Chicago - Art

This painting exemplifies Bruno Surdo’s synthesis of Renaissance figuration, Northern allegory, and psychological symbolism. Female figures twist and overlap beneath a lattice of tree branches, while animals—a lamb, fox, squirrel, hummingbird—inhabit the same compressed pictorial space. The interlocking limbs and diagonals recall High Renaissance and Mannerist strategies of sculptural composition, and Surdo’s atelier training is evident in the anatomical precision and volumetric modeling of flesh. Yet the scene feels intentionally dense and claustrophobic. Rather than a pastoral idyll, the forest becomes charged—alive with tension, concealment, and layered meaning. The symbolic animals situate the work within a long art historical lineage. The lamb evokes innocence or sacrifice; the fox suggests cunning and instinct; birds often signify fragility or spirit; the spider embedded in the branches recalls vanitas traditions of the Dutch Golden Age, where small creatures signal mortality and hidden threat. However, the background introduces an additional, more psychological register: the partially obscured eye and the numbers 3, 5, and 7. These are not naturalistic elements; they intrude like fragments from another realm. Their presence subtly aligns with Jungian thought—an area of interest for Surdo—where numbers function as archetypal structures of order within the psyche. In Jungian symbolism, such numbers carry qualitative meaning rather than mere quantity, suggesting stages, wholeness, embodiment, or cycles of psychic development. Their appearance within the forest—traditionally a metaphor for the unconscious—suggests the mind’s attempt to map or structure instinctual terrain. The eye, half-hidden behind branches, intensifies this reading. It can be understood as a symbol of awareness or consciousness emerging from within the thicket of instinct. Rather than divine omniscience, it feels psychological—an archetypal “watcher” embedded in the natural world. The forest thus becomes more than environment; it reads as psychic landscape. Surdo collapses civilization and instinct, rational structure and animal impulse, into a single visual field. Within his broader oeuvre—often concerned with the tension between performance and authenticity, order and chaos—this work becomes a contemporary myth of the psyche. Renaissance form provides authority and structure, while allegorical animals and Jungian symbols suggest the layered architecture of the unconscious. The result is a painting that feels timeless yet inwardly modern: a meditation on innocence, predation, awareness, and the hidden numerical and symbolic frameworks through which the human mind seeks to understand its own wilderness. Bruno Surdo Nature's Web of Dependency oil on canvas 64h x 66.50w in 162.56h x 168.91w cm BRS082 Bruno A. Surdo b. Chicago, 1963 EXHIBITIONS 2021 Ethos + Truth, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL 2020 Realities, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL 2018 Liberation, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL Blood Sport, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL Art on Paper 2018, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Pier 36, New York, NY SOFA Chicago 2018, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Navy Pier, Chicago, IL 2017 POP!ARAZZI, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL Coming Attractions, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL 2015 SOFA Chicago 2015, Ann Nathan Gallery, Navy Pier, Chicago, IL Bruno Surdo: Allegories, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2014 Bruno Surdo: Respond, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Modern Metaphors, Rockford Art Museum, Rockford, IL 2013 Bruno Surdo: Revelations, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Vice + Virtue, Northern Illinois University Museum of Art 2012 Contemporary Realism Biennial, Fort Wayne Museum of Art, Fort Wayne, IN 2011 Bruno Surdo, University of St. Francis School of Creative Arts, Fort Wayne, IN Uncensored, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2010 Art Chicago 2010, Ann Nathan Gallery, Merchandise Mart, Chicago, IL 2009 Art Chicago 2009, Ann Nathan Gallery, Merchandise Mart, Chicago, IL 2007 Bruno Surdo, Art Institute of Indianapolis, Indianapolis, IN 2006 Context/Content: Making Meaning with the Figure, University of Arkansas, Conway, AR Creative Imaginings, Mobile Museum of Art, Mobile, AL Bruno Surdo: Cycles, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2005 Art Chicago 2005, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2004 Tragedy, Memory, & Honor, Richard M. Daley Center, Chicago, IL Art Chicago 2004, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Group Show, Arcadia Gallery, New York, NY Drawings VII, Koplin Del Rio Gallery, West Hollywood, CA Armory Show, New York Armory, New York, NY 2003 Paintings & Drawings, College of Lake County, Grayslake, IL The Art Show, New York, NY Bruno Surdo: New Work, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Art Chicago 2003, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2003-10 International Show of Contemporary Artists, Chicago Art Open, Chicago, IL 2002 Bruno Surdo: Perception of Appearance, Frye Museum, Seattle, WA Tragedy, Memory, & Honor, Richard M. Daley Center, Chicago, IL Bruno Surdo: Transcendence, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Art Chicago 2002, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Tragedy, Memory, & Honor, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2001 Magic Vision, Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock, AR 1998 Evanston and Vicinity Artists, Evanston Art Center, Evanston, IL 1996 Bruno Surdo: A Personal View, University of Wisconsin, Kenosha, WI 1995 Bruno Surdo: Recent Works, College of Lake County, IL AIDS in Our Society, Loyola University, Chicago, IL Bruno Surdo: Life, Struggle, and Hope, Chicago Cultural Center, Chicago, IL 2001 Magic Vision, Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock, AR Bruno Surdo: Dualities of Life, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 1999 Group Show, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 1998 Group Exhibition, Fine Arts Building Gallery, Chicago, IL 1995 Spiritual Inquiries, Struve Gallery, Chicago, IL 1994 Recent Works, The 14th Annual Juried Exhibition for Lake County Artists, Grayslake, IL Go Figure, Figurative Works on Paper, Chicago Printmakers Collaborative, Chicago, IL SELECTED COLLECTIONS The Re-Birth of Venus, Temporary Loan, Fort Wayne Museum of Art Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock, AR College of Lake County, Greyslake, IL Flashpoint Academy, Chicago IL John Robert Wiltgen Design Shoemaker Ruud Collection Julie & Thomas Danilek Michael Vozzella and Mike Silver Benjamin Fernandez Tom Braake Betsy Colburn Michael Diemand & Lor LaRose Michael Staab & Kathy Brock Bruce Leep Frank Tzurect Mary Foley Rosalyn Carlson Mimmy Turney Janet Long Halstead Billy Hunt Carol Galli Myles Kerrigan Honorable & Mrs. Edwin Berman Theodore Gage Northrop Art Museum Past Present & Future Company Dr. James & Peggy Kemmler Salvatore Monastero Nix & Virginia Lauridsen Joel Miller David & Marlene Zerkel Ann & Andy Abel Claudia Rush Marc Miller Leonard Goldberg Lawrence Pucci Howard Tullman Collection Susan & Manny Kramer James Rinnert Richar Interiors Michael & Nancy Colt Khalid Altijir Dr. Joe Grodman Beryl & Jack Gore Larry Wolf & Eric Naegle Chuck Wolandi Jack Schwab & David Sandelin Thomas Kaczmarek Marti Dinerstein Craig & Michael Golden...

