By CGN Staff
Art Encounter, an area nonprofit founded in 1978 by three artists, recently shared that it is expanding its community outreach programming. Currently Art Encounter serves over 1,000 individuals from all ages and backgrounds annually – work that is at the heart of the group's mission and which brings creativity and connection to youth, adults, and seniors throughout the greater Chicago area at no cost to the participants.
This fall new and revived programs include an introduction to street art for young adults in Evanston, art discussions and memory-themed projects for Chicago seniors in assisted living facilities, and even a mural project with pre-schoolers.
In 2022, AE partnered with Curt’s Café, which works to improve outcomes for young adults living in at-risk situations through work and life skills training, on a rewarding mural project. Led by artist Sholo Beverly, teens and young adults from their workforce development program designed and painted a beautiful mural entitled Elevate on the exterior of the restaurant. This fall AE is renewing their partnership by launching a new, five-week workshop introducing Curt’s Café’s students to the world of contemporary murals and street art. The series will include on-site workshops with professional muralists to explore art techniques through creative projects, a walking tour of Art Encounter’s Evanston murals, and a studio visit with a professional artist.
Last month Art Encounter returned to two Chicago senior homes-- Paul House and Greenview Place-- for a new series in their Making for Memory and Connection program, which first launched in 2022. This nine-week program, called A Special Place, honors each individual’s life by commemorating a special place from their lives. Teaching artists Val McCune and Alex Stevenson are bringing original, professional artworks related to place and memory for discussion, then leading participants in creating a personal mixed media artworks reflecting on their chosen special place. The program will culminate with a reception and exhibition, where friends and family will join the artists to celebrate their projects. The Elizabeth Morse Charitable Trust is the generous sponsor of this program.
In late October, teaching artist Courtney Reed will lead a four-session mini-residency with students from Theodore Roosevelt High School in Chicago’s Albany Park neighborhood as part of a new program at the school called PART: Performing Arts Responsive Therapy. This workshop, focusing on expressive self-portraits, will provide a creative outlet for newly-arrived migrant youth at the school to share their own migration stories and affirm their personal identities in a safe and supportive environment. Students will also discuss and draw inspiration from one of the recent additions to our traveling art collection: a painting entitled Two Pawns by Evanston artist Sam Onche, pictured above.
Thanks to support from the foundation Innovation 80, Art Encounter will be reviving a former intergenerational program called Linking Generations this year. In partnership with the social service agency Family Matters of Rogers Park, Chicago. this program pairs youth and seniors living in the same community to get to know each other through a series of hands-on workshops exploring different artistic media. Students and their senior partners interview each other to share life experiences, stimulate visual memory, and build relationships between generations. They then collaborate on a mixed media shadowbox project related to a shared interest, value, or dream that the pair has discovered. The program will culminate in a reception for family, friends, and community to share their work and reflect on their experience together.
Finally, Art Encounter will be working with neighbor artists at the Noyes Cultural Arts Cente on a special outdoor art project. Nearby Unity Preschool has recently created a unique and special outdoor space next to Noyes, giving their students the opportunity to play and explore while connecting with nature. This space is currently bordered by low concrete barriers, which will be transformed into a wildflower garden through a collaborative mural painted by fellow Noyes tenants and Unity's preschoolers.
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By CGN STAFF
Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center will reopen its Skokie location on November 11, 2026, following a renovation that expands visitor spaces, updates its core Holocaust exhibition and adds a new reflection gallery. The reopening is timed to coincide with Veterans Day. Active military personnel, veterans and their families will receive free admission that day.
The project includes a redesigned Lillian & Larry Goodman Auditorium and Gallery, an enlarged lobby in the Shapiro Family Foundation Welcome Center, and a refreshed Resilience Hall with an expanded stage for presentations and public programs.
Updates to the Zev & Shifra Karkomi Holocaust Exhibition include additional material on the roots of antisemitism, the story of Chicago resident Leo Edelman, and the experiences of other groups targeted by the Nazis. A new reflection gallery, accessible from the exhibition, offers visitors a quiet space during and after their visit.
“Every visitor’s experience now begins differently and runs deeper,” said Kelley Szany, the Museum’s senior vice president of education and exhibitions. “The new welcome center sets the tone from the moment people arrive, the enhanced core Holocaust exhibition brings the history and the voices of survivors into sharper focus, and our new auditorium gives us a place to gather, listen, and talk about what it means for our communities today.”
Existing attractions, including the virtual reality theater, the interactive Survivor Stories Experience holographic theater, the Take A Stand Center and the Voices of Genocide Exhibition, will remain part of the Museum’s offerings.
Following the reopening, Blacklist: The Hollywood Red Scare will open November 15 in the special exhibition gallery. Created by and on loan from Jewish Museum Milwaukee, the exhibition examines the intersections of politics, antisemitism, freedom of speech and national security during the Red Scare of the 1940s and 1950s. It will remain on view through March 2027.
The Museum’s satellite location in Chicago’s River North neighborhood, Experience360, will remain open through December 31, 2026. The downtown space opened during the Skokie renovation to provide continued access to the Museum’s immersive exhibitions.
For information and ticket reservations, visit ilholocaustmuseum.org.
Image: Museum exterior. Photo by David Seide/Definedspace.com
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By GINNY VAN ALYEA
SOFA Chicago, the longtime fair devoted to sculpture, objects, functional art and collectible design, will return to the city October 28–31, 2027, as part of Chicago Art Fair at THE MART, which opened its inaugural edition last night.
