{"article":{"id":14159,"title":"Beyond the Mirrors: Four Artists at Wrightwood 659","excerpt":"","body":"


By GINNY VAN ALYEA


Two new exhibitions at Wrightwood 659 bring works by Yayoi Kusama, Niki de Saint Phalle, Mary Bauermeister and Yuan Goang-Ming to Chicago this fall. Kusama’s two Infinity Mirror Rooms will likely be a draw for many visitors, but there is considerably more to see throughout the Lincoln Park exhibition space.


Inner Worlds: Visions from the Hirshhorn Collection features Kusama, de Saint Phalle and Bauermeister in a focused presentation drawn from the Smithsonian museum’s collection. Yuan Goang-Ming: Everyday War brings the Taiwanese artist’s video and installation work to Chicago following his presentation at the Taiwan Pavilion of the 2024 Venice Biennale.


Together, the exhibitions offer a substantial visit, with time to look closely at individual objects as well as sit and watch works that unfold over several minutes.


Curated by the Hirshhorn’s Betsy Johnson, Inner Worlds considers three artists who became part of the postwar avant-garde. Kusama, de Saint Phalle and Bauermeister were born in Japan, France and Germany, respectively, between 1929 and 1934. All three experienced World War II as children and made their way to New York by the early 1960s, developing careers that challenged expectations of women and took their work to audiences around the world.


Kusama was put to work as a young girl in factories for the war effort, sewing parachutes in the period leading into and during World War II. She has spoken at length about air-raid sirens, the terror they caused, and their impact on her psyche. The first work in the exhibition, the infinity room Phalli’s Field [Floor Show], was made by hand-stitching phallic forms, a technique the artist developed by working in a parachute factory. Here, you can leave the room only when someone outside opens the door. 


Yayoi Kusama


Yayoi Kusama


In the second room, from 2018, My Heart Is Dancing into the Universe, the visitor is disoriented by a black, mirrored space that recalls 1960s psychedelic lights. Highly reflective black tile reflect hanging, polka dot lanterns intended to realize what an afterlife might look like. This in-between space is one of Kusama’s pass-through infinity mirror rooms, where visitors can walk in one side and come out the other.


The opportunity to experience two of Kusama’s rooms in Chicago is reason enough to plan a visit. Visitors also become part of the work. Johnson explained, “She used mirrors because they implicate you in [the art] as well. You are being obliterated by the sort of environment that you’re entering.” Johnson added that Kusama’s famous polka dots became agents of this obliteration, a return to the cellular level we all come from.


At Thursday’s small press preview, our time inside the immersive spaces was limited. I had assumed the limits were for crowd control in the selfie age, so restricting just a handful of visitors made me pause. When I asked about our allotted minute and 25 seconds, a staff member explained that the interval was intentional. Johnson elaborated that Kusama’s studio had worked to establish an ideal viewing time. Infinity, I guess, does have a limit.


Niki de Saint Phalle


De Saint Phalle’s large mixed-media work Pink Lady introduces the expressive imagery and full-bodied female figures for which she is known. Its surface rewards close looking, with small drawings and motifs spread throughout the body of the figure. Johnson discussed the artist’s abusive childhood and early marriage. The confinement she felt resulted in a mental collapse that led to a brief period of institutionalization, where she found painting.


Seen near Kusama’s mirrored room, Pink Lady offers another example of an artist giving physical form to difficult personal experiences. The results are very different, but both women developed visual languages that could draw viewers into their worlds.


Mary Bauermeister


Bauermeister’s optical and stone assemblages occupy a narrower part of the gallery that invites close examination. Lenses alter the view of drawings and text within the works, changing what visitors see as they move around them. “It is meant to involve the viewer,” Johnson explained during the tour, comparing that experience to entering an infinity mirror room. She adds that an early reviewer of Bauermeister’s work suggested that time was the only thing preventing these works from becoming infinite: given enough time to keep making marks, they might keep expanding.


The exhibition gives visitors a chance to spend time with work that may be less familiar than Kusama’s but it no less revelatory. Considering the three artists together, as well as on their own, shows work that is clearly beautiful to behold but that also reveals what artists can express for future generations about the trauma and turmoil of living through the constant internal and external destructiveness of war. 


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Yuan Goang-Ming, Prophecy (2014)


Yuan Goang-Ming: Everyday War occupies the upper floors, though its sounds travel through the building, signaling that even when you cannot see a battlefield, the effects of war permeate the spaces of every day life. Even before a work comes into view, a sudden crash interrupts the visit.


