We are thrilled to announce the details for our August exhibit by amazing Chicago-based artist and illustrator Michelle Romo!
Last year we partnered with Michelle on a mini exhibit of the artwork that she created for her awesome Mystic Cats Tarot Deck — and we knew we wanted to do even more with her, so she's back with a new body of ABSOLUTELY ADORABLE work!
Join us Saturday, August 9, 6-8pm for an opening reception to meet Michelle and browse the artwork while grooving to a live set by DJ Sean Doe!
Works will be available first to members of our Gallery Previews email list. Sign up at http://previews.rotofugi.com
Cosmic Collections: A Series of Imaginary Products
New Works by Michelle Romo
August 9-31, 2025
Opening Reception
Saturday, August 9, 6-8pm
Free – All Ages – BYOB
Rotofugi — 2780 N Lincoln Ave — Chicago
An LGBTQ+ Safe Space
About the Artist
Michelle Romo is an illustrator, product designer, and maker of fun things!
Michelle has written and illustrated several books (Frankie's Magical Day, The Spencer the Cat Series and Paper Wonderland) and has developed two tarot and oracle decks (Mystic Cats Tarot and Cosmic Kindness Oracle). Her board book series, Spencer the Cat, was partially developed by Cartoon Network for an animated series.
Michelle has created countless characters over the years and has a focus in designing products for children including apparel, accessories, home decor, and toys. She also licenses her artwork under the name "Crowded Teeth" and participates in art shows creating one of a kind art pieces.
Select clients and collaborators include: Workman Publishing, Abrams Appleseed, Disney, Sanrio, Hasbro, Cartoon Network, Pals Socks, Scholastic Book Fairs, The Flaming Lips, CAMP and more.
Michelle currently lives in Chicago, IL and is obsessed with her 3 cats — Chu Chu, Deli, and Bimmy.
It's been a hot minute since we had an all skate deck exhibit (2005's "Three Inches From the Street") so when Chicago based curator All American Trash approached us with a proposal, we jumped (ollied? kick-flipped?) at the chance!
And oh boy, did they come through....this is a stunning collection with not a single dud in the mix!
Join us Saturday, June 7, 2-8pm for the opening reception for "Hit the Streets!" — AAT and many of artists will be around to chat, plus enjoy a live set by DJ Sean Doe from 2 to 4pm while you browse the art.
Decks will be available first to in-person attendees of the exhibit, beginning at 10am on opening day. Online sales will be offered to our Gallery Previews List members after the opening, sign up at https://previews.rotofugi.com
Hit The Streets!
An All American Trash Skate Deck Exhibit
June 7-29, 2025
Open 10am-6pm Daily
Opening Reception
Saturday, June 7, 2-8pm
DJ Sean Doe Live 2-4pm
Free / All Ages / BYOB
Featured Artists (In No Particular Order)
Stephanie Villatose • Chris Dokebi • James Sturnfield • Underseagravy • Nez • Christy Grossman • Starfish Hospital • KillerNapkins • Mosher • Mick Monster • Rawooh • Jonski • Momoki • TJ Kiser • Distort • ZWONSTER• Mute Meighbor • Steve Seeley • Stukone • HINK • China Cat 663 • EWRKS • Serk • City Kitty Street • Daniel Wilson • Strangerbot • Jason Undead • Creative Stanley • Atomik • 31Mario Stone • Goopmasta
About the Guest Curator
Born from the underground art scene, over the last few years All American Trash (AAT) has been a small but vital movement in the Chicago art world created by Chicago-based artist Alejandro Martell aka Underseagravy. Since the first AAT exhibit in October 2021 at Chicago Distilling Company, AAT has successfully curated massive events at a variety of spaces such as Epiphany Center of Arts, All Star Press, Reggie’s Rock Club, and The Order of the Seven Corners.
The main goal AAT sets out to achieve is expanding the Chicago art scene to new artists as well as highlighting people disenfranchised by the scene itself. That means we welcome a wide range of diverse mediums and artistic expressions as well. From gouache to glass, to decks that are completely hand carved to long decks and ones that even are broken and snapped in half, we’ve had it all. We always push for artists to have fun and really express themselves when it comes to this exhibition!
We are thrilled to present our May 2025 exhibit featuring the Afrofuturist/Pop works of Chicago-based artist Steve Bravo!
With POPJECTS, Steve redefines "pop" as an expressive and layered form of storytelling — mythic, bodily, and emotional. His sculptures and visuals shift between familiarity and iconic grandeur, offering playful yet profound explorations of pop imagery transformed into portals of feeling, memory, and myth.
Join us the evening of Saturday, May 3, 6-8pm for an opening reception to meet the artist and groove to a live set by DJ Sean Doe while you check out the art!
