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The School of the Art Institute of Chicago has appointed Eddie Chambers the Goldabelle McComb Finn Distinguished Professor in Art History, Theory and Criticism. "As a renowned scholar and celebrated artist, Chambers brings with him decades of experience in both higher education and the art world. This tenured position, housed in SAIC's Department of Art History, Theory, and Criticism, underscores the School's commitment to advancing critical discourse and interdisciplinary education in art history. Chambers will hold the professorship following David J. Getsy. His appointment begins on August 16." More on Chambers' career here.
Artists Selected For Wisconsin Triennial
The Madison Museum of Contemporary Art has selected participants for its 2025 Wisconsin Triennial, opening May 2. Full details, including the twenty-five artists, here.
New Leader For Warhol Museum Led Arts Education For CPS
Mario R. Rossero, new executive director of the Andy Warhol Museum, tells WESA-FM about his "approach to the arts [which] emphasizes community building and equitable access." Rossero spent a good part of his career working for Chicago Public Schools, "including as director of arts education in a system with 400,000 students."
Fire Relief Fund For Los Angeles Artists
"Major museums like the Getty and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, along with philanthropists like Sheikha Al-Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani of Qatar and foundations like Steven Spielberg's, have raised $12 million for a fund to support the artists affected by the California wildfires," reports the New York Times. The L.A. Arts Community Fire Relief Fund "aims to support 'artists and arts workers in all disciplines who have lost residences, studios, livelihoods or have otherwise been [affected] by the devastating Los Angeles fires.'" Applications open on Monday, January 20 here.
"At Chicago O'Hare International Airport, Terminal 5's first expansion in thirty years is a wing-shape extension that modernizes one of the country's busiest airports in style," updates Interior Design. "The project was initially conceived as a straightforward but uninspired linear addition to the existing concourse. Instead, HOK proposed bending the design into a boomerang shape that optimizes the surrounding airfield space, with a curved roof that rises gracefully to peak at the terminal's elbow, forming a town square of sorts bathed in daylight from clerestory windows. The boomerang is in-filled with lounges, gates and shops but, like an art museum, the architectural attitude is all about serenity. That's aided by a neuro-inclusive focus that reduces sensory overload through circadian lighting and ultraquiet mechanical systems, helping soothe the nerves of anxious flyers." The project team is Peter Ruggiero, Brenda Karhoff and Al Lyons.
"Team Culture" Entertains Notions For Arts Downtown
"A group of civic, business and community leaders -- Team Culture -- say they want to bring the arts to the city in new and unexpected ways," reports the Sun-Times. Lou Raizin, president and CEO of Broadway in Chicago, says there is potential for "huge economic opportunity," "pointing out that New York's nighttime economy generates about $35 billion annually and supports some 300,000 jobs. Raizin and his supporters envision expanding the use of the city's existing spaces, such as having a barge, on the Chicago River, that's turned into a concert venue, or perhaps one that holds a farmer's market."
A Looky-Loo Into Skylark's Urinals, Chicago's Oldest-Known
"The stately, three-and-a-half-foot-tall porcelain facilities date to 1910 when the building was a tied house for Birk Bros. Brewing Co. Now, Pilsen bar Skylark is working to honor the storied loo's history," chronicles Block Club in an extended history. A plumbing catalog reveals that it's the "'Eclipso' imperial porcelain urinal." For over a century, "each group of people in charge of this building in all of its different eras had to decide to keep the urinals," said Skylark co-owner Ambria Taylor.
Moor's Brewing And Steep Ravine Open Logan Square Taproom
Diversey House, a collaboration between award-winning breweries Steep Ravine Brewing Company and Moor's Brewing Company, opens February 2 in the former Ravinia Brewing Company location in Logan Square. Steep Ravine rebranded from Ravinia Brewing Company in December, while Moor's Brewing Company, one of the rising Black-owned breweries in the United States, will be making its debut with this as its first taproom location. Also in the mix: three-time "Chopped" champion, chef Marc Anthony Bynum, who makes his Chicago debut as an executive chef and partner. It will also be "an experiential sports bar that combines history, innovation and charm." More here.