Based in Chicago, IL, contemporary artist Michael Thompson creates unique kites, collages and mixed media works assembled from material fragments of past and present collected in his...

A small octopus is inked in the Japanese style of Gyotaku print making. Using sumi ink to "print" the octopus, the artist then embellishes it with colored pe...

A vibrant 1950s Modern watercolor of a standing male bather in red & orange tones by notable French artist Andre Delfau. Painted in the south of France along the Cote d' azure (...

An Elegant 1940s Modernist Portrait of a Young Woman a Red Dress by Noted Chicago Artist, Francis Chapin (Am. 1899-1965). A beautifully executed studio portrait, the painting is oil...

A Striking 1950s Mid-Century Modern Ink Drawing of a Standing Female Nude by Noted Chicago Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). Exhibiting a spare and exceptional use of brushwork...

A Vibrant, Expressive 1950s Mid-Century Modern Floral Still Life Painting by Rudolph Pen. Executed in the unique abstracted style of painting, with cropped perspective, for which Pe...

A Vibrant, Colorful Mid-Century Watercolor of Village Rooftops by Noted Chicago Artist, Rudolph T. Pen. Depicting a tropical hillside village of terracotta rooftops nestled beside a...

Aeling’s fascination with atmospheric drama—rooted in his childhood in the American West, where weather dominates the horizon—finds powerful expression in this seascape. The low line of the ocean reinforces the artist’s signature device: vast, open skies that dwarf the land below. Yet the work also reflects a more personal history: Aeling’s enduring love of Hawaii, where he spent many winters surfing and studying the Pacific’s shifting moods. Those days on the water deepened his awareness of how ocean and sky interact, how storms gather, dissolve, and re-form with astonishing rapidity. The painting captures that moment when light changes direction and the boundary between calm and impending weather becomes charged with meaning. His precise modulation of color and temperature recalls his study of 19th-century luminists, yet the lived experience of Hawaiian surf breaks gives the scene an immediacy and authenticity that is distinctly his own. Jeff Aeling Sunset Aliomanu Bay, Kauai oil on panel 28h x 48w in 71.12h x 121.92w cm JAE040 Jeff Aeling (1958–2025): The Sky Remembers Through Jeff Aeling’s eyes, the landscape becomes a world shaped as much by air as by earth. In works such as North of Las Vegas, NM and Pond Near St. Cloud, MN, he balances the quiet structure of plains and wetlands with skies alive in constant motion. His mastery of atmosphere is unmistakable in Light Pillars (2023) and Light Pillar (2023), where rare optical events turn night into architecture. Even intimate scenes like Crabapple, Dogwoods, and Red Bud find their emotional power under skies that lend the land its shifting character. Aeling’s winters in Hawaii deepened his sensitivity to movement and weather. Surfing taught him to read the rhythm of the ocean, a knowledge reflected in Wave, Kauai (2018), where a breaking wave becomes a luminous wall of force. In Volcano (2023), he channels the islands’ elemental drama, linking fire, vapor, and sky through the same atmospheric vocabulary found in his plains paintings...

