The greatest season is upon us, and the art across the city reflects the joys of summer in Chicago. Revel in color and community interaction at these 10 gallery exhibitions.
Promised Land: Carlos Barberena’s linocut and woodcut prints take images from old masterpieces and pop culture and combine them in ways that address social, political and environmental issues. The artist’s works also honor immigrants, a timely focus as Immigrant Heritage Month kicks off. (Pilsen Outpost, 1958 W 21st St, Opens June 3, 5–11pm. Free)
Gist & Gesture: All the world’s a stage—at least for artists. This group exhibition explores the performative nature of art through boldly rendered paintings, photographs and objects. (Kavi Gupta Gallery, 835 W Washington Blvd, Opens June 4, 4–7pm. Free)
Trash Day and High Swoon: With influences ranging from graffiti to emoticons and computer graphics, Josh Reames’s paintings and sculptures find the humor and the poetry in the items we throw away. Suspended from the ceiling and the walls are Noël Morical’s colorful woven sculptures, which harken back to places of both memory and fantasy. (Andrew Rafacz Gallery, 835 W Washington Blvd, Opens June 4, 4–7pm. Free)
ACTIVATE: Hear: Art-party-in-a-downtown-alley season has finally arrived. “Hear” is the second of this summer’s senses-themed ACTIVATE series. With a silent disco, a performance from White Mystery and a dance party, attendees will have plenty to interact with. (Sullivan Center Alley, 16 E Monroe St, June 9, 5–10pm. Free with RSVP)
Cities: Celebrate summer in the city with this aptly named exhibition of new works depicting dynamic urban landscapes, infused with life by artist Nate Otto and other contributors. (Galerie F, 2381 N Milwaukee Ave, Opens June 10, 6–10pm. Free)
A Wonderful Dream and Carlos Rolón/Dzine: In her first solo show, Amy Sherald draws from her personal experiences to examine racial identity and confront stereotypes through lively portrait paintings of friends and acquaintances. Carlos Rolón/Dzine has recreated a barbershop, an interactive on-site installation where guests can get custom fades in a series of performances. (Monique Meloche Gallery, 2154 W Division St, Opens June 11, 4–7pm. Free)
Dock 6 Design & Art #9: At this annual one-day (and night) event, party in a 50,000-square-foot industrial space filled with art, design objects, guest projects and site-specific installations. (Dock 6 Collective, 2100 N Major Ave, June 11, 2–10pm. Free)
Guerrilla Truck Show: This annual design festival may have ended its decade-long run at its original Fulton Market location, but a satellite version rises from the ashes at the Merchandise Mart this year, with 10 emerging designers and design groups showcasing their creations inside box trucks. (Merchandise Mart, 222 Merchandise Mart Plaza, South Drive, June 14, 10am–7pm. Free)
LEXICON: Full disclosure: Your humble writer of these monthly lists curated this interactive art show, where there won’t be any artist statements accompanying the works by the more than 40 local and international artists. Viewers are instead invited to write down their own interpretations of each piece onto Post-its and display their thoughts on the walls. (Zhou B Art Center, 1029 W 35th St, 2nd floor, Opens June 17, 7–10pm. Free)
PDF/OBJECTS: Curators Jason Lazarus and Sean Ward asked artists to each submit one PDF of text that had an impact on them, a description of an everyday object and a guide for how to combine the object with the text. The result is a glimpse into the minds and practices of artists. (Mana Contemporary, 2233 S Throop St, 4th floor, Opens June 18, 7–10pm. Free)