Adapted from the Venice exhibition curated by Abby Chen, the presentation examines how the possibility of conflict enters the day to day. As Yuan emphasized, war today is not limited to physical gunfire or military conflict: it can be experienced through pressure or conflict, including natural disasters and additional global and political threats that people are living through.


Sound is as important as the imagery in many of these works, and the videos need time to unfold. One projection takes viewers on a journey through downloaded Google Street View images, with no apparent beginning or end. In another, aerial footage shows Taipei during an annual air-raid drill. Yuan used five drones to record the city from different angles. The empty streets recall the pandemic, but this interruption takes place each year as residents rehearse what to do in an emergency.


Yuan Goang-Ming


Yuan Goang-Ming


Two Adirondack chairs on a landing between floors offer a place to watch the footage. They are an odd seating choice for viewing a city preparing for an attack, placing visitors in a comfortable position that recalls a lakeside weekend. Nearby, Yuan’s delicate drawing What Lies Beyond Us? references a 1951 photograph of American observers watching a nuclear test from Adirondack chairs. The connection gives the gallery seating a more unsettling association.


In Prophecy (2014), glasses and dinnerware shake on a kinetic table. The first disturbance is startling. As it repeated through the galleries, I found myself becoming accustomed to the crash. That adjustment was unsettling in itself, suggesting how an alarming sound might become part of the background of daily life.


Sofas and picture lighting add to the exhibition’s domestic setting. In one video, a destroyed interior comes back together in a way that reminded me of a scene from Harry Potter. What has been blown apart is restored in reverse, while you anticipate when it will explode again.


Yuan Goang-Ming


Yuan Goang-Ming


These scenes make the uncertainty surrounding Taiwan feel closer to home. They shift attention from political debates about China and Taiwan to the people living there, their kitchens and daily routines. The works stay with you because so much of what they depict is recognizable, even if, fortunately, the circumstances are not.


Visitors who come even just for Kusama's selfie opportunities will have plenty of reasons to explore art from these artists and these times more deeply. Across the two exhibitions, Wrightwood 659 offers work by four internationally significant artists, with more to absorb than many may expect when they arrive.


Inner Worlds: Visions from the Hirshhorn Collection

and Yuan Goang-Ming: Everyday War

On view through December 19, 2026

Wrightwood 659

659 W. Wrightwood Ave., Chicago.



Advance tickets are required. Visit wrightwood659.org for reservations and current hours.

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This weekend's art plans can take you across Chicago, into the far suburbs, and north to Wisconsin.


The Chicago Architecture Center’s annual Open House Chicago opens doors to distinctive spaces, while family activities and an outdoor sculpture tour offer more ways to spend time with art.


Here is a look at what’s on this Saturday and Sunday. Follow the event links for any registration details and updates, and keep an eye on CGN’s calendar as more details are added.


– CGN




Open House Chicago at the Driehaus Museum

Saturday–Sunday, October 17–18; Saturday performance 1–2 p.m.

The Driehaus Museum

Murphy Auditorium, 50 E. Erie St., Chicago


Explore the historic Murphy Auditorium during the Chicago Architecture Center’s annual Open House Chicago weekend. The landmark, reopened after renovation in 2024, also hosts Hanna DiLorenzo’s Behind Closed Doors on Saturday. Entry is free without reservations; access does not include the museum’s exhibition galleries.




Family Day: Proud to Be Me

Saturday, October 17, 10 a.m.–1 p.m.

Smart Museum of Art

5550 S. Greenwood Ave., Chicago


Exhibiting artist Nina Chanel Abney guides visitors in creating colorful self-portrait collages. A collaborative card-deck project extends the activities beyond the canvas, offering families a chance to explore identity and creativity together.




Open House Chicago: Etching Demonstrations

Saturday–Sunday, October 17–18, 11 a.m.–5 p.m. each day

WING Studio

4883 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago


Add printmaking to your Open House Chicago itinerary. WING Studio welcomes visitors for etching demonstrations on both days, offering a closer look at an art-making process inside a working studio in Lincoln Square.




Guided Tour of theNate with Director and Curator Jeff Stevenson

Saturday, October 17, 1–2:30 p.m.

Nathan Manilow Sculpture Park

Governors State University, University Park


Head outdoors with Jeff Stevenson for a tour of the South Collection, considering visiting artists’ installations alongside familiar works and their connections to the Earth. Admission is $10. Meet at the F Entrance, wear shoes for grass paths, and dress for the weather; parking is free.