Ivan Markovic transports viewers into a world of technicolor with this collection of works inspired by Bernini's angels. Markovic's life in Rome brought him to walk across the Ponte ...

A dynamic 1950s sailing scene of Martha's Vineyard, "Edgartown Harbor" by notable Chicago Modern artist Francis Chapin. Image size: 14 3/4 x 19 3/4 inches; archivally matted to 2...

A brightly-colored, Mid-Century Modern painting of a red barn & mill scene by notable Illinois artist Stan Dudek. After years of driving from his home in the far west suburbs to his...

An Introspective, Exquitie Modern Pastel of a Seated Female Nude Model by Noted Chicago Artist, Francis Chapin (Am. 1899-1965). Dating ca. 1930s. Artwork size: 16 1/2 x 12 1/4 inc...

A Sensitive, Finely Rendered 1950s Mid-Century Modern Portrait of a Young Man By Noted Chicago Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). Artwork size: 12 x 9 1/2 inches. Artwork is un...

A charming 1950s painting of a lighthouse in Martha's Vineyard, titled "Vineyard Light" by notable Chicago Modern artist, Francis Chapin. A colorful scene painted near the artist's ...

"During a battle reenactment At the Daniel Lady Farm in Gettysburg, I helped carry a soldier from the field to the hospital. This painting depicts that soldier as his leg is amputated. Clara Barton...

This scene echoes Aeling’s earlier years exploring Yellowstone and the northern Rockies, where geothermal landscapes and severe winters formed a visual laboratory for him. The stark verticals of dead trees rising through steam and snow evoke the quiet violence of natural forces—eruption, freeze, regrowth. Aeling often spoke of landscapes as records of time, and this painting exemplifies that belief: it is both serene and charged with memory, documenting a terrain shaped by fire, water, and cold. That sense of elemental transformation is deepened by the medium itself. This is the only encaustic painting found in his studio following his death—a rare departure from his familiar oil technique. The wax-based process, involving heat, layering, and an almost geological buildup of surface, mirrors the very forces depicted in the scene. It stands as a singular artifact in his oeuvre, a final and poignant testament to his fascination with how material, time, and natural forces converge. Jeff Aeling Pine Trunks and Mineral Springs, Yellowstone encaustic on panel 48h x 34w in 121.92h x 86.36w cm JAE041 Jeff Aeling (1958–2025): The Sky Remembers Through Jeff Aeling’s eyes, the landscape becomes a world shaped as much by air as by earth. In works such as North of Las Vegas, NM and Pond Near St. Cloud, MN, he balances the quiet structure of plains and wetlands with skies alive in constant motion. His mastery of atmosphere is unmistakable in Light Pillars (2023) and Light Pillar (2023), where rare optical events turn night into architecture. Even intimate scenes like Crabapple, Dogwoods, and Red Bud find their emotional power under skies that lend the land its shifting character. Aeling’s winters in Hawaii deepened his sensitivity to movement and weather. Surfing taught him to read the rhythm of the ocean, a knowledge reflected in Wave, Kauai (2018), where a breaking wave becomes a luminous wall of force. In Volcano (2023), he channels the islands’ elemental drama, linking fire, vapor, and sky through the same atmospheric vocabulary found in his plains paintings...

"Rain Mother" Namiri Plains, Tanzania - 2025 Archival Pigment Print Available Sizes: Edition of 20: 24” x 36” (61 x 91.4 cm) $3,500 Edition of 15: 31” x 46.5” (78.7 x 118.1 cm) $7...

A Captivating, Expressive 1950s Mid-Century Modern Coastal Beach Scene of Portugal by Noted Chicago Artist, Rudolph T. Pen (Am. 1918 - 1989). Pen travelled extensively throughout Eu...

Rosbeg by Carol Pylant evokes the quiet expanse of the Irish coast through soft, fluid washes and a muted, natural palette. Rolling green dunes and sandy inlets unfold gently toward ...