Leinenkugel Brothers Want Chippewa Falls Brewery
Jake and Dick Leinenkugel have offered to buy the Leinenkugel's Chippewa Falls brewery to avoid Molson Coors' planned closing of the facility, reports WEAU-TV. "Molson Coors declined to pursue a non-disclosure agreement." From the brothers' statement: "We are profoundly saddened by Molson Coors' decision to close the Chippewa Falls brewery, a place that has been the heart and soul of Leinenkugel's for more than 157 years. For six generations, our family has taken pride in brewing exceptional beers and building lasting connections with loyal fans in Wisconsin and across the nation... The Chippewa Falls brewery is more than a facility -- it is a symbol of our legacy, a source of pride for our community, and a key part of what makes Leinenkugel's unique. We continue to hope for a resolution that honors our history and secures the future of brewing in Chippewa Falls."
Jack Daniel's Closes Barrel-Making Plant, Taking 600 Jobs
"Jack Daniel's owner Brown-Forman will lay off roughly 640 workers and close its bourbon cooperage in Louisville as part of a restructuring plan," reports Food Dive. "The facility manufactures barrels to store and age whiskeys... Brown-Forman will source bourbon barrels from an external supplier 'at a competitive price.'"
While hailing from Missoula, Montana within an itinerant childhood, David Lynch, or "Jimmy Stewart from Mars," as his "The Elephant Man" producer Mel Brooks called him, represents a Midwestern-like style of reserve, taciturnity and politely coiled fear and rage. He chose bliss. (With hilarious bursts of temper.) His films -- and persona -- live. A lifetime of smoking left his with emphysema. J. Hoberman pens the early obit for Lynch at the New York Times (gift link). "David Lynch, a painter turned avant-garde filmmaker whose fame, influence and distinctively skewed worldview extended far beyond the movie screen to encompass TV, records, books, nightclubs, a line of organic coffee and his Foundation for Consciousness-Based Education and World Peace, has died... Like Frank Capra and Franz Kafka, two widely disparate twentieth-century artists whose work Mr. Lynch much admired and might be said to have synthesized, his name became an adjective... If classic surrealists celebrated irrationality and sought to liberate the fantastic in the everyday, Mr. Lynch employed the ordinary as a shield to ward off the irrational... Mr. Lynch chose to identify himself as 'Eagle Scout, Missoula, Montana.'"
In a 1997 onstage conversation at the Museum of the Moving Image (a must-read here), chief curator David Schwartz asked, "How much mystery is there to you?" Lynch answered, "There are things in life that happen that are supposedly unexplainable. There are strange feelings that we have. Many, many things are communicated to us without words. And inside we have a mechanism -- intuition -- and sensing mechanisms. It kicks in and tries to make sense of the thing. And this thing is storing knowledge that's very difficult to speak about. But you can sense much more sometimes than you can talk about." Comic book artist Phil Hester posts on BlueSky: "Lynch was a saint cloaked as a transgressor in a world full of transgressors cloaked as saints."
"Home Alone" House Sold
"The photogenic house in Winnetka that played a major role in the Christmas classic 'Home Alone' sold for more than its asking price," tallies Crain's. "The buyers are only the second purchasers since the movie was made in 1990 to take on ownership of what might be the most recognized house in the Chicago area... Buyers paid $5.5 million January 15 for the famed house."
"It Ends With Us" Director-Star Files $400 Million Lawsuit Against Blake Lively
Director-lead actor Justin Baldoni is suing Blake Lively and her husband Ryan Reynolds "for orchestrating a campaign to smear him," files the Hollywood Reporter. Baldoni "alleges extortion, defamation and claims related to breach of contract... He's joined by his film studio, Wayfarer and its chief executive Jamey Heath, and their public relations representatives, Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Abel. They seek at least $400 million." (Wayfarer Studios' principal Steve Sarowitz is included in Newcity's 2024 Film 50.)
Four-Hundred Washington Post Employees Beg Bezos To Intervene; Paper Plans To "Reach All Of America"
"One debacle after another has engulfed The Washington Post since veteran newspaper executive Will Lewis became CEO and publisher a year ago this month, with the charge from owner Jeff Bezos to make the storied newspaper financially sustainable," writes David Folkenflik in an extended report at NPR. "The appointment of a new executive editor was botched. A killed presidential endorsement led hundreds of thousands of subscribers to cancel. Top reporters and editors left. Scandals involving Lewis' actions as a news executive years ago in the U.K. reemerged. A clear vision to secure the Post's financial future remains elusive. Frustration boiled over on Tuesday night. More than 400 Post journalists, including some editors, signed a petition asking Bezos to intervene."
