thoughts of the year I am leaving behind and a thankfulness about what is coming forward in the months that will unfold. That this has been a year full of both academic and artistic endeavors, as well as challenges and new opportunities leaves me feeling welcome and a bit humble. Both luck and skill seem to have fostered some interesting successes, as well as some not so welcome losses. I am curious about what will transpire now in turn, both in the immediate days ahead, as well as in the months that will follow. Much is on my plate. Much needs to be reconsidered. And with all of that, opportunity for new ways of seeing both myself and my talents.
I offer some thoughts about where others should also focus, as EXPO and GWC come up:
Don't miss the opportunity, if you can take it in, to hear Todd Levin in discussion with Sterling Ruby, as part of EXPO Dialogues. This coming Friday, 9/21. It should be engaging and enlightening, about practice and opportunity in a global art market.
See the work that Jason Lazarus and Wendy White have produced for Andrew Rafacz's booth at EXPO Exposure. It is truly beautiful and quite provocative. And definitely go to Andrew's opening this coming Friday evening -- John Opera premiers his most recent works, cyanotypes on canvas. They are a daring step forward and catch you off guard.
Hit the west side galleries -- see the current shows that Western Exhibitions, Rhona Hoffman Gallery, Document, Alderman Exhibitions, Volume, Kavi Gupta, Thomas McCormick, and Aspect Ratio are presenting. There is really fine work at each, crossing the borders of historical (McCormick) to truly performative and conceptual (Alderman). What I have been able to take in already has me doing a lot of hard thinking about process and execution.
I am looking forward to seeing how the Mission has handled Marcelo Grosman's work, in their show "Guilty!" It is big work and quite provocative in its presentation.
Dahn Vo is opening his exhibition at the Renaissance Society and the Art Institute of Chicago by showing pieces of "We the People," his to-scale reproduction of the Statue of Liberty. He is also presenting "Uterus," a survey of new work. This is an opportunity to truly take in how Vo reconceptualizes identity and history, to bridge present with past. His lens is strikingly clear, while the story is multi-layered. I am very curious. I think others should be too.
There will be much to consider about EXPO, both as it is unfolding, and then after it has departed. I am excited by what Tony Karman and his team are attempting to create. I have been lucky to have been included in some of the preparatory events and to share my own vision. I look forward to seeing his come to fruition. And to see the response of collectors to a fall weekend in Chicago. As to what the work will be, at the fair ... from what I have been allowed to see coming from several galleries, including Honor Fraser in LA and Rhona Hoffman here in Chicago, it will be a series of quite well considered offerings.
There are some truly exceptional exhibitions at the museums here in town, to be taken in and considered: Karen Reimer's survey show at Gallery 400 is just simply a shining representation of her practice. I grow increasingly taken with each viewing of her work. And I remain excited by both Industry of the Ordinary's exhibition at the Chicago Cultural Center and the Jimmy Robert survey at the MCA. Both included work that left me rather off-guard.
Lastly, I anticipate a great experience next Saturday listening to John Yau interview Gary Stephan at Dan Devening Projects. Gary's work is terribly addictive -- the gestures simple, yet visually dynamic. His practice has evolved, I have learned, into something quite well considered. I look forward to learning how and why.
I anticipate a very interesting post-mortem. But for now, l'shana tova. And may you be well inscribed in the book of life.https://www.facebook.com/Chgohunt
Tonight is comprised of both thoughts of the year I am leaving behind and a thankfulness about what is coming forward in the months that will unfold. That this has been a year full of both academic and artistic endeavors, as well as challenges and new opportunities leaves me feeling welcome and a bit humble. Both luck and skill seem to have fostered some interesting successes, as well as some not so welcome losses. I am curious about what will transpire now in turn, both in the immediate days ahead, as well as in the months that will follow. Much is on my plate. Much needs to be reconsidered. And with all of that, opportunity for new ways of seeing both myself and my talents.
I offer some thoughts about where others should also focus, as EXPO and GWC come up:
Don't miss the opportunity, if you can take it in, to hear Todd Levin in discussion with Sterling Ruby, as part of EXPO Dialogues. This coming Friday, 9/21. It should be engaging and enlightening, about practice and opportunity in a global art market.
See the work that Jason Lazarus and Wendy White have produced for Andrew Rafacz's booth at EXPO Exposure. It is truly beautiful and quite provocative. And definitely go to Andrew's opening this coming Friday evening -- John Opera premiers his most recent works, cyanotypes on canvas. They are a daring step forward and catch you off guard.
Hit the west side galleries -- see the current shows that Western Exhibitions, Rhona Hoffman Gallery, Document, Alderman Exhibitions, Volume, Kavi Gupta, Thomas McCormick, and Aspect Ratio are presenting. There is really fine work at each, crossing the borders of historical (McCormick) to truly performative and conceptual (Alderman). What I have been able to take in already has me doing a lot of hard thinking about process and execution.
I am looking forward to seeing how the Mission has handled Marcelo Grosman's work, in their show "Guilty!" It is big work and quite provocative in its presentation.
Dahn Vo is opening his exhibition at the Renaissance Society and the Art Institute of Chicago by showing pieces of "We the People," his to-scale reproduction of the Statue of Liberty. He is also presenting "Uterus," a survey of new work. This is an opportunity to truly take in how Vo reconceptualizes identity and history, to bridge present with past. His lens is strikingly clear, while the story is multi-layered. I am very curious. I think others should be too.
There will be much to consider about EXPO, both as it is unfolding, and then after it has departed. I am excited by what Tony Karman and his team are attempting to create. I have been lucky to have been included in some of the preparatory events and to share my own vision. I look forward to seeing his come to fruition. And to see the response of collectors to a fall weekend in Chicago. As to what the work will be, at the fair ... from what I have been allowed to see coming from several galleries, including Honor Fraser in LA and Rhona Hoffman here in Chicago, it will be a series of quite well considered offerings.
There are some truly exceptional exhibitions at the museums here in town, to be taken in and considered: Karen Reimer's survey show at Gallery 400 is just simply a shining representation of her practice. I grow increasingly taken with each viewing of her work. And I remain excited by both Industry of the Ordinary's exhibition at the Chicago Cultural Center and the Jimmy Robert survey at the MCA. Both included work that left me rather off-guard.
Lastly, I anticipate a great experience next Saturday listening to John Yau interview Gary Stephan at Dan Devening Projects. Gary's work is terribly addictive -- the gestures simple, yet visually dynamic. His practice has evolved, I have learned, into something quite well considered. I look forward to learning how and why.
I anticipate a very interesting post-mortem. But for now, l'shana tova. And may you be well inscribed in the book of life.https://www.facebook.com/Chgohunt
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