February 2025 Newsletter
News from Outdoor Exhibitions
Call for Entries:
2025-2027 Sculpture in the Parks
Chicago Sculpture International, in collaboration with the Chicago Park District and parks in the Chicagoland area, is inviting artists to submit proposals for the 2025-2027 Sculpture in the Parks exhibition season (Park Cultural Centers and Arts in the Parks initiatives) and Ronan Park exhibition season.
Works must be large-scale and suitable for outdoors. They will be installed on hardscape or softscape (grass), so artists must be prepared for, and make provisions for, either type of installation. Only select sites have concrete pads; all other sites are softscape. Sculptures will be on view for two years, from October 2025 to October 2027 (exact dates to be determined).
Each sculpture will receive a stipend of $4,200.
Application Deadline: Thursday, March 20, 2025, 11:59PM CST
Eligibility:
This call is open to professional artists who are at least 18 years of age. Artists whose proposals are accepted will be asked to join CSI if they are already not a member. There are many membership benefits, including exhibition and networking opportunities, a presence on our website and access to valuable professional information. See what we’re all about at: chicagosculpture.org/become-a-member.
Also, exhibitors must have Commercial General Liability Insurance (Primary and Umbrella) on an occurrence basis with limits not less than $1,000,000 single limit per occurrence and $2,000,000 in the aggregate for bodily injury, personal injury and property damage.
How to apply:
Artists can submit one or two sculptures for review. Your submission should consist of:
• Two digital images per sculpture. Please send .jpg images (1.5MB in size or less), and use the following filename convention: 1. Lastname_title.jpg (e.g., 1. Rodin_The Thinker, front view.jpg; 2. Rodin_The Thinker, backview.jpg).
• A Completed Application
Put images and application into a zip folder and send it to info@chicagosculpture.org.
Your subject line will be “Submission: Sculpture in the Parks 2025-2027”.
News from CSI Project Space
Photo credit: Australia by Darius K
Call for Entries: Shadows
at CSI Project Space
Deadline: Friday, Feb. 7, 2025
Drop off artwork: Feb. 22 - 23, from 1-5 pm
Opening: Saturday, March 1, from 6-9 pm
Exhibition Dates: March 1 - April 25, 2025
Shadows are more than just the absence of light—they are symbols of the hidden, the fleeting, and the ambiguous. Across psychology, literature, art, and philosophy, shadows have long served as metaphors for the complexities of human experience. They invite us to explore what lies beneath the surface, confront the unseen, and embrace the mystery of what we cannot fully grasp.
Carl Jung’s concept of the “shadow self” speaks to the parts of ourselves we often deny or suppress—the fears, flaws, and truths that challenge our ideal self-image. Yet, in engaging with this shadow, we embark on a journey of self-discovery, finding strength in vulnerability and balance in the dualities of our existence.
Shadows shift, stretch, and dissolve, echoing the impermanence of our world. They remind us to savor the fleeting beauty of the moment, to find wonder in the transient, and to reflect on life’s fragile brilliance.
Learn more about requirements submit your entry HERE
News from Indoor Exhibitions
Call for Entries:
Chicago Sculpture International 2025 Biennale
"Materiality in Sculpture: A Dialogue Between Substance and Form"
Important Dates:
Submission Deadline: Sunday, August 3rd, 2025,11:59pm
Notification Date: Monday, August 25, 2025
Exhibition: September 27th, 2025 through November 9th, 2025
Opening Reception: Sunday, September 28th, 2025
This exhibition explores the interplay of materials in the realm of sculpture, showcasing works that challenge, celebrate, and redefine our understanding of material substance. To connect your own work to this theme, consider how your choice of medium and subject matter can simultaneously reflect the physical and conceptual aspects. Formats include freestanding, wall hung, interactive, installation & video. Open interpretations of the exhibit theme are welcomed.
About the Juror
Debra Favre is an artist who has exhibited in the Washington, DC and the Chicago areas. She is the past Chair of the Board of the Evanston Art Center and has been a juror on the Evanston Art Center’s Exhibitions Committee for the last 14 years. She studied Fine Arts at McDaniel College in Maryland and at the Corcoran School of Art and Design in Washington, DC.
If selected for the exhibition, artists must be a current CSI member or sign-up for membership: www.chicagosculpture.org/become-a-member
Exhibition Location:
Evanston Art Center
1717 Central St.
Evanston, IL 60201
Learn more about requirements submit your entry HERE
Questions? Contact info@chicagosculptors.com
News from the President
Chairs Needed
CSI is growing and as we move forward with our community, we decided to change things up a bit in the upcoming year. We revised some of our board chair positions to make room for more networking and opportunities for our members. Less work, more fun ideally… We have freed the Outdoor Chair from contracts and Excel and instead are really looking for an Outdoor Chair who can arrange ribbon cuttings, press releases and tours/talks about our Outdoor sculptures. We are also looking for an Education Chair who can arrange 3-5 workshops a year for the general public. As we face a questionable future for the arts, the strength of our organization will be tested but I hope we will push forward together. - Jyl Bonaguro, President
If you feel inspired, please email Gene Skala at geneskala@chicagosculpture.org
Social Media Specialist
CSI is looking for a savvy energetic Social Media Specialist that can lead CSI out of the unengaged dark ages and into the bright future of viral posts with dynamic original content. If you feel qualified or know of someone then please look at the job description on CAR and send us your info!
