David Ebony— How important is drawing for a sculptor? Among the most subtle of contemporary American abstract sculptors, Martin Puryear has produced elegant and sometimes astonishing drawings and prints over the past fifty years. The two-dimensional works often correspond to his sculptures, but they are not mere studies for 3-D
Ivy Sanders Schneider– Saint Patrick, patron saint of Ireland, is commonly associated with his eponymous holiday, the color green, shamrocks, and for driving the snakes out of Ireland. However, Patrick, born Maewyn Succat in Roman Britain around 390 AD was not Irish, but British; was never officially canonized as a
Nationality Doubtful, a retrospective exhibition of works by Czech photographer Josef Koudelka, is currently on view at the Art Institute of Chicago. Koudelka’s imagery first reached international audiences and achieved great acclaim through the publication of his photographs of the Soviet invasion of Prague in 1968. In the decades since,
Kate Nesin, associate curator of contemporary art at the Art Institute of Chicago, is also the author Cy Twombly’s Things, a fascinating account of Twombly’s long engagement with three-dimensional works. In the book, Kate offers close readings of individual works and in-depth analyses of certain guiding concerns, such as surface,
In honor of National Pie Day, we’d like to take a moment to congratulate the five winners of our American culinary history quiz! Jennifer A., Ilya K,. Kevin J., Claudia D., and Yayoi S. were the first five contestants to answer all of the questions correctly. We hope you enjoy
The exhibition and accompanying book Art and Appetite: American Painting, Culture, and Cuisine by Judith Barter explore depictions of food in American art. From colonial times to the present day, artists have used food as an entry point from which they could both celebrate and critique society, American values, and
We have been stealing moments here at the office to thumb through the revelatory book Abelardo Morell: The Universe Next Door, a catalogue accompanying an exhibition of the photographer’s work that opens tomorrow at the Art Institute of Chicago. The exhibition, and the book, include beautiful, disorienting images that explore the
Follow @yaleARTbooks The Art Institute of Chicago has a boisterous, expansive holiday spirit. The annual wreath-ing of the stately lions that welcome all visitors to the Art Institute took place on November 23rd, bestowing on the building a resolutely festive air. Inside the building, an infinitely more delicate decoration has
Follow @yaleARTbooks When we’re asked to envision pop art, we tend to think of an art form that draws its objects and ideas from commercial culture: advertising, celebrity, mass production, etc. What we don’t tend to associate this particular movement with is the painterly. After all, one of the proclaimed
Follow @yaleARTbooks The photographer Dawoud Bey, born in 1953, is probably best known for his large-scale color photographs of marginalized groups in contemporary America, and his community-focused and collaborative approach to his art. A new exhibition and accompanying catalogue from the Art Institute of Chicago, Dawoud Bey: Harlem, U.S.A., gets to the root