Lana Crooks & Andrew Bell plus Melissa Sue Stanley in December
A new month means new art in our main and side galleries! We're super excited to have a wonderful exhibit by two great artists, Lana Crooks and Andrew Bell, in our main gallery for December, plus Melissa Sue Stanley will be showing her wonderful stitched creations in the side gallery!
Night Fall
New Works by Lana Crooks & Andrew Bell
December 9-31, 2016
BYOB Opening Reception December 9, 7-10pm
Chicago-based artist Lana Crooks loves the antique, the creepy, the cute and the mysterious. Constructing creatures from fabrics and found objects, she is a purveyor of faux specimens and soft curiosities that are a blend of science and fantasy. Sought after for her pattern-making abilities, she frequently teams up with other artists to breathe three dimensional life into their illustrations, earning her two Designer Toy Awards. She enjoys drawing from real specimens in dusty back rooms of Chicago's natural history museums but, on an average day, you can find her in the studio surrounded by skulls, old books, aging fabrics, and a cat named Tanuki!
New York-based Andrew Bell enjoys working in a variety of mediums, from illustrations and paintings to toys and sculptures. His expressive characters embody a complex set of emotions, lending them a real sense of life and hinting at a deeper narrative. The work is tied together by a sense of humor that often belies a more serious and somber message.
Andrew draws inspiration from his travels, his dreams, and the diversity of life surrounding him in his home of Brooklyn, New York. Over the last 15 years he has published several books based on his “Creatures in my Head” series of illustrations and has released hundreds of prints, toys and products through his company Dead Zebra Inc.
His work has been featured in gallery shows and publications around the world including The New York Times, Wired, Newsweek and Fast Company. You may even have seen his famous Café Grumpy logo on HBO’s ‘girls’, or his Google Android toy on widely syndicated The Big Bang Theory. He has received three “Designer Toy Award” honors, including the 2015 Toy of the Year award!
Join us for the opening reception on the evening of Friday, December 9, 7-10pm and you'll have a chance to chat with both Lana and Andrew, plus we'll have snacks and beverages (BYOB if you want beer or wine), not to mention awesome music courtesy of DJ Sean Doe.
Works will be available to purchase at the gallery beginning at 11am on Friday, December 9 or via email starting at 2pm the same day for members of our Gallery Previews List (sign up here).
Dandelion Wine
New Works by Melissa Sue Stanley
December 9-31, 2016
BYOB Opening Reception December 9, 7-10pm
Melissa Sue Stanley creates paintings and soft sculptures in Chicago, IL. Her work is collected internationally and has been exhibited in galleries across the US.
Melissa draws her inspiration from life and experience in the Midwest. Memories of cicadas, storms, and endless fields are captured in drawings and paintings - with a twist of magical realism and using all the tools in her studio. Following this theme, Melissa also creates small creatures out of wool and wire. These monsters and spirits are stitched together from summer evenings. Both bright and dark, they offer colorful delights as well as dark mysteries.
Melissa grew up in the small towns of northern Illinois with lightning bugs, creek-beds, and dandelions. She studied drawing and painting, and continues to do so, in various weekly figure drawing sessions at local art leagues and studios.
Melissa also works with her partner, Max Bare, on comic books and small products. Together they manage and host the Chicago Drink & Draw Social Club, and are members of the OhNo!Doom Collective.
Join us for the opening reception on the evening of Friday, December 9, 7-10pm and you'll have a chance to chat with Melissa, plus we'll have snacks and beverages (BYOB if you want beer or wine), not to mention awesome music courtesy of DJ Sean Doe.
Works will be available to purchase at the gallery beginning at 11am on Friday, November 11 or via email starting at 2pm the same day for members of our Gallery Previews List (sign up here).