Kevin Blake: Sundowning

Saturday, October 17, 2–4 p.m.

Bert Green Fine Art

8 S. Michigan Ave., Suite 620, Chicago


This Saturday event highlights Kevin Blake’s solo exhibition, guest curated by Dan Cameron. Blake’s paintings scrutinize inherited ideas of masculinity, placing familiar social roles in unsettled situations and revealing vulnerability beneath the outward performance of confidence.




*


View the full CGN Calendar here


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This week’s art plans can take you across Chicago, into the suburbs, and north to Wisconsin. Bridgeport is busy with Third Friday festivities and Milwaukee’s quarterly Gallery Night MKE is back. New exhibitions, live calligraphy, and an art sale round out Friday’s choices.


Here is a look at what’s ahead on Friday. Follow the event links for registration and updates, and keep an eye on CGN’s calendar as more details are added.


– CGN




Between Reflection and Revelation: David Dunlop’s Material Alchemy

Gallery Night: Friday, October 16, 5–9 p.m.; Gallery Day: Saturday, October 17, 11 a.m.–6 p.m.; exhibition opens October 14

JK Art House

191 N. Broadway, Milwaukee, Wisconsin


Make a Wisconsin art outing part of the weekend. David Dunlop combines traditional translucent oil techniques with metal supports, producing paintings whose surfaces change with light and movement. The opening joins Milwaukee’s quarterly Gallery Night MKE, with a free John Michael Kohler Arts Center workshop also taking place in the gallery.


Also taking place is Treasured Postcards on Friday, October 16, 5–9 p.m. This is a John Michael Kohler Arts Center workshop at JK Art House. Inspired by Lenore Tawney’s correspondence, this free Gallery Night workshop invites participants to make small collage postcards from photographs, printed papers, and other materials. Stop into JK Art House’s Parlor to create an artwork that can travel through the mail.




Out There

Gallery Night: Friday, October 16, 5–8 p.m.; Gallery Day: Saturday, October 17, 11 am. Exhibition on view through November 7

Kim Storage Gallery

207 E Buffalo St., Ste 404, Milwaukee, WI 53202


Out There is a two-person exhibition of new work by Hector Acuna and Andy Paczos. The title borrows the advice a teacher gave Paczos at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago: look out the window, \"there's lots of good stuff out there.\" He took it, and has painted Chicago from direct observation for three decades since. Acuna works the same way, returning to his Wisconsin sites across multiple plein air sessions and staging handmade props to paint in natural light. Both find their subjects by standing in front of them




Recycled 2026

First Look: Friday, October 16, 5 p.m.; opening-night event at 6 p.m.; sale through October 24

The Art Center Highland Park

1957 Sheridan Rd., Highland Park


Rediscovered art finds new homes at The Art Center’s annual sale, with donated works selected and priced for accessible collecting. Opening-night tickets offer an early look; weekend hours are Saturday, 10 a.m.–4 p.m., and Sunday, noon–4 p.m. Entry is free October 19–24.




Calligraphy Performance

Friday, October 16, 5–8 p.m.; artist conversation 5–6:30 p.m.; performances begin at 6:30 p.m.

Research House for Asian Art

3217 S. Morgan St., Chicago


The Becoming Words reception brings calligraphy to life through performances by Hekiun Oda and Bahman Panahi. Panahi joins musician Kerry Leung for Musicalligraphy, while Oda demonstrates his distinctive practice. Food reflecting both artists’ cultures accompanies the evening. Admission is $40, plus the ticket service fee.




Structure in Stature

Opening: Friday, October 16, 6–9 p.m.; on view through November 20

Forum 301

301 W. Ohio St., Chicago


Fashion becomes a meeting point for architecture, sculpture, and performance in this group exhibition. The participating artists examine how clothing shapes bodily presence, from protection and concealment to exaggeration and transformation, and how we construct the space we occupy.




Open Studios Third Friday at the Bridgeport Art Center

Friday, October 16, 7–10 p.m.

Bridgeport Art Center

1200 W. 35th St., Chicago


Explore studios and three gallery presentations: Decadence Deux, presented by Pigment International and September Gray Fine Art; Art Connection: Past Meets Present, from ArtConnectED; and Robert Lipton’s Una Vuelta a Mis Raices. The free evening offers opportunities to encounter artists and their work throughout the building.




Bridgeport Third Friday Art Walk

Friday, October 16, 7–10 p.m.

