I realized this week that, as of this year, I've been immersed in the art world for 40 years. I guess it's what keeps me young, on my toes, engaged and learning. And in the last few months I've learned the difference between an Art Dealer and a Gallerist. I...

There are perks to having a press pass; like getting to preview exhibitions at the Museum of Contemporary Art with a small group, several curators, and the artist. Theaster Gates is a wonderfully intelligent artist, sensitive and fully capable of pushing paradigms across international borders. Homegrown Chicago, Gates...

I've been waiting for the opening of Jun Kaneko's ceramic sculptures at Millennium Park. There are two powerful bodies of work on view. To the south are the dangos I've been familiar with, and exhibited, when I had a gallery. And on the north side of the park are the...

Usually, when asked by artists what direction their art should take, I advise them to do what resonates -- to do what they believe in and to be who they are.

When it comes to museums, there are other issues. Museums' missions...

There's a new show that just opened at Chicago's Museum of Contemporary Art, curated by the legendary L.A. curator Paul Schimmel. Destroy the Picture: Painting the Void is an exhibit that looks at the global redirection of art immediately after World War II, which reinforces the notion that...

There's something about January. For the second year in a row, I'm seeing outstanding exhibits when one might not expect any.

Terry Adkins, at the Block Museum in Evanston, playfully and provocatively tweaks our collective consciousness in his examination of African-American Culture and its history. This blockbuster...

Among the numerous excellent shows opening this weekend I saw several that were truly outstanding. At The Mission, Jeroen Nelemans, a somewhat recent transplant from Holland to Chicago, is presenting, fresh, intelligent, proud work. Working with historically Dutch content, like maps, tulip fields and Vermeer, he's reinterpreting his...

I went to Art Basel Miami Beach, the granddaddy of American art fairs to connect with experts who'll be participating in future Klein Artist Works courses. And I also went to Art Miami, Context, Miami Project, Pulse, Scope, NADA, Untitled, Aqua and others. (to see many more pictures,...

Opening last night, in an attractive new space, in an area of the city that is serving more and more artists is a strong group exhibit at the Bridgeport Arts Center. Anxious Object: Masterpiece or Junk was curated by Lelde Klamite and includes Bill Boyce, Mary Ellen Croteau,...

I ran around like crazy trying to view all the good shows that opened this past weekend.

The exceptional photography dealer Catherine Edelman is celebrating her 25th anniversary in the business with a large exhibit of photographs from artists she's worked with over that period of time. It...

Industry of the Ordinary is a pair of artists who make art out of the seemingly mundane, and transform it into art that engages the broad public. Their show at the Chicago Cultural Center does just that. The viewers there include the non-art going public who respond audibly...

I got to Navy Pier, the venue for the thoroughly excellent ExpoChicago, at least an hour before the reception for the donors supporting the Museum of Contemporary Art. It gave me an opportunity to stroll the fair and take photos with the finished booth installations the way the...

I had the pleasure of previewing Expo Chicago while dealers and art installers were setting up their booths. This is the moment of supreme optimism, when everything might just work out as everyone has dreamed. And it just might.

Exhibitors not seen in Chicago in over a decade...

After the cacophony of last week's season opening exhibitions across the city of Chicago, there are three impressive, divergent openings tonight. Jacob Hashimoto, and all the artists in this ArtLetter, went to school in Chicago and were clearly imbued with the work ethic that distinguishes our artists from those elsewhere....

Here we go again. With a very limited number of exceptions, most Chicago galleries open their fall season this weekend. This is the weekend those who usually don't make it to the Friday night openings get out and get seen. All the galleries are putting their collective best feet out,...

So many artists think they want to work with an art gallery. Many 'fall' for the first gallery that makes them any offer. This doesn't work better than most shotgun weddings. Having a gallery should be a choice.

There are a lot of trade-offs between having and not having an...

My last ArtLetter included comments about the Ozarks, which offended some people there who read the post on Huffington Post. They felt that I denigrated their culture. "Culture consists of the beliefs, behaviors, objects, and other characteristics common to the members of a particular group or...

On our way to Bentonville, Ark. and the Crystal Bridges Museum my college-bound son and I spent an evening in Branson, Mo., where the enthusiastic and demonstrative conservatives go to celebrate their values.

The next...

I, and a couple hundred others, sat in on an enthusiastic meeting Wednesday with Mayor Emanuel, NEA (National Endowment for the Arts) Chairman Rocco Landesman, Ra Joy of the Illinois Arts Alliance and of course Chicago's dynamic Arts Commissioner, Michelle Boone, among others. The discussion was about the just released...

Between being busy and vacationing I haven't hit the museums and galleries as regularly as I'd like. There are openings I've missed and shows I haven't been able to adequately preview. Two sources that I use for a guide are Zingrecs (which you can subscribe to) and