The artist is a master at storytelling. He sets the stage for the viewer to bring the events to a particular scene. Here, the artist has set two wine glasses, napkins and a small plate of desserts on a geometrically patterned table cloth, draping so it almost appears to be falling over the frame. The viewer is required to ask the questions about the scene but the answers may only lie in their own imagination. The painting, which is painted on canvas then mounted to a panel, is framed in a simple wooden frame measuring 21 x 30 inches. John Hrehov Dessert, 2022 oil on canvas on panel 20h x 29w in 50.80h x 73.66w cm JHR008 John Hrehov Education 1985 MFA-Painting, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 1981 BFA-Painting, Cleveland Institute of Art, Cleveland, OH. Solo Exhibitions 2017 John Hrehov, Paintings and Drawings. Tom Thomas Gallery, Indiana University East, Richmond, IN. 2012 Shades from White to Black, New Drawings. Denise Bibro Fine Art, New York, NY. 2011 John Hrehov: Charcoal. Indiana University - Purdue University Fort Wayne. 2009 John Hrehov: A Survey 1999-2009 Denise Bibro Fine Art, New York, NY. Paintings and Drawings. Seerveld Gallery, Trinity Christian College, Palos Heights, IL. 2004 John Hrehov: Drawings and Paintings. Denise Bibro Fine Art, New York, NY. 2002 Paintings. Denise Bibro Fine Art, New York, NY. 2001 Charcoal. Indiana University - Purdue University Fort Wayne. John Hrehov, Paintings and Drawings. Wood Street Gallery, Chicago, IL. 2000 The Picture Proper. Denise Bibro Fine Art, New York, NY. Fearful Symmetry. Fort Wayne Museum of Art, Fort Wayne, IN. Allegories in Contemporary Life. Yvonne Rapp Gallery, Louisville, KY. 1999 Paintings and Working Drawings. Adams Hall Gallery, Wheaton College, Wheaton, IL. 1998 John Hrehov. Denise Bibro Fine Art, New York, NY. John Hrehov: Paintings and Drawings. Wood Street Gallery, Chicago, IL. 1997 Object Lesson, Paintings, and Drawings by John Hrehov. Yvonne Rapp Gallery, Louisville, KY. 1995 John Hrehov. Trinity Art Gallery, Trinity Christian College, Palos Heights, IL. 1993 John Hrehov: Selected Works 1980-1992 Indiana University - Purdue University Fort Wayne. Group Exhibitions 2019 2019 Alumni Exhibition. Reinberger Gallery at The Cleveland Institute of Art, Cleveland, OH. Out Of The Closet. Denise Bibro Fine Art, New York, NY. 1026 West Berry Street: The Fort Wayne Art School. Fort Wayne Museum of Art, Fort Wayne, IN. 2018 Artlink Regional Exhibition. Artlink Contemporary Art Gallery, Fort Wayne, IN. 2017 Sola Grace-Faith-Scripture: An Exhibition of Sacred Visual Art. Good Shepherd Institute at Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, IN. Norman Bradley...

A Charming, 1950s Modern Portrait of a Young Woman in a Red Sweater by Famed Chicago Artist, Francis Chapin (Am. 1899-1965). Artwork size: 8 x 6 inches, oil on Masonite (Framed siz...

A colorful, charming 1950s Mid-Century, architectural cityscape of Amsterdam by notable Chicago Modern artist Francis Chapin. Artwork size: 7 3/4 x 10 3/4 inches. Archivally matte...

A Vibrant, Expressive, Mid-Century Modern Painting of a Mountain Village by Notable Chicago Artist, Rudolph Pen. An open and expansive European landscape painting depicting a hillto...

A Large, Vibrant 1950s Mid-Century Modern Still Life Painting / Interior Scene by Noted Chicago Artist, Rudolph T. Pen. Depicts a delightful interior scene painted in subtle harmoni...

A Charming, 1950s Modern Portrait of a Girl in White Dress by Noted Chicago Artist, Francis Chapin (Am. 1899-1965). Artwork size: 6 1/2 x 5 3/4 inches; oil on Masonite; Framed si...

An Introspective, 1950s Mid-Century Modern Portrait "Head of a Young Girl" by Noted Chicago Artist, Francis Chapin (Am. 1899-1965). Artwork size: 15 x 12 1/2 inches (Framed size: ...

A 1946 Mid-Century Modern Surrealist Male Portrait Study by Noted Chicago Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). A compelling portrait study, perhaps a self portrait of the artist,...

Martin Luther King speaking at a civil rights rally in central Los Angeles in 1963. Julian Wasser took this photo for TIME Magazine. Years later former president Barack Obama purchas...

"High Desert Composition" is a welded steel wall sculpture where the lines between two- and three-dimensional art are blurred. The viewer has a variety of experiences from multiple vantage points where volumes and angles disconnect and reconnect as one moves around the piece. The hand welded steel is painted with acrylic paint in a kaleidoscope of color tones. Chris Hill High Desert Composition welded steel, acrylic paint 80h x 48w x 7d in 203.20h x 121.92w x 17.78d cm CHI024 Chris Hill is a Santa Fe based sculptor. Chris was born in Port Arthur, Texas but grew up in small town North Mississippi. He began welding at age 18 at the Tennessee Valley Authority...

"Concrete Gardens" is a body of work that translates Patrick Burns' deep love of the land into mixed-media paintings with rich texture and reverberating, monochrome color. Using pres...

