Art, religion, and spirituality are deeply intertwined. For thousands of years artistic production was concentrated in manufacturing houses of worship and objects for religious devotion. In the mid-nineteenth century, artists began exploring non-religious themes and, eventually, the importance of religion in art waned. Although art from the last two hundred years appears to lack a strong religious viewpoint, it would be incorrect to assume that it no longer possesses any spiritual significance. As we enter into the second decade of the twenty-first century, Westerners have become more accepting of alternative spiritual customs. WHO’S YR SHAMAN? is a group exhibition featuring ...

This exhibition brings together some of the talent from the book Art of Touring (Square Root Books) and the local music community to showcase creative endeavors when not rockin’ on the stage. Whether video, pictures, sketches or written word, these musicians keep their creative edge sharp while whittling away the hours in a van, on a plane or walking about the cities they frequent.

ACRE's boredom-banishing night of art, music, and mirth. Even the broke among us can win stellar contemporary art from Chicago and beyond! Plus the folks from the The Hornswaggler Bar will be on hand providing unique refreshments. Raffle and auction items include paintings, photographs, drawings, and sculpture by local Chicago artists and ACRE’s 2010 residents. Entrance is $10, which includes 3 raffle tickets and a door gift. Additional tickets can be purchased for $4, or you can get 7 tickets for $20. The silent auction closes and raffle winners are announced at 10:30pm. Funds raised go toward ACRE’s inaugural summer ...

A mixed media exhibition curated by Barbara DeGenevieve. In a Plain Brown Wrapper is an exhibition of work that would not be shown in many other venues. It is the end of the first decade of the 21st century and yet the discomfort of the majority of people in regard to naked bodies or talk about sex still fuels the debate about what is appropriate for public display, and whether it is pornographic, or worse, obscene. Public offense and keeping the children safe from images that might “damage them” are the reasons invoked most often when art with sexual content is ...

Banshee is a group exhibition exploring the subject of adolescent women. In Irish mythology, the Banshee is a female spirit viewed as an omen of death that appears as either a hideous, old hag or an enchanting, young woman. This showcase of photography captures the status of the contemporary American girl. Anna Cerniglia of Johalla Projects has organized this exhibition with the intention of taking this group of photographs to be shown by our affiliates in Rome. With the popularity of imagery of young females in contemporary photography, we hope to shine a light on some Chicagoans who have ...

Immersioni/Immersions, an exhibition curated by Anna Cerniglia and Susanna Horvatovičova, is the third installment of an international collaboration between an American and a Czech curator. While working together in Italy, these two women developed a three-part series of presentations that revolved around the concept of total captivation and the invasion of the imagination into real space. Showcasing films and site specific installations, their previous exhibitions, Immersioni di Progetto/Project Immersions and Flusso di Coscienza/Flux of Consciousness, were held this past winter at La Porta Blu Gallery in Rome. Immersioni/Immersions marks the first occurrence of their partnership on US soil and ...

A group exhibition of emerging, female photographers curated by Jes Ashley Santrock. Featuring photography by Kate Brock, Kimberly Kim, Megan Noe, Sarah Q., Laurie Reese, Jess Sikon, Krystal Thompson and Maria Ulrich.

It is no secret that 2009 was a difficult year for arts programming in Chicago. We witnessed exhibition spaces close, admission prices sky rocket, and charitable donations evaporate. Many were lucky and persevered into 2010, but not unscathed. While institutions suffered, so did artists and their patrons. Though many artists do not live solely off their commissions, losing benefactors and exhibition opportunities can be devastating. On the opposite end of the spectrum, collectors saw their budgets for art buying dry up. Ultimately, this situation has trickled down to affect the public, who are losing the arts in their communities. Johalla Projects ...

We spend our lives surrounded by strangers. They're sitting at bars, shopping in malls, and working in offices all around us. And while strangers are everywhere, we're rarely given the chance to explore their circumstances. Conversely, the artists in Getting Acquainted have chosen to spend time with strangers. Anonymously working after the fact, they turn brief encounters into deep, careful records. Through collaborative video work, drawing, photography, and simply listening, these works celebrate the process and products of getting to know a stranger. Work by In b Flat, Kristin Freeman, Shane Lavalette, Jason Polan, The Free Listening ...

Johalla Projects, along with guest curator Christopher Starbody, presents Snow Globe, a group exhibition exploring the thematic subject of the snow globe. Thought to be invented in France during the early 19th century, snow globes have long held a place in our collective psyche as tschotches symbolizing happiness and blissful innocence. Simply put, they are plastic (or glass) orbs containing miniature sculptures and a concoction of water, glycerin, and particles. They are the product of the Modern era, a whimsical, useless, and often cheap object made for the consumption of our entertainment. Snow globes have since become an American fixture, ...

Johalla Projects presents Long Hand, a group exhibition curated by Caitlin Arnold and Emily Green. Featuring sculpture, photography and fiber, Long Hand brings together 7 artists whose conceptual work involves lengthy manual processes. With the constant inundation of the virtual into our everyday lives, these artists return to reality and the use of their physical bodies in the creation of their art. Work by Jesse Avina, Melissa Damasauskas, Matt Shaw, Alise Spinella, Julia Stotz, Peter Takamori and Casey Ann Wasniewski.