New Studio at the Cornelia Arts Building

Beginning November 2009 my studio (#109) will be located at the Cornelia Arts Building, 1800 W. Cornelia, and open by appointment. The building has a long history serving as an incubator for local artists and artisans and I am looking forward to a computer/cat/chore free zone so I can get back to making art.

The weekend of November 14 -15, Cornelia artists will host an open house so come by, see the new space and check out the great work by a variety of local artists. Some participating artists will create homages to Vincent VanGogh’s Bedroom in Arles to hang in the hallways.

Dates/Times:
Friday, November 13th 6-10pm (opening reception)
Saturday, November 14th noon-5pm
Sunday, November 15th noon-5pm

“2-Story City,” 2 artists collaborate for Chicago Artists’ Month

October is Illinois Humanities Month and also marks the annual celebration of Chicago Artists’ Month. Coordinated by the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs, the month-long event features hundreds of neighborhood art walks, art exhibits and happenings across the city.

2-Story City

"End of the Line", watercolor, 16" x 20", by Emily Rapport

Emily Rapport and Andrew Steiner are two Chicago artists who have joined forces in a collaborative exhibit titled “2-Story City”.

The exhibit takes place at Morpho Gallery, 5216 N. Damen Ave., Oct. 2nd, 3rd and 4th in conjunction with Chicago Artists’ Month. An opening-night reception will be held Friday, Oct. 2nd from 6:00-10:00 p.m.; the exhibition will continue Saturday, Oct. 3rd, 10:00 a.m.-8:00 p.m.; and Sunday, Oct. 4th, 10:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. Ms. Rapport and Mr. Steiner will be on site throughout the weekend to answer questions and discuss their work.

"Street Scene", archival digital print, 13" x 19", by Andrew Steiner

Recalling daily life in Chicago’s neighborhoods, Ms. Rapport’s oil paintings and Mr. Steiner’s documentary photography relate to a broader human experience. Mr. Steiner’s dynamic compositions frame downtown immigration rallies, Devon Ave. street festivals and candids of passersby. Ms. Rapport’s expressive, fluid paint style imbues the familiar with a sense of spirituality in depicting neighborhood homes, fast-food restaurants and street scenes. The artists moved to Chicago from Rochester, N.Y., to attend the School of the Art Institute and have since established a creative dialogue through a shared, humanistic vision of art and life.

For more information visit the event website at: sites.google.com/site/2storycity/

Around the Coyote’s “1st Annual Painting Competition & Exhibition”

My painting, Supernatural Burgerking (30″ x 31″, oil/canvas),  has been selected to be exhibited in The 1st Annual Painting Competition and Exhibition coordinated by Around the Coyote. The opening reception takes place this Saturday, August 22nd, from 6-9pm at The Splat Flats, 1815-25 W. Division in Chicago. One artist will be selected at the opening to receive the “Best Emerging Painter” Award – other than that brief, tension-filled, awkward moment it should be a lot of fun!! The exhibition continues through September 26th. An afterparty (also Saturday, 8/22, beginning at 9pm) is planned for artists and patrons at Debonair Social Club at 1575 N Milwaukee Ave. in Wicker Park.

This exhibition is curated by Sara Schnadt. The selected artists include Matt Hallinan, Mark Hansen, Lindsey Hook, Diane Huff, Elizabeth Kauffman, Blair Michele Meehan, John Mosher, Gosia Podosek, Emily Rapport, and Erin Rivers.

“New Cleaners”

New Cleaners, oil/canvas, 24" x 30"

This is the dry cleaner opposite the bus-stop on Damen Ave. and Grace.

Sign painting is like surgery; you’ve got to have a steady hand and complete confidence in where you’re going with that loaded brush. I have not mastered sign painting – but – neither am I a sign painter.

(Previous Shot)

New Cleaners (In Progress), oil on canvas, 24" x 30"

“Drive-thru”, Wendy’s on Lawrence Ave., Chicago

I wasn’t sure if I was going to make this painting work – from the start the canvas seemed too small and I had a bad attitude. But, my new approach is to ignore my wandering emotions and pay attention to the important critical intent.

Drive-thru, oil/canvas, 28" x 28". © 2009 Emily Rapport

This painting relates to the fast-food joints I’ve done in the past and I have a few more I’d like to do. I have a good shot of “Church’s” I took while in Louisiana and there are some all-night spots here in Chicago that are elaborately decorated with lights and interesting signs.

In the first version I included the car that was going through the drive-thru when I took the picture. My photographer friend, Andrew, commented that he didn’t think the car needed to be there (below, you can see the first version). I think that was a good call. Sometimes it helps to get an informed second opinion.

Version 1: Drive-thru, oil/canvas, 28" x 28"

Portrait of Andrew Steiner

A new portrait. This is from a photo I took of my friend Andrew outside of Trader Joe’s. He has a very masculine presence that was fun to work with – I exaggerated the brutish quality in his hand but the attitudinous glare is all Andy.

Portrait of Andrew Steiner outside of Trader Joe's (Oil on canvas, 48in. x 30in.)

The Peter Jones Gallery says “good-bye”.

4th of July, oil/canvas, 31" x 31", by Emily Rapport.

“Grand Goodbye”, the final exhibition at The Peter Jones Gallery (ending its 20+ year tenure in Ravenswood), will open this (correction) Saturday, June 6th, from 6 – midnight.  The grand finale exhibition “will showcase the diverse talent of artists whose paths have crossed through Peter Jones’ Gallery and studios over its twenty plus years of operation. 60+ Chicago area artists will hang in the gallery as well as in salon style mini-galleries created out of vacated artist studios.”

Emily Rapport (see left), a former denizen of Ravenswood Industrial Corridor, is just one of many artists exhibiting in the final show at the Peter Jones Gallery.

Photography by Andrew Steiner (below) will also be on view. Andrew collaborated with Emily to create the Ravenswood Documentary Project in 2006 for Chicago Artists’ Month – the theme was “Artists at Work” and showed that artists and industry shared a cultural and historic connection through the act of work. View more of Andrew’s photography at: http://andrewsteinerphotography.com

From the Devon Avenue Series. © Andrew Steiner

We say good-bye to the Peter Jones Gallery with the knowledge that new artistic ventures will naturally occur in its stead. Artists will continue to work together in the cooperative spirit that Peter Jones, and others like him, have fostered over the past 20 years.

The opening reception this Friday will include performances, film and music. The show continues through June 21st. Regular gallery hours are 3-6pm, Saturdays and Sundays.

For more information about the show visit: http://www.peterjonesgallery.com

House on Damen

House on Damen

I think it’s finished. The iron gate is probably the least accurate drawing part – but accuracy isn’t everything. Next on the docket – another portrait- I think.

Details: oil/canvas, 30″ x 40″

Rockwell Station, Winter Scene

Rockwell Station

Fresh off the easel. A painting I started over a year ago and had to scrap once I realized it needed to be painted on a larger canvas (this one is 38″ x 60″). Sometimes, you just have to start back at the beginning.

Portrait of Denise

Recently completed portrait commission based on a family photo.

Portrait of Denise