"Democracy Dies In Darkness" has been displaced, reports the New York Times. "Riveting Storytelling for All of America" is a new mission statement directed toward the paper's workers... "Bezos has expressed hopes that The Post would be read by more blue-collar Americans who live outside coastal cities, mentioning people like firefighters in Cleveland. He has also said that he is interested in expanding The Post's audience among conservatives." An internal communication advertises a goal of "200 million paying users, which the slide deck described as a 'Big Hairy Audacious Goal,' or 'B.H.A.G.'" The Post has fewer than three million digital subscribers; The Times has about eleven million. The Post will be "an AI-fueled platform for news" that delivers "vital news, ideas and insights for all Americans where, how and when they want it."
"Really can not believe that Lounge Ax closed twenty-five years ago tonight. How is that possible?? How???????" posts former co-owner Susan Miller Tweedy on Instagram on Wednesday night. "The last night The Coctails re-formed to play along with Dianogah and MOTO. The night before was Shellac, Thinking Fellers Union Local 282, Scrawl and The Traitors. These twenty-five years went by shockingly fast. It literally feels like five years at the most. Life really happened and I thought for sure we'd have our book out by now. Or be reopened. Ugh. I miss Lounge Ax every single day. It really was the best. Waaaaaaaaaahhhhhh!!!!!!"
A Puppet Hub pop-up cafe is running through January 26 at the Fine Arts Building alongside the twelve days of the seventh annual Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival. "It's the perfect place to relax between shows, get a bite to eat, meet up with friends, make new ones, and learn more about contemporary puppetry." More here.
The Second City Announces Tenth Bob Curry Fellowships
The annual fellowship honoring the legacy of Bob Curry, the first African American performer on The Second City's mainstage, has been announced. More than fifty percent of the graduating fellows have been hired by Second City divisions, including The Second City Touring Company, Resident Stage Ensembles, Theatricals and cruise ship companies, and as teachers for The Second City Training. This year's fellows, selected for potential and commitment to their craft, are Asya Meadows, Isabella Alonso, Jazmin Robinson, Juan Arellano, Juliana Zepeda, Justin Banks, Karissa Cuffy, Khiry Johnson, PJ Walker and Takahana Savolainen. More on Bob Curry here.
Steppenwolf's "Fool For Love" In Rehearsal
Steppenwolf Theatre's revival of Sam Shepard's masterpiece "Fool for Love," directed by Jeremy Herrin, will play January 30-March 16 in the Downstairs Theater. "Fool for Love" features ensemble members Cliff Chamberlain as Martin; Tim Hopper as The Old Man and Caroline Neff as May; with Nick Gehlfuss as Eddie in his Steppenwolf debut. Single tickets are on sale here.
Rosemont Theater Building Could Be Sold
Rosemont has held discussions with a potential buyer of the Rosemont Theater for nearly a year, reports Journal & Topics. The possible purchaser is a "substantial entertainment" group "that would maintain the current level of live shows that the theater, under village ownership, has produced since its opening in 1995. The opening act then was Barry Manilow."
New York's Soho Rep Holds Wake For Lost Building
"Walkerspace (1991-2024), Soho Rep's sixty-five-seat venue at 46 Walker Street, will be laid to rest" this month, Soho Rep advises. "An extraordinary vessel for artistic risk and invention, Walkerspace inspired generations of theater makers and lovers with bountiful... experiences. It was also inaccessible, leaky, prone to electrical outages, and generally crumbling. The space's caretaker for over thirty years, Soho Rep, invites the community to pay their respects across five days of visitation and wake services."
"A rare glimpse into Capone's life will be on display for the public in a new exhibit, 'The First Public Enemy,' at the Mob Museum in downtown Las Vegas," reports the Sun-Times. "For the first time, the public can get an up-close look at Capone's favorite personal weapon and a short home movie shot by the mob boss himself in 1929."
Fermilab's "Coldbox" Arrives For State-Of-The-Art Accelerator
"Engineers escorted a 209,000-pound cooler into its new home at Fermilab in Batavia, as part of a new particle accelerator project aiming to better understand the building blocks of the universe," reports the Sun-Times.
Lincoln Park Zoo Bird House Closed After Avian Flu Deaths Of Flamingo And Seal
"Two animal deaths at Lincoln Park Zoo have been traced to an outbreak of avian influenza, or bird flu," reports ABC News. The birdhouse will be closed "for an undetermined period of time to protect the other animals."