A Lively 1950s Surrealist Mid-Century Modern Sporting- Themed Abstract Painting, "Swimmers", by Notable Chicago Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). Oil on Masonite, dating from 1...

Carved folk art vase, with hand-painted bright cloisonné enamel embellishments. The form's contrasting glazes amplify its intricate carvings and mottled texture. Stamped Amphora in t...

Frank and Dean recording. October, 1958. Sleep Warm album recorded by Dean Martin for Capitol Records in three sessions between October 13-15, 1958 with arrangements by Pete King and...

"Memory and Thunder" Kenya, 2025 Available sizes: 20 x 30 in / Edition of 6 - $4,500 32 x 48 in / Edition of 6 - $7,500 40 x 60 in / Edition of 6 - $10,500 50 x 75 in / Edition of 6...

Patrick Burns No Charges original newsprint, acrylic, polymer, resin on panel 32h x 48w in 81.28h x 121.92w cm PB0004 Patrick Burns b. 1987, Cleveland, OH Bio I like to explore themes that are unique to the American experience in my work. By merging the iconography of the US flag and the headlines from major events of our past, I can express a more personal understanding of what it means to be an American and the journey that has shaped our country.   West Virginia Raised. Maine Educated. Colby College  Exhibitions 2015 SOFA Chicago 2015, Ann Nathan Gallery, Navy Pier, Chicago, IL American Experience, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, June 2015 2014 (e)merge Art Fair, Capitol Skyline Hotel, Washington, DC. Amstel...

"Polar Wisdom" Svalbard, Norway - 2007 Archival Pigment Print Available Sizes: Edition of 20: 24” x 36” (61 x 91.4 cm) $3,500 Edition of 15: 31” x 46.5” (78.7 x 118.1 cm) $7,500 E...

An original 1920s caricature of Irish politician George Russell by artist Isa M. Macnie. Watercolor and ink on paper. Inscription on drawing reads: "For Richard Madden, George Rus...

A charming, diminutive 1930s Modern painting depicting laundry hanging in a Vermont lake house window by notable Chicago artist Harold Haydon. Artwork size: 8 x 8 1/4 inches. Fram...

"Face to Face" Svalbard, Norway - 2008 Archival Pigment Print Available Sizes: Edition of 20: 24” x 36” (61 x 91.4 cm) $9,500 Edition of 30: 31” x 46.5...

An original 1920s caricature of author Sean O'Casey by Irish artist, Isa M. Macnie. Watercolor and ink on paper. Inscription on drawing reads: "Author of 'Juno and the Paycock' etc...

Artist Harold Haydon called his tiny paintings "Thumb Box" paintings. This 1943 oil on paper painting depicts the Racine Ravine (Wisconsin Lakefront Beach). This is the perfect ser...

Robert F. Kennedy, Ambassador Hotel, 1968, LIFE Magazine Photo of Bobby Kennedy giving his final victory speech in the California Democratic presiden...

Farrah Fawcett Writing in her Journal, 1976, People Magazine This photo of Farrah in her mobile home was taken during her lunch hour. Aaron Spelling, the producer of Charlie's Angel...

