Artopolis and Santa Mesa

Thursday was a pretty busy night. Too many openings and closings, and not enough time to make it all. Hundreds and thousands of people are in town this weekend for Artropolis. They say that in Texas, everything is SuperSized. If Texas gets the prize, Chicago runs a close second. Artropolis is not just one art show, it's four (correction, five) art shows in the same building.

The entire portfolio of shows is held in the Merchandise Mart which reminds me of some Romanian, ex-soviet building--utilitarian and heavy. One of the most amazing things about the show in relation to the MerchMart is that the show, in all its size and glory only occupies 3 floors.

Merchandise Mart

Casa Poporului (Bucharest, Romania)

Thursday night was preview night. After visiting my friend Loreen Hospodar who is showing for the Artist Project, I went to the 8th floor to check out Art Chicago in all its glory. People everywhere, it was an art extravaganza. After stopping by a few galleries, I found K's booth at the Secrist Gallery. I'm simply blown away at the proportion of art galleries represented. I even saw pieces that I recognized! For example, sketches of Michael Elmgreen and Ingar Dragset's Prada Marfa. I felt cultured.

I couldn't stay long because I had a show to catch. It was closing night for the Asian American Showcase at the Gene Siskel theater. The festival closed with Santa Mesa, a touching story about a filipino-american kid who loses his mother and is taken in by his grandmother in the Philippines. Neither understanding the culture or the language, Hector struggles to overcome his loss and build new ties. I'd give it a [3 of 5]. Santa Mesa is currently playing the film fest circuit. Check to see where their screening schedule.