9 Chicago art gallery exhibitions to check out in November

I have a new post on Time Out Chicago today: 9 art shows to see next month.

Fall in [love with] Chicago.

As suggested in an earlier post, another autumn event you can continue to attend is the inaugural Chicago Architecture Biennial. My photos from the festivities so far can be viewed on—deep breath—Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, Facebook, 500px, and Pinterest (and, uh, spoilers at a few of those for the latest episode of The Walking Dead). Besides solarise, which I still can’t stop talking about, I’d recommend starting with the exhibitions throughout the Chicago Cultural Center.

Happy Halloweekend!

The mountains are calling and I must [know childhood icon Bill Nye acknowledges my existence]

I’ve been selected as a Finalist for the National Park Service’s “Find Your Park: The Centennial Project” contest! Now, I need you to vote for my entry! Fill out the ballot here. (Winners get to attend the NPS’ 100^th birthday celebration, have people like Bill Nye the Science Guy—whose theme song was my ringtone for 5 years until I got a smartphone—turn their stories into a project, and more.)

(What I’d submitted: Inspired by my trip to Denali National Park in 2002, I drew the above when I was 15. Titled Land of the Midnight Sun, it was my first attempt at using oil pastels. My high school eventually purchased the drawing from me, and it’s still a part of their permanent art collection. Not bad for a piece in a new medium.)

Voting ends October 16 at 5pm CST. [Update: It’s been extended to Oct. 19, same time.] The limit is “1 vote per person, per email address, per day.” So vote everyday with all your addresses for the next couple weeks!

Spread the word. Thank you!

[Update 2: So, uh, I won.]

10 Chicago art gallery exhibitions to check out in October

Happy October! The Chicago Architecture Biennial launches on Saturday, the first Chicago Museum Week starts today, and it’s Chicago Artists Month. To help you sort through it all, I’ve highlighted 10 art gallery events on Time Out Chicago. (Included is Meet Your Maker, a networking event for which I’ve been invited to be on the leadership committee.)

Luftwerk, solarise: a sea of all colors.
Garfield Park Conservatory.

As a follow-up to the previous post: The autumnal equinox opening of Luftwerk’s solarise at the Garfield Park Conservatory (pictured above) was one of my picks for last month, but—fortunately—the show runs through January 3, concurrent with the Biennial. See it!

Lastly: I made a rule for myself that I wouldn’t show the hundreds upon hundreds of postcards I’ve been getting over the years for Dreams of a City until I felt like I was completely finished with the project, but this one, which I retrieved from my P.O. box a couple days ago, was so stirring that I had to share.