This beautiful grouping of nude figures wandering into the abyss are seen from behind in various states of undress. Master painter Bruno Surdo creates compelling and mysterious narratives in his classically inspired artworks. Bruno Surdo The Abyss oil on canvas 24h x 48w in 60.96h x 121.92w cm Bruno A. Surdo b. Chicago, 1963 EXHIBITIONS 2018 Liberation, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL Blood Sport, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL Art on Paper 2018, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Pier 36, New York, NY SOFA Chicago 2018, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Navy Pier, Chicago, IL 2017 POP!ARAZZI, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL Coming Attractions, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL 2015 SOFA Chicago 2015, Ann Nathan Gallery, Navy Pier, Chicago, IL Bruno Surdo: Allegories, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2014 Bruno Surdo: Respond, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Modern Metaphors, Rockford Art Museum, Rockford, IL 2013 Bruno Surdo: Revelations, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Vice + Virtue, Northern Illinois University Museum of Art 2012 Contemporary Realism Biennial, Fort Wayne Museum of Art, Fort Wayne, IN 2011 Bruno Surdo, University of St. Francis School of Creative Arts, Fort Wayne, IN Uncensored, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2010 Art Chicago 2010, Ann Nathan Gallery, Merchandise Mart, Chicago, IL 2009 Art Chicago 2009, Ann Nathan Gallery, Merchandise Mart, Chicago, IL 2007 Bruno Surdo, Art Institute of Indianapolis, Indianapolis, IN 2006 Context/Content: Making Meaning with the Figure, University of Arkansas, Conway, AR Creative Imaginings, Mobile Museum of Art, Mobile, AL Bruno Surdo: Cycles, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2005 Art Chicago 2005, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2004 Tragedy, Memory, & Honor, Richard M. Daley Center, Chicago, IL Art Chicago 2004, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Group Show, Arcadia Gallery, New York, NY Drawings VII, Koplin Del Rio Gallery, West Hollywood, CA Armory Show, New York Armory, New York, NY 2003 Paintings & Drawings, College of Lake County, Grayslake, IL The Art Show, New York, NY Bruno Surdo: New Work, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Art Chicago 2003, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2003-10 International Show of Contemporary Artists, Chicago Art Open, Chicago, IL 2002 Bruno Surdo: Perception of Appearance, Frye Museum, Seattle, WA Tragedy, Memory, & Honor, Richard M. Daley Center, Chicago, IL Bruno Surdo: Transcendence, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Art Chicago 2002, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Tragedy, Memory, & Honor, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2001 Magic Vision, Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock, AR 1998 Evanston and Vicinity Artists, Evanston Art Center, Evanston, IL 1996 Bruno Surdo: A Personal View, University of Wisconsin, Kenosha, WI 1995 Bruno Surdo: Recent Works, College of Lake County, IL AIDS in Our Society, Loyola University, Chicago, IL Bruno Surdo: Life, Struggle, and Hope, Chicago Cultural Center, Chicago, IL 2001 Magic Vision, Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock, AR Bruno Surdo: Dualities of Life, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 1999 Group Show, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 1998 Group Exhibition, Fine Arts Building Gallery, Chicago, IL 1995 Spiritual Inquiries, Struve Gallery, Chicago, IL 1994 Recent Works, The 14th Annual Juried Exhibition for Lake County Artists, Grayslake, IL Go Figure, Figurative Works on Paper, Chicago Printmakers Collaborative, Chicago, IL SELECTED COLLECTIONS The Re-Birth of Venus, Temporary Loan, Fort Wayne Museum of Art Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock, AR College of Lake County, Greyslake, IL Flashpoint Academy, Chicago IL John Robert Wiltgen Design Shoemaker Ruud Collection Julie & Thomas Danilek Michael Vozzella and Mike Silver Benjamin Fernandez Tom Braake Betsy Colburn Michael Diemand & Lor LaRose Michael Staab & Kathy Brock Bruce Leep Frank Tzurect Mary Foley Rosalyn Carlson Mimmy Turney Janet Long Halstead Billy Hunt Carol Galli Myles Kerrigan Honorable & Mrs. Edwin Berman Theodore Gage Northrop Art Museum Past Present & Future Company Dr. James & Peggy Kemmler Salvatore Monastero Nix & Virginia Lauridsen Joel Miller David & Marlene Zerkel Ann & Andy Abel Claudia Rush Marc Miller Leonard Goldberg Lawrence Pucci Howard Tullman Collection Susan & Manny Kramer James Rinnert Richar Interiors Michael & Nancy Colt Khalid Altijir Dr. Joe Grodman Beryl & Jack Gore Larry Wolf & Eric Naegle Chuck Wolandi Jack Schwab & David Sandelin Thomas Kaczmarek Marti Dinerstein Craig & Michael Golden Mike & Jill Rose SELECTED PUBLICATIONS Bruno Surdo: The Method Artist Responds, by Lucia Mauro, June 26, 2014, anitathemovie blog An Exhibition of Exhibitionism: Bruno Surdo’s ‘Respond’, by Carrie McGath, July 1, 2014, The Chicagoist Website, Arts and Entertainment “Inspired Environs: A renowned designer decks out his Loop abode in art and texture” Modern Luxury, Men’s Book, Spring 2014 “Master Class” What’z Up Magazine, Fort Wayne, 2011 ”9/11 Painting will be on Display” Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, 2011 “Illuminated Images” Fort Wayne Reader, 2011 “Two Faces of Beauty” American Art Collector Magazine, Issue #3 and #59, 2006/2010 “Art and Calamity” Art Papers, 2009 “Versions of the Present, Techniques of the Past” American Artist Magazine, 2004 “Living Artists” Crow Book Publishing, Chicago, IL 2004 “The New Master” by Craig Keller, Chicago Social Magazine, 2004. “Tragedy, Memory, and Honor,” by William Hageman, Chicago Tribune, March 28, 2002 “Mural Depicts Tragedy of 9/11” Art Section...

A 1920s caricature of Irish senator W.B. Yeats by artist Isa M. Macnie. Inscription on drawing reads: "Senator W.B. Yeats, Nobel Prize, 1924". Signed "Mac", lower right; titled a...

Albert Vidal paints a view of the Historical Landmark Reid Murdoch Building and world famous Marina Towers sitting at the edge of the Chicago River. Using vibrant colors and an abstr...

An original 1928 caricature of Irish politician Alexander Green by artist Isa M. Macnie. Watercolor and ink on paper. Inscription on drawing reads: "For my Irish friend Richard Ma...

