Promiscuous in her choice of subjects and ever experimenting with photographic techniques, Barbara Crane has represented the culmination of photographic modernism through her six-decade career. In this lavish exhibit honoring her life’s work that began when Chicago was, for a brief moment, the world center of photography, we get to see the dizzying array of the genres that she practiced, from informal street photography through the most disciplined and precise renditions of objects from nature, such as driftwood. Throughout all her myriad projects, Crane has adhered to the rules of respecting her processes and putting her subjects above any indulgence of her own subjective tastes and prejudices, seeking to connect with the world on its terms rather than to impose meaning on it. Among the many series on display here, the most intriguing are experiments that were never widely shown, such as “Wipe Outs,” in which Crane transferred transparencies to Polaroid negatives, producing ghostly, indeed ghastly, portraits that are intensely expressive of emotion. (Michael Weinstein)
Through January 10 at the Chicago Cultural Center, 78 E. Washington
Home Is Where the Family Is: A Review of Chicago Chiquito at Bridgeport Art Center This small but significant exhibition shows the history of Chicago Chiquito, or little Chicago, the nickname given to La Hacienda, a small town in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico. Its families have migrated north to find work for over one hundred years.
The Roots of Pride: A Review of Jerry Pritikin at The Chicago Center for Photojournalism The show “When Then Was Now” gives a glimpse of early LGBTQ+ life in San Francisco—Harvey Milk became mayor and gay activism was gaining momentum. Pritikin, a legend of reportage, takes us back to a time before AIDS reared its ugly head and shows us how the movement looked all those decades ago.
Fleeing Desperation: A Review of Ada Trillo at Chicago Center for Photojournalism In this heartbreaking yet visually beautiful exhibition, Ada Trillo implicates herself within her subjects to shine a light on both the hope and the hopelessness of their lives. If you are not moved by these images, surely your heart is made of stone.
