Artist and Chicago art critic Mark Brandl ’s opening reception for “Out of Sequence,” an exhibition that focuses on consumerism, was apparently so well received, the visitors to that opening couldn’t help but take a piece of the exhibition home with them.

Brandl was at his home in Switzerland when he was notified of the thefts earlier this month in Denver.  Patrons walked out with 26 of the 31 paintings on display.

The missing paintings were part of a display that included three large panel installations and a magazine rack of small paintings made to resemble comic book covers.

“We recognize that this was really inadvertent,” said the museum’s executive director, Adam Lerner. “Some of the most prominent and respected people in Denver inadvertently took them.”

(more…)

Currently on view at the Tate, Defining Constructivism explores work by two of Russia’s most influential avant-garde artists, Alexander Rodchenko and Lyubov Popova. Charting their evolution from abstract painting to graphic designs, the show includes cinema and theatre poster designs, books and costumes as well as paintings and sculpture.

This couldn’t be a more timely review of heavy weight constructivists at a time when the term, and meaning of the movement are constantly being thrown around (See Shepard Fairey/ObamArt).  The ideas of constructivism are often not sited directly as the movement itself and ideas behind it are often lost in the coopting of the term for the needed purpose.  That’s precisely what makes the Tate show so special.  You can see first hand, what the movement was about, how it was embodied in these two leading figures and how its spirit was defined by the philosophy that drove this work. (more…)

California based artist, Warrington Colescott, opens tomorrow (03/13/09) at Perimeter Gallery.  Colescott, while not a household name, is by no means a stranger to the art world as you can see from his partial bio below.  Colescott may very well be a name you’ll be more familiar with in time as people begin to reflect upon an amazing body of work.  As an example of this, the Milwaukee Art Museum has the largest collection of work by Warrington Colescott, and they are preparing a major book and exhibition for November 2009. (more…)

Chicago Public Library has an open invitation to area artists, designers and any one else for that matter who thinks they have a great poster idea. The competition has already officially began and entries must be received no later than 11:59 PM CST on Thursday April 09, 2009. So, get to work! (more…)

January 30 to April 27, 2009 Eero Saarinen was one of the most prolific, unorthodox, and controversial architects of the twentieth century. By exploring Saarinen’s entire output of more than fifty built and proposed projects–including St. Louis’s iconic Gateway Arch–Eero Saarinen: Shaping the Future will be the first opportunity to understand the architect’s collective work in the larger context of postwar modern architecture through full-scale mock-ups and a selection of drawings, models, photographs, films, and other ephemera. (more…)

If you’re a fan of Luna, the dream/indie pop band who made 7 studio albums and played their final shows in February 2005 — or if you’re more familiar with Dean and Britta in other projects (Dean fronted Galaxie 500, and Britta was the voice of cartoon character Jem to name only a couple prior accolades), you’ll be excited to learn that this dynamic duo is at the MCA on Saturday, March 8th, performing 13 Most Beautiful… Songs from Andy Warhol’s ‘Screen Tests’.

Their current project was commissioned by the Andy Warhol Museum and the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust.  The Screen Tests are silent film portraits that Andy Warhol shot at the Factory between 1964 and 1966. The subjects – both famous and anonymous – were visitors to Warhol’s studio. (more…)

Gino De Dominicis is likely an artist you may not be familiar with. This is for good reason.  He spent most of his life avoiding contact with the art world and is widely viewed as an illusive and mysterious artist.  If you’ve heard of him, you know he’s quite an interesting story.  The Rome based artist was some what of a cult figure in European art circles and know for his eccentricities. The myth’s about the artists biography are especially interesting concerning his reported death in 1998.  (more…)

Okay, so you might be wondering how this fits withthe Culture Clod concept.  Well, don’t think about it too much. These guys are probably one of my favorite bands, and they are coming to Chicago’s Double Door on Friday, March 13th. 

If you’re in the area and want to see one of the best bands to ever rock the U.S. by way of Sweden, come on out and join the party.  TSOOL puts on a great show, and if want to know more about them, just google them already.   They are supporting their new album, Communion, and will be performing one night only. 

(more…)