A dynamic 1930s, WPA era industrial scene watercolor of a steel mill and factory workers by notable Chicago Modern artist, Harold Haydon. A wonderful example of early Twentieth Cent...

A Gyo-Tako print of large octopus is seen here in Jeff Conroy's work entitled "Orange Crush". To achieve this remarkable painting, the artist inks the octopus using traditional sum...

Original 1961 poster for Roger Vadim's Please, Not Now! starring Brigitte Bardot. A masterful statement of modernist film poster design, this oversized drive-in poster was acquired d...

Christopher Ganz The Enigma 2011 lithograph 15h x 20.50w in 38.10h x 52.07w cm CG0037 -ARTIST STATEMENT- I depict my person in multiplicity with different selves representing dram...

A captivating 1930s Modern portrait painting of a young woman, titled "Green Scarf", by famed Chicago artist, Francis Chapin. Image size: 14 1/4 x 10 inches. Framed size: 15 1/...

A Unique, Unusual and Striking Abstract Surrealist Painting Completed in the Chicago Imagist Tradition by Notable Artist, Stanley Dean Edwards (Am. Born 1941). Titled "Gatekeeper, the painting is oil on canvas, dating from 1993. The artwork shows a unique synthesis of Post-War Surrealist influences, including the avant-garde Italian artist Enrico Baj and the vibrant palette of the Chicago Imagist school, namely Ed Paschke and his contemporaries. The collage-like references in the composition recall the artwork of sculptor H.C. Westermann and others experimenting with assemblage, found objects and the integration of inanimate objects. Artwork size: 32 x 26 inches. Signed "Edwards", lower right; signed, titled and dated on reverse. Provenance: The Artist; Private Collection, Chicago, IL (circa 2010). Born 1941 in Joliet, Illinois, Stanley Dean Edwards moved to Chicago early in life to pursue his life as an artist. His mother was a Chicago public school teacher, and his father was a Methodist minister. He studied painting and design at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC), receiving a BFA in 1967. While at SAIC, Edwards was influenced by Vera Berdich's printmaking classes and Daniel Massen's design classes. After a brief stay in New York (1967-1970), where he was profoundly shaken by urban rioting and general upheaval of this time, Edwards returned to Chicago and later set up a studio in the Pilsen Neighborhood. Edwards is primarily a figurative painter whose work is informed by both Surrealism and Constructivism. Early hard-edge paintings from the mid-1960's feature a series of screaming babies set in brightly colored environments. These works offer religious suggestions, as the infants are paired with ecclesiastical figures presented atop an altar. Other protagonists of his series include dogs and faceless men. (1) In the early 1960's, Stan Edwards was part of a diverse group of artists that included George Kokines, Ray Siemanowski, Michael Hurson and Peter Holbrook among others. These artists and Edwards were part of that decade's vanguard and their work was included in an exhibition titled, "Twelve Chicago Artists" at the Walker Art Center. The curator was Jan Van der Marck. Edwards called his paintings of babies, dogs and erotic torsos from that period "image painting" because they were taken not from the model stand but cast off photo images. One painting from this period, Infant in Altar IV, is a 60" x 60" an oil and acrylic painting and was loaned by the National Museum of American Art at the Smithsonian to the Museum of Contemporary Art for its fifty year retrospective titled, "Art in Chicago, 1945 to 1995." The painting is part of the Martha Jackson memorial collection at the National Museum of American Art. (2.) Recent paintings, which Edwards calls "Icons for a New Era: Assembled Art Imagery," feature iconic images composed of items from popular culture; witty titles often allude to the materials from which they were made. The found objects, vibrant colors, and slick presentations of his works indicate their relationship to and a continuation of Pop art. Both humorous and sinister, Edwards' paintings reflect the psychological uneasiness associated with the close of the twentieth century. (3.) One painting of this series titled Surveyor is a 66" x 60" oil and acrylic painting and appears in the book Humor in Art by Nicholas Roukes, published by Davis Inc. The book is widely used as a text for art and design projects. (4.) In October of 2002 Edwards presented a retrospective exhibition of his work at the Illinois Institute of Art where he taught art and design in the foundation program. His lecture and exhibition were presented as part of "Chicago Artist's Month" sponsored by the Department of Cultural Affairs for the City of Chicago. In 2004 Edwards completed a major commission for the new Veterans' Administration building in Chicago. The commission centered on patriotic themes and one large 6 and 1/2' x 10' painting is dedicated to prisoners of war. Five others are 48" x 48" and depict the military branch seals, and four paintings 32" x 32" are based on 19th century patriotic engravings. Stan Edwards, who retired from the Illinois Institute of Art in 2009, lives and works in Chicago, Illinois. Sources: (2. & 4.) Press release (1. & 3.) "Art in Chicago 1945 1995, MCA.) COLLECTIONS: Selected corporate & institutional collections National Museum of American Art/Smithsonian Corcoran Gallery of Art Ceco Corporation Crain Communications Thrall Railcar Company American Hospital Association Plyzynski & Associates, Inc. NYC North American Jet Corporation Ball State University Illinois Institute of Art at Chicago State University of New York Harris Bank & Trust Dallas Theater Center Electronic Media Magazine Johnson Controls Central National Bank of Cleveland Associates Commercial Corporation Corporate Art Source Veterans' Administration Commission, Chicago, 2004 Ten site specific paintings Siemens Corporation COLLECTIONS: Selected private collections Walter & Dawn Clark Netsch Beatrice "Buddy" Mayer Douglas Ross Larry Aronson Marc & Ilana Platt Phil & Joan Krone Craig & Janet Duchossois Sally Fairweather Shirley Hardin Brian Boyer Pritzker collection James Speyer collection Michael Greany Ed & Lindy Bergman Collection Leigh Block Collection Professor Harold Platt Professors Lew Erenberg & Susan Hirsch Dr. David Gross Professor Mihaly Csiksentmihalyi Dr. Paula Young Dr. & Mrs. Imre Hidvegi EXHIBITIONS: Selected exhibitions Biennial Drawing Exhibition, Art Institute of Chicago, 1962 Momentum II, Lexington Hall, University of Chicago, 1964 The Sunken City Rises, Hermann Hall, Illinois Institute of Technology,1964 Eye on Chicago, Hermann Hall, Illinois Institute of Technology, 1964 29th Corcoran Biennial, 1965, Washington, D.C. Inaugural exhibition, Fairweather-Hardin, 1965 Society for Contemporary Art, Art Institute of Chicago, 1965 12 Chicago Painters...