Founded in Chicago in 1994, SOFA became a popular fixture on the city’s fall arts calendar. For much of its history, collectors and visitors gathered at Navy Pier to discover works in glass, ceramics, wood, metal and fiber, alongside sculpture and design. Its focus on materials and craftsmanship gave the fair a distinct identity and cultivated a devoted audience.
The announcement comes as the inaugural Chicago Art Fair gets underway at THE MART. The new fair opened with a preview on October 7 and continues through October 10, presenting modern and contemporary art. Tim von Gal, CEO and producer of SOFA Chicago and CEO of Intersect Art and Design, was in Chicago this week for the occasion.
Organizers describe the 2027 collaboration as two distinct but complementary presentations under one roof, with SOFA’s focus on three-dimensional art and design alongside Chicago Art Fair’s broader offerings.
“Chicago has always been an extraordinary home for SOFA and a city with a deep appreciation for art, craft, architecture and design,” said von Gal in the announcement. “Joining the Chicago Art Fair at THE MART gives us the opportunity to build upon that legacy while creating an exciting new experience for collectors and exhibitors alike.”
Eric Smith, owner of Chicago Art Fair and CEO of Redwood Art Group, said the addition would broaden the fair’s scope while preserving SOFA’s identity.
“SOFA has a remarkable legacy and a distinct identity, and its return adds an important new dimension to the fair while reinforcing Chicago’s position as a destination for collectors, galleries and art lovers from around the world,” Smith said.
For those who remember SOFA as an annual opportunity to encounter ambitious work in craft and design, the return will be welcome news. The participating galleries and programming, still to be announced, will provide a fuller picture of how that legacy will take shape in its new setting.
SOFA Chicago is produced by Intersect Art and Design, which also organizes annual art and design fairs in Aspen and Palm Springs.
Additional details about exhibitors, partnerships and tickets are expected in the coming months.
Visit chicagoartfair.com for updates.
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The artist Richard Hunt
By CGN Staff
Pigment International has dedicated Black Fine Art Month 2026 to Chicago sculptor Richard Hunt (1935–2023), recognizing his contributions to American art and his lifelong connection to the city.
As part of the month’s programming, the organization will host Pigmented: Chicago to the World — A Black Fine Art Convening on October 23 at the University of Chicago’s Logan Center for the Arts. Partners include the Richard Hunt Legacy Foundation, Adler University, CAI Designs, Chicago Public Art Group, Chicago Sculpture Exhibit and Diasporal Rhythms.
Born and raised on Chicago’s South Side, Hunt developed an internationally recognized practice while continuing to live and work in his hometown. His welded metal sculptures brought together abstract forms, references to the natural world and an enduring interest in freedom and social justice.
Hunt identified attending Emmett Till’s funeral in 1955 as a turning point in his artistic life. Till had lived just two blocks from Hunt’s home. Decades later, Hunt’s public commissions would honor figures including Martin Luther King Jr., Mary McLeod Bethune, Jesse Owens and Ida B. Wells, while also addressing the Middle Passage and the Great Migration.
In 1968, President Lyndon Johnson appointed Hunt to the National Council on the Arts, where he became its first African American member. In 1971, at age 35, he became the first African American sculptor to receive a retrospective at New York’s Museum of Modern Art. His career encompassed more than 150 solo exhibitions and more than 160 public art installations.
![](\"https://res.cloudinary.com/dfafo598z/image/upload/v1791479104/lltcodkx39gd8sbhtus1.png\")
Richard Hunt with artist Chris Devins, who recently completed a mural honoring the sculptor in Hyde Park. Photo courtesy of Chris Devins.
Recent projects in Chicago offer new ways to encounter Hunt’s work and history. This fall, the Logan Center opened the Hunt, a café honoring the artist. Created and designed by Little Black Pearl founder and executive director Monica Haslip, the space incorporates two Hunt sculptures, African art, archival materials and photographs by Sandro Miller.
In Hyde Park, artist Chris Devins and historian Michelle Duster have brought a mural of Hunt to 1515–19 E. 54th Street. The portrait is based on photographs Devins took in Hunt’s studio before the sculptor’s death.
“Richard Hunt was a giant in the arts world and people need to see what he looked like and be inspired by his legacy,” Devins said.
Pigment International’s dedication also reflects its own relationship with Hunt. The organization featured him in its magazine in 2020, and he welcomed its Black Fine Art Month programming into his studio in October 2021.
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Two events take place this month:
Pigment International at SPECTRUM Chicago Art Fair
October 7–10, 2026.
Chicago Merchandise Mart, seventh floor, booth #3091.
Wednesday, October 7, 5–8 pm, with a champagne toast in the booth and an artist meet-and-greet.
Thursday, October 8, 6-8pm with Diasporal Rhythms
Featured artists: Jesse Howard, Howard Simmons, Edo, Candace Hunter, Sura DuPart and Max Sansing.
Additional events are taking place during the fair
Chicago to the World: A Black Fine Art Month Convening
Presented by Pigment International as part of Black Fine Art Month, which the organization has dedicated this year to Richard Hunt.
Friday, October 23, 2026, 11:30 am–5 pm.
Logan Center for the Arts, 915 E. 60th Street, Chicago.
Details at pigmentintl.com