Why would anyone spend thirty-five years teaching art at Wheaton College? It’s an Evangelical institution that, until recently, forbade drinking, dancing, extra-marital sex, the teaching of evolutionary biology, and all such sinful behavior. Throughout those thirty-five years, Joel Sheesley has continued to develop his painting, with one theme following another, every five years or so. His current theme is puddles, and this seems to be his most transcendent series of all. Gone are the well-dressed but painfully tense suburbanites who populated his earlier work, and all that’s left are puddles of water on the city pavement, the blue sky they reflect, and an old, wooden ladder that might connect the one to the other, echoing the words of an old Negro spiritual. Everything in Sheesley’s paintings is done so well: the textures of the pavement, the luminosity of the sky, the dramatic design of the whole, and the occasional foot or reflected silhouette of a human figure who still seems a bit uncomfortable in the majesty of God’s creation. But that’s Protestant Christianity, isn’t it? And please note: Sheesley is not making hokey illustrations for Sunday School textbooks or religious tracts. Outside a place like Wheaton College, where else could this kind of spiritual art be developed? (Chris Miller)
Through April 4 at the Chicago Cultural Center, 78 E. Randolph
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.
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.
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.
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