ART AIDS AMERICA: CHICAGO

Andres Serrano: Blood and Semen III, 1990 (chromogenic colour print, edition 1 of 4). Courtesy of the artist. Photo: courtesy of the artist

Art AIDS America: Chicago

Rock Hushka and Jonathan David Katz 

Exhibition Dates: December 1, 2016 - April 2, 2017

Albert J Winn: Akedah, 1995 (gelatin silver print). Courtesy: Scott R Portnoff. Photo: courtesy of the estate of Albert J Winn

Bill Jacobson: Interim Portrait #373 (1992) (chromogenic colour print). Photo: courtesy of the artist

This groundbreaking exhibition underscores the deep and unforgettable presence of HIV in American art. It introduces and explores the whole spectrum of artistic responses to AIDS, from the politically outspoken to the quietly mournful, surveying works from the early 1980s to the present.

LADZ (John Arsenault and Adrian Gilliland): Eden #31, 2012 (chromogenic colour print). Courtesy of the artists. Photo: courtesy of the artists.

Tino Rodriguez: Eternal Lovers, 2010 (oil on wood). Photo: courtesy of the artist

Arts Aids America was originally organized by Tacoma Art Museum in partnership with The Bronx Museum of the Arts, where it was on display until September 25, 2016.  The exhibition is co-curated by Jonathan David Katz, director, Visual Studies Doctoral Program at the University at Buffalo (The State University of New York) and Rock Hushka, chief curator and curator of contemporary and Northwest art at Tacoma Art Museum.  

Marlene McCarty: Love, AIDS, Riot, 1989-90 (heat transfer on canvas). Collection of Bruno JaKob. Copyright Marlene McCarty. Photo: courtesy of Sikkema Jenkins & Co

Roger Brown: Peach Light (1983) Copyright: The School of the Art Institute of Chicago and the Brown family. Courtesy of: Kavi Gupta. Photo: James Connolly

The Chicago presentation of the exhibition includes expansive public programming and will serve as the catalyst for a citywide dialogue on the cultural impact of HIV/AIDS through robust public programming at the newly constructed Alphawood Gallery and via a constellation of related events presented in association with local arts and advocacy community allies. 

Admission to the exhibition and all programming held at the Gallery– artist & expert talks, panel discussions, performances, gallery tours, and HIV testing — are free and open to the public.

Joey Terrill: Still Life With Forget-Me-Knots and One Week's Dose Of Truvada, 2012 (mixed media on canvas). Leslie-Lohman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art, Foundation purchase. Photo: courtesy of Leslie-Lohman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art