In ten color fantasy scenario photo-works, Sabina Cosic illustrates the story of Mary Mae and her brother Chaos—a tale of sibling rivalry that puts Cain and Abel to shame for its utter descent into horrifying absolute evil, which Cosic relates in texts below each image in small print. Suffice it to say that Mary Mae suffers from the worst case of nihilistic existentialist envy this side of Satan: she resents Chaos because she has no heart and he has a good one; in consequence, she tries to kill him in the most hideous ways—the ones we find described in books on contemporary child abuse. We can see it all in the photo-works, which Cosic composes in the computer out of photographs and her digital tweaking, coming up with ghoulish scenes out of a fairy-tale book that would be sure to frighten any child to death, and might do the same for some adults if they looked at them long enough. With Cosic, the bad seed has blossomed into the flower of evil. (Michael Weinstein)
Through September 2 at the Chicago Photography Center, 3301 North Lincoln
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.
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.
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