POPJECTS
New Works by Steve Bravo
Presented by POPTOYPOP
May 3-June 1, 2025
Open 10am-6pm Daily
Opening Reception
Saturday, May 3, 6-8pm
with a live set by DJ Sean Doe
Free • All Ages
About the Artist
Steve Bravo, part of the creative group POPTOYPOP, brings over 15 years of art direction in advertising and the toy industry, visual narratives for brands like Pokémon, Disney, Nintendo, Nike, and Bacardi, and is notably featured in EA Sports Need For Speed Unbound. His vibrant works explore Afrofuturism, pop culture, vintage fashion, hip hop, and Black excellence. Inspired by Jack Kirby, Kerry James Marshall, Pose MSK, and designers Finn Juhl, Dieter Rams, and Verner Panton, Steve’s work in POPJECTS reimagines pop art as emotive, iconic, and monumental.
@steve_bravo @djseandoe
Are you EGGcited for 4/20?
This year, Easter and 4/20 collide, and the good folks behind Egg Prize couldn’t let the occasion pass without something special. So, they brought together some of Chicago’s most talented artists to transform egg-shaped canvases into a one-of-a-kind collection of artwork. Come by, check out the art, and, of course, get
yourself an egg.
Join us Sunday, April 20, 11am-6pm for the opening reception...with a live set by DJ Sean Doe from 2 to 4pm! Exhibit continues through May 25th.
There will not be an online preview for this exhibit, however, our Gallery Previews email list members will get notified first when online sales are open. Sign up at previews.rotofugi.com
Eggstravaganza!
A Group Art Show presented by Egg Prize
April 20-May 25, 2025
Open 10am-6pm Daily
Opening Reception
Sunday, April 20, 11am-6pm with a live set by DJ Sean Doe, 2-4pm
All Ages • Free
A massive thank you to Egg Prize for organizing this exhibit and, of course, to all the artists that made this possible. Give em a follow (Instagram):
@annaclairewhite •
@annalisaillo •
@austyuniverse •
@bird_milk_ •
@buwanbun •
@vandamone •
@davidkail •
@d_arloff •
@diskeuno •
@dome_chicago •
@98tides •
@notsopunk81 •
@fab_erre_pe •
@fugscreens •
@gohomejerome •
@g00senek •
@hinkstink •
@erikrhymeswell •
@jameseastwood •
@jpak4ever •
@le.panther •
@dreamit_makeit_studios •
@itsmilkbreath •
@moshershow •
@n.susta.art •
@virafuentes_art •
@nakedgooseart •
@nambopaints •
@nobadfruit •
@ocean_muerto •
@pabsprints •
@_pennypinch_ •
@chicago_poncho •
@pvper.plain •
@ramiro_arte_ •
@roiz_tm •
@shawnimals •
@sosa_theartist •
@squeakstarzula •
@sunnieskiez •
@inkedbytragiiccc
About the Curator
Egg Prize (@eggprize) is a custom vending machine that dispenses egg shaped capsules filled with original pieces of art made directly by an artist.
Making art accessible to all is what Egg Prize stands for. Whether you are an art buyer or an art creator, Egg Prize provides an easy opportunity for anyone to get involved with the artist community and experience the joys of art.
While the main Egg Prize machines are huge temporary installations, Egg Prize installed their first mini Egg Prize machine in Rotofugi in November 2024.
🥚
Chicago-based artist and curator Aaron Robert Baker creates beautiful emotionally resonant works inspired by everyday objects. His new solo exhibit, "Burn After Feeling," opens on Saturday, April 5 and features a beautiful collection of new works as well as a first-time peek into the artist's sketchbooks!
Works will be available to purchase first by members of our Gallery Previews email list. Sign up at previews.rotofugi.com
Join us April 5, 6-8pm, for the opening reception to meet Aaron and view the works in person while grooving to a live set by DJ Sean Doe!
Burn After Feeling
New Works by Aaron Robert Baker
April 5-27, 2025
Open 10am-6pm Daily
Opening Reception
Saturday, April 5, 6-8pm
Free, All Ages
Artist Statement
My work explores the symmetry between beauty and awkwardness, nature and artifice, happiness and despair, the pleasant and the pathetic. Transformation and anthropomorphization interest me, as does our ability to turn any combination of shapes into a reflection of ourselves and our own humanity.
I enjoy whimsy and existential unease and like to depict a world where architectural forms and anthropomorphic objects express a human vulnerability. My characters lament, but also embrace, the fleeting nature of life.
In my drawings, structures liquefy, faces emerge from brick and mortar and candles take on expressions of agony, joy or contemplation. I use buildings, flames and organic forms to explore impermanence, identity and emotional expression.
"Burn After Feeling" is a celebration of the role that drawing plays in my life. It has been my life-long companion, my safe space, my antagonist and my greatest strategy for making sense of, and ultimately finding the humor in, this world.
About the Artist
Aaron Robert Baker is a Chicago-based artist and independent curator. His work has appeared in numerous publications including Art in America, Hi-Fructose and New American Painters.
Born in Bradford, Pennsylvania, Baker received his BFA from The University of North Texas and his MFA from The University of Nevada Las Vegas, where he studied under influential art critic Dave Hickey. When he was in the second grade, his teacher told his parents that he had drawn an impressive cheeseburger and that they should enroll him in art classes. Baker has been an artist ever since.
