Gay Artists Open First Exhibition

Gay Artists Open First Exhibition
By Paul Varnell
Copyright by The Chicago Free Press
July 4, 2007


The Gay and Lesbian Artists Network/Chicago drew an impressive crowd of
200-250 viewers to the opening of "The First 40," its first group exhibition at the
North Lakeside Cultural Center, June 21. The title refers to the number of
pictures planned for the exhibition.

The exhibition was designed "to introduce GLANC to the general public,"
Curator David Joseph explained. "It showed the wide variety of art coming out of
the gay community in Chicago."

The show included paintings, watercolors, photography, pottery, sculpture,
stained glass, and constructions, illustrating the diverse media in which gay
and lesbian artists are currently working. The different styles of the paintings
alone--from representational to pop to abstract--indicate the range of
artistic traditions the artists draw on.

Joseph vigorously resisted the idea that there was any style or sensibility
that gay artists had in common. "Absolutely not," he said firmly.

The exhibition was not juried in advance. Instead, each artist was ask to
submit one piece that he or she thought representative of their work and showed
it to advantage. A committee of four independent judges used a two-step judging
process in which they selected what they thought was the best piece in each
of four categories--figurative, abstract, photography, and 3-dimensional--then
ranked those four pieces.

First prize was won by Rob Bondgren for "On Leave 2," a beach scene showing a
man in army fatigues, his shirt open and pants unzipped, smirking at the
viewer. Second prize was awarded to Pate Conaway for an untitled work consisting
of a wicker-like basket woven out of a single long green extension chord.

Third prize was won by David Joseph for "I Dream of Flowers (#2)" a painting
showing indistinct white objects on a red background. Jennifer Tobitz received
an "Honorable Mention" for "Hope in a Land of No Hope" an emotionally
manipulative photograph of an expressionless black woman.

The judging panel was composed of Jean Leigh, artist and owner of the Leigh
Gallery; Michelle Fire, art collector and owner of Big Chicks and Tweet; Nathan
Mason, Curator of Special Projects, Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs;
and Niki Nolan of the Interactive Arts and Media Department at Columbia
College. The judges served on a volunteer basis.

Judge Nathan Mason agreed with curator David Joseph that there was no
discernible gay sensibility or other commonality among the art works. Mason also
emphasized that although Bondgren's implicitly homoerotic "On Leave 2" won first
prize, the decision was not based its homoerotic content. "The judges thought
it was the best painting technically," Mason said. "We all admired its
painterly quality."

Other pieces worth singling out for attention could include Andrea Kaspryk,
"Reclining Nude Meditating," which may have an ancestor in Tamara de Lempicka's
"Beautiful Rafaela" (1927); art historian Michael Worley's mythological
painting "Perseus with the Head of Medusa," Daniel Nolan's painting of an
indistinct townscape viewed from above that may owe something to Cezanne; Pat Daley's
subtly amusing "Biker," a painting of a biker in a leather jacket with the
implausible gang name "Hell's Calligraphers;" and Becky Flory's "Good Measure No.
2," a whimsical wooden sculpture of carpenter ants engaged in building
construction, one working on a ladder, the other holding a blueprint.

GLANC is working on plans for an October exhibition at the new Center on
Halsted during Chicago Artists Month, according to Joseph, but details have not
been settled.

The current exhibition will be on display until a closing reception on Aug. 3
from 7-10 p.m. Many of the artist will be in attendance at that event.

*****

"The First Forty," an exhibition by the Gay and Artists Network-Chicago at
the North Lakeside Cultural Center, 6219 N. Sheridan Rd, 2nd floor. Open
Mon.-Fri. 9 a.m-5 p.m., Sat. 10:30-12:30, other times by appointment. Call (773)
517-7619.