A small octopus is inked in the Japanese style of Gyo-Taku print making. Using sumi ink to "print" the octopus, the artist then embellishes it with colored pencil to convey an extra...

Juxtaposing and altering unrelated natural objects with the machinations of man to create a scene of an impossible surreal world, the viewer enters the mind of artist Christopher Klein...

Victor Wang's highly textured paintings involve thick layers of paint over collaged images from the Tang Dynasty. In "Let Her Go", the foreground shows a modern female figure sitting upon the side of a boat which gives the impression she is wearing wings and about to take flight. Upon closer look, there are various scenes taking place around her in the water - warriors with knives drawn, a jeep in pursuit of some unseen enemy, a cauldron boiling over. Influence by the Renaissance Masters, Titian and Rembrandt for their glazing and layering techniques respectively, the artist builds the surface using heavy paint, swirling and mixing the color on the canvas. The end result is a poetic and emotionally powerful representation of the human form. Victor Wang Let Her Go oil on canvas 48h x 60w in 121.92h x 152.40w cm VWG011 My path through life has been adventurous, exciting, and dream-like. My experience of settling into America in search of better opportunities has been both challenging and inspiring. I use the human face as a vehicle to paint human experiences - worry and wonder, sadness and pleasure - which reflect the emotional stage directly tied to my immigration experiences. I grew up amongst the sunflower fields in northern China. In my childhood years, I played under the bright, yellow sunflowers with my brothers everyday. China’s Cultural Revolution played an important part in my life. During that time, sunflowers were used as political allegories to depict how citizens of China should follow Mao who represented the sun, since sunflowers follow the sun’s movements. People eventually inferred the deception that this symbol masked. After graduating from high school, I was sent to a labor camp in the country for ‘reeducation’ during China’s Cultural Revolution. There, I was subject to grueling farm work. Often, I worked in corn and sunflower fields from sunrise to sunset. Thus, for me, sunflowers evoke both personal joy and sadness. Therefore, to deliver my complex feelings, I use sunflowers as a metaphor to connote my background and emotional stage. My incorporation of collages of figures from China’s Tang Dynasty represents my Chinese heritage and is a constant reminder of where I came from. The texture and earthiness on the canvas’s surface are inspired by the texture of the soil on the farm where I worked in China. Although I often gain great pleasure from the process of painting, it is most important to unfold expressively those feelings within myself. Wang belongs to a generation of immigrant painters from China, whose artistic background was defined by socialist realism but took advantage of their skills and broke away from that tradition to create new subjects in the U.S. “When I was a student during Cultural Revolution, Soviet realism art was among the dominant source of influence and it grabbed us like lightening...

You look at my paintings, that's a slice of life you never saw before. Right now, and for a good number of years, I've been an urban painter. My life, my reality is Chicago. Bow n...

Over a hundred years ago, my grandfather registered as a homesteader with the Department of the Interior Land Office in Buffalo, Wyoming. Building a cabin on a remote 640 acre plat,...

Richard Gibbons Mother and Daughter, 2021 oil on canvas board 16h x 12w in 40.64h x 30.48w cm RAG090 Richard Gibbons b. 1950, Toledo, OH Richard Gibbons (born 1950, Toledo, Ohio) i...