Contemporary classical realism doesn’t have a home in Chicago, but Korean-born Anna Koh is temporarily bringing it into some empty storefronts in the North Park neighborhood, in what is now becoming the annual North Park Art Walk. Koh and her husband Jeffrey Varilla make classical sculpture for churches, universities and public parks, and now she has created something of a salon where she has invited like-minded artists to display their work. She’s also something of a community organizer, so many other organizations have been invited to participate, including the neighborhood universities, public schools and the Chicago Korean-American Art Association, with the ultimate goal of building a North Park Arts Center. The weekend exhibition is centered around the recently built studio of the Koh-Varilla Guild, where one can walk amongst angels, saints and heroes before they’re crated off to their final destinations. (Chris Miller)
The Whole Package: Looking at the Art Matchmaking of “Not Just Another Pretty Face” at the Hyde Park Art Center Expect an especially exciting moment when the bell rings on the evening of September 14. White cloth that covers up all the artworks shall be pulled from the gallery walls inside the Hyde Park Art Center, unveiling some eighty commissioned works culminating from the latest two iterations—2021 and 2023—of the famed Chicago art matchmaker program.
Evocative Materials: A Review of Marian Carow at Hyde Park Art Center The stars of the show are cardboard sculptures that manifest Carow’s strategy of combining improvisation with relentless curiosity to reveal the latent potential within a commonplace material that sustains our online economy.