Bridgeport Artist Community

Multiple neighborhood locations in Bridgeport, Chicago


Extend your Third Friday visit beyond a single building. The Bridgeport Artist Community’s route connects more than 45 galleries, studios, shops, and cultural spaces. Use the linked neighborhood map to plan stops, and check individual venues for their evening hours.




Szukalski. The Mythshaper / Szukalski. Rzeźbiarz mitu

Opening: Friday, October 16, 7–9 p.m.; on view through October 2027

Polish Museum of America

984 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago


A major exhibition revisits Stanisław Szukalski’s complex legacy through sculpture, drawing, prints, and photography. Organized with the POLONIKA Institute, it examines his imaginative mythmaking and contested ideas. Opening admission is $25; a Saturday discussion at 1 p.m. is $20, or $40 for both programs.




*


View the full CGN Calendar here

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October 14 and 15","excerpt":null,"body":"

This week’s art plans can take you across Chicago, into the suburbs, and north to Wisconsin. Auctions and museum conversations lead into Lincoln Park Art Night on Thursday, followed by Bridgeport’s Third Friday festivities and Milwaukee’s quarterly Gallery Night MKE. New exhibitions, live calligraphy, and an art sale round out Friday’s choices. Over the weekend, the Chicago Architecture Center’s annual Open House Chicago opens doors to distinctive spaces, while family activities and an outdoor sculpture tour offer more ways to spend time with art.


Here is a date-by-date look at what’s ahead. Follow the event links for registration and updates, and keep an eye on CGN’s calendar as more details are added.


– CGN




Curated: CALDER

Auction: Wednesday, October 14, 10 a.m. Central / 11 a.m. Eastern

Rago and Wright

online bidding


A midweek auction offers another way to engage with art. Rago and Wright’s current Curated: CALDER sale brings the artist’s work to the auction block, with bidding available online. See the current auction catalog for lots and registration.




European Furniture & Decorative Arts

Auction: October 14–15, 10 a.m. Central each day

Freeman’s

1550 W. Carroll Ave., Chicago


Freeman’s two-day sale spans English and Continental furnishings, decorative objects, and sculpture. Collections from across the country, including Barrington Hills, contribute to a selection ranging from clocks and tapestries to Minton porcelain.




Symposium: Religion, Art, and Provenance in Museums

October 14–16

Smart Museum of Art

University of Chicago | Hyde Park


What happens to religious objects when they enter museum collections? Keynotes, panels, and roundtable conversations consider their changing meanings and histories in this multi-day symposium. Consult the program for individual session times and locations.




Art and Women in Sports: Looking at Amber Morningstar

Wednesday, October 14, 3:30–5 p.m.

Block Museum of Art

40 Arts Circle Dr., Evanston


Northwestern Athletics’ Ava Earl and Associate Provost Michelle Manno consider Cara Romero’s photograph Amber Morningstar through the lens of women in sports and self-representation. The conversation connects art with identity, teamwork, and the power to shape one’s own image.


Coffee and tea begin at 3 p.m.




Becoming Words: A Joint Calligraphy Exhibition

October 15–November 15; opening reception Friday, October 16, 5–8 p.m.

Heritage Museum of Asian Art and Seldon Institute

Exhibition at Research House for Asian Art, 3217 S. Morgan St., Chicago


Japanese calligrapher Hekiun Oda and Iranian artist Bahman Panahi bring different traditions into conversation, moving from written language toward gesture, abstraction, and sound. The exhibition opens Thursday, followed by Friday’s live performance program and a free artist-led tour Saturday, October 17, 1–3 p.m.



The Fine Art of [Madron Gallery]

Opening: Thursday, October 15, 5:30–8:30 p.m.; on view through December 18

Madron Gallery

1000 W. North Ave., 3rd Floor, Chicago


Madron marks its 25th anniversary with twenty-five works by twenty-five artists from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The free opening joins the fifth annual Lincoln Park Art Night, making it a lively evening to explore Madron, Leslie Wolfe Gallery, gallery 1871, Art City, and Art on Sedgwick.




Wander and Wallow: Must We Dwell — Brian Lathan

Opening: Thursday, October 15, 6–8 p.m.; artist remarks at 6:30 p.m.; on view through November 20

Kavanagh Gallery, Fine Line Creative Arts Center

37W570 Bolcum Rd., St. Charles


Brian Lathan’s brightly colored prints explore the uneasy relationship between escape and self-care. Figures shelter smaller versions of themselves inside exposed headspaces, inviting viewers to consider the habits and interior worlds that sustain us. Meet the artist at the free opening reception.


*


View the full CGN Calendar here



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