Roommates turn Logan Square apartment into art gallery

Welcome to Pill and Wilmott's apartment--better known in the art community as Concertina Gallery. The graduate students at the Art Institute of Chicago, who aspire to have full-fledged careers as curators, co-founded the gallery in their Logan Square apartment in September.

"I'd never be able to afford this kind of art on my own," said Pill, 26, "but this way I get to live with it and be around it all the time."

While the economic downturn has forced some traditional art galleries to close their doors, underground gallery and performance spaces are popping up across the city as Chicago's young, emerging artists utilize just about any domestic space imaginable--bathrooms, garages and even stairwells--to experiment with art that is designed more for earning respect than cash. Dubbed apartment galleries, the spaces are popular among owners who appreciate the freedom of showcasing collections from their homes, but the practice doesn't always sit well with the traditional gallery community.

Concertina Gallery, which recently replaced the spheres, denim and sheep with an exhibition called "Australia" that runs through Nov. 15, makes no money off of its art. But Pill and Wilmott gain experience operating a legal gallery, while the featured artists get exposure in a trendy, new space.

"DIY attitudes are big in Chicago, and this is a way we can create our own job and our own independent spaces," said Wilmott, 24.

That's fine when apartment galleries are run legally, Thomas Robertello said, but the owner of Thomas Robertello Gallery in the West Loop said he's worried about competition from galleries that operate commercially without business licenses.

"My problem is with the aggressive attempts many of them make to market themselves as public exhibition spaces instead of private, while a lot of us are spending a lot of money to be legal and responsible," Robertello said.

Robertello estimates he spends $5,000 a month running his commercial gallery, including rent, insurance, staffing, utilities and other costs. By contrast, expenses for apartment galleries usually are minimal--often just the cost of running a Web site and supplying refreshments at openings.

"Personally, I wonder long-term how positive apartment galleries are and if they might contribute to putting galleries out of business," Robertello added.

Caroline Picard, whose Green Lantern Gallery and Press shut its doors in Wicker Park in June after being cited by the city for operating without a business license, said the diversity is good for Chicago's art scene. "It's like they have Ferris Bueller's little sister syndrome," said Picard, who plans to reopen her gallery in a location with more favorable zoning. "There's always people that are mad that someone's not playing by the rules, but I think it's part of where the energy and vitality comes from."

These off-the-beaten-path art nooks have existed in Chicago for at least a decade but have recently become more prevalent, said Shannon Stratton, director and chief curator at Threewalls, a not-for-profit visual arts program based in the West Loop.

There is no way to know for sure due to the underground nature of some apartment galleries, but Stratton estimates that 15 to 18 of them currently are open in the city.

"People are taking it more seriously," Stratton said. "It's mostly these young people who see what's out there and say, 'Hey, I can do my own thing.'"

Recent University of Illinois at Chicago grad Chris Smith has had so much success that his gallery is spreading--into the bathroom.

What started as the Second Bedroom project--a small, non-commercial gallery he has run out of his Bridgeport apartment since May 2008--recently expanded to a second space in his bathroom called Medicine Cabinet.

"It's really exciting because I don't even really have to do much at this point," said Smith, 27, who has exhibits booked through February. "I just have a Web site and I advertise on Facebook, yet there's a lot of interest and our shows are well-attended."

Four simple rules
Finding and experiencing a quality apartment gallery can be an intimidating pursuit for the uninitiated. So how can you get in on the scene, and how should you handle yourself once you're there? Every gallery is different, but here are four general guidelines apartment gallery owners shared with RedEye to help you get started.

>> Get creative
Some cooler-than-cool apartment galleries advertise only through word of mouth or social networking sites such as Facebook. If you're out of the loop, your best bet for finding a chic new gallery is scouring the Web or cozying up to an apartment art insider.

>> Call first
Commercial galleries have regular business hours, but most apartment galleries can be seen only during an opening or by appointment. Talk to a gallery owner and set up a time to visit if you're not attending an opening.

>> Don't bring money
It's illegal for apartment galleries without business licenses to sell art to you, so don't bring a wad of cash to an event expecting to take home a painting. You'll most likely have to contact the artist to negotiate a price and purchase a piece.

>> Respect the apartment
Remember that gallery owners live in these spaces and that you are a guest in their homes, not just a customer. Don't walk around the non-gallery areas of the apartment without permission.

Scene setter
With so many local apartment galleries to choose from, RedEye asked ChicagoNow art bloggers Kathryn Born and Stephanie Burke to give us a quick primer on the scene in their own words. Born and Burke picked five galleries they thought showcased the variety of environments apartment galleries can provide, and what motivates the owners to sacrifice so much of their personal living space. For more on Chicago galleries in apartments--and in more traditional spaces--visit the Art Talk Chicago blog at chicagonow.com/blogs/art-talk-chicago and chicagoartmap.com.

The Suburban
125 North Harvey Ave., Oak Park; 708-763-8554
thesuburban.org
The Suburban recently celebrated its 10th birthday and is likely the most prestigious alternative space in Chicago, often earning recognition in the national art press. Under the leadership of artist and art critic Michelle Grabner, with her husband Brad Killam, the gallery exhibits national and international artists in a garage--a special unit with a retractable door installed not for cars, but for zoning codes.

Golden
816 W. Newport Ave.; 773-209-8889
golden-gallery.org
Run by Jacob Meehan and Lisa Baldini, Golden has come to the forefront of the apartment gallery scene through a careful selection of emerging artists and a dedication to the apartment-gallery-as-commercial-gallery structure. Occupying an entire apartment (the owner lives in the apartment upstairs), Golden has the look and feel of a commercial gallery in an apartment space, rather than the casual approach of most apartment galleries.

Lloyd Dobler
1545 W. Division St., second floor; 312-961-8706
lloyddoblergallery.com
In textbook apartment gallery form, Lloyd Dobler (Patricia Courson and Jason Jozwiak) features emerging local artists, cheap beer, and the 50/50 gallery space/living space that defines these venues. Named after the lead character in "Say Anything," the space does not sell anything; it simply hosts group and solo shows. It is a comparatively long-running gallery venue that has helped launch artists into the museum track.

Home Gallery
1407 E. 54th Pl.; 773-363-5935
thelarch.org
Home Gallery doesn't separate the living space from exhibit space. Art is in the bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchen and mixed in with books on bookshelves. It's also unusual because the owners, Laura Schaffer and Andrew Nord, had a commercial space for several years, and now prefer the intimacy of the host/guest dynamic, which includes serving brunches as a way for the guests to best experience the art.

65GRAND
1378 W. Grand Ave.; 312-719-4325
65grand.com
Since 2005, 65GRAND has been exhibiting work in an upstairs apartment within earshot of its namesake bus line. Bill Gross, alongside Jim Lambrix and Thea Liberty Nichols, have been working to bring local, national and international artists to the fore in their the kitchen and modestly sized living room. 65GRAND doesn't aspire to transition into commercial spaces; instead it maintains its modest location while also participating in "Next," Chicago's emerging art fair.