Smart Museum of Art Archives

Black and white image of artist La Monte Young sitting cross-legged in his loft, playing an aluminum instrument.

For the first time in nearly 60 years, Instrument for La Monte Young sings again

by Hannah Edgar November 23, 2022November 28, 2022

David Skidmore couldn’t even begin to count the number of instruments he’s played. As a member of Grammy Award favorites Third Coast Percussion (most recently nominated for Perspectives, released earlier this year), Skidmore could plausibly play instruments from all six habitable continents for any given performance—plus the odd metal scrap, surgical tube, or squeaky toy. […]

Arts & Culture

A shooting star of a talent, gone too soon

by Dmitry Samarov April 14, 2022April 26, 2022

The 1960 oil painting Garden of Music—the magisterial centerpiece of a knockout survey of the art of Bob Thompson— shows Ornette Coleman, John Coltrane, and a half dozen other jazz luminaries coexisting in a pastoral landscape. Some figures are silhouettes, while others are rendered with distinct features. How the painter balanced so many disparate elements […]

City Life

Visceral dance, free planets, and laugh therapy

by Salem Collo-Julin, Kerry Reid and Micco Caporale March 25, 2022March 25, 2022

Looking for some fun? We’ve got you covered for the next seven days, read on! FRI 3/25 It’s the tenth annual presentation of Jeezy’s Juke Joint: A Black Burly-Q Revue. Billed as the “only Black burlesque festival in the world,” this variety show celebrates a rich and diverse lineage of Black nightlife performers. In addition […]

Arts & Culture

‘The Allure of Matter’ pushes boundaries

by S. Nicole Lane February 18, 2020August 18, 2021

An exhibition in two parts—Part I: Wrightwood 659

Arts & Culture

Alley cats: exhibit highlights history of Bronzeville’s weekly jazz party

by Anne Elizabeth Moore November 12, 2018August 18, 2021

Smart Museum of Art captures the sights and sounds of the long-running ‘happening.’

Arts & Culture

Don’t celebrate the Russian Revolution

by Dmitry Samarov November 8, 2017August 18, 2021

Two new art exhibits try to recast a bloody, inhumane time period in a positive light.

Blogs

An art exhibit on vanning culture at Tiger Strikes Asteroid, and more of the best things to do in Chicago this week

by Steve Heisler September 18, 2017August 18, 2021

“South Side Stories, Rethinking Chicago Art, 1960-1970” at the Smart Museum of Art, Jian Ping kicks off Chicago Women in Publishing’s year of events, and more happenings from September 18-21.

Arts & Culture

Immigration: The next wave of craftivism for a Pussyhat Project cofounder

by Aimee Levitt August 9, 2017August 18, 2021

At the Smart Museum of Art, “Jayna Zweiman: Welcome Blanket” crowdsources handmade blankets for incoming migrants.

Blogs

After a 15-month search, Smart Museum gets Gass

by Deanna Isaacs January 11, 2017August 18, 2021

Fifteen months after the departure of director Anthony Hirschel, the University of Chicago’s Smart Museum has announced that Alison Gass will be his successor.