Application deadline: Wednesday, Feb. 12, 11:59PM
New International Exhibitions Chair
We are excited to announce Shencheng Xu as our new International Exhibitions Chair. We will be having a cultural exchange exhibition with his colleagues in China this year at Project Space. We look forward to opening up CSI to International exhibition opportunities for our members.
Member News
Curatorial Conversation with Jeff Stevenson and
Terry Karpowicz
Join us for a wine reception and talk:
Thursday, February 20, 2025
6:00-7:30pm wine reception, with remarks at 6:30 p.m.
21c Museum Hotel
55 E. Ontario St.
Chicago, IL 60611
21c Museum Hotel Chicago and theNate are excited to be collaborating to present the next Curatorial Conversation. Director and Curator of the Nathan Manilow Sculpture Park (theNate) and the Visual Arts Gallery at Governors State University, Jeff Stevenson will be in conversation with artist Terrence Karpowicz to discuss his artwork and career.
Terrence Karpowicz lives and works in Chicago, creating sculpture in a variety of media. Born in Cleveland, Ohio, he received degrees from Albion College in Albion, Michigan and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign before being awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to study with Jim Davies, British master millwright. The experience with Davies provided definition in Karpowicz’s search for a personal aesthetic. The artist continues to value a supreme degree of craftsmanship coupled with an honest approach to his use of materials.
Karpowicz has served in leadership positions with Chicago Sculpture International and Sculpture Fields at Montague Park and has become a pillar of the artworld in Chicagoland and beyond. Any artist making and exhibiting sculpture in our region has likely met and worked with Terry. His artistic excellence and generosity of spirit has been a benefit to many.
He has received two National Endowment for the Arts awards, four grants from the Illinois Arts Council, The Newhouse Award, and numerous public and private commissions. He has exhibited throughout the United States, Mexico, Europe and in the Soviet Union. Karpowicz has received seven commissions for public sculpture from the State of Illinois and his work is held in collections of the City of Chicago, Oklahoma City, and the U.S. General Services Administration.
News from Chicago Tree Project
Ragdale Tree Project Artist Talk
Thursday, May 23 at 5PM
Ragdale Foundation
1260 Greenbay Road
Lake Forest IL
CSI and the Ragdale Foundation collaborated to bring the Chicago Tree Project to Ragdale’s grand and ancient elm. Eight artists met to sculpt during a residency Ragdale’s beloved elm tree.
Member News
Sculpture by Scott Mossman
Work by Scott Mossman in School of the Arts Alumni Excellence
Jan 27 to Feb 21, 2025
Opening Reception: Feb 7, 5-7p
University of Nebraska Omaha
314 Weber Fine Arts Building
6505 University Drive South
Omaha, NE 68182
Celebrating five decades of School of the Arts Alumni Excellence: 54 Mavericks spanning 51 years. Works selected by jurors Patrick Drickey (Gallery 1516), Jean Sitzman (Friends of Art) and Zaleski (UNO Art History 2023). Held in concurrence with the UNO Art Club Exhibition.
Learn more HERE.
Barbara Cooper and Bobbi Meier in Group Exhibition at the Driehaus Museum
February 7 - April 27, 2025
A Tale of Today: Materialities features fourteen artists who have created, adapted, and restaged artworks in response to specific objects in the Driehaus Museum’s Nickerson Mansion, bringing to light compelling and often forgotten histories in which the material itself is just as important as the message it conveys through its design. With guest curator Dr. Giovanni Aloi.
Major support for Materialities is generously provided by the Driehaus Trust Company, LLC., and Gary Metzner and Scott Johnson, with additional support from Russell Reynolds and Friends of Materialities.
Opportunities for Complimentary Visits to the Exhibition
Admission to the Museum is free on Wednesdays from 4 to 7pm for all visitors
Dates throughout the run of Materialities: Februrary 12, 19& 26; March 5, 12, 19 & 26; April 2, 9, 16 & 23
Community Days
Supported by the Terra Foundation, admission is free all day (11am-5pm) during two Materialities dates, Saturday, March 1 and Saturday, April 5
15ē (Fifteenth element) collective
Studio 433
5339 W. Lake
Chicago, IL
Artist Olya Salimova invites CSI members to her Studio433 (5339 W Lake) where she and her studio partner Lillian Heredia, also CSI member, host studio maydans (maydan, a place of people gathering) every fifteenth of the month. 15ē is a collective of friends dedicated to art and word, whether pronounced, written, performed, gestured, translated, invented, forgotten.
On February 15th, we are going to listen to a short reading from a book The Second Detective performed by the book's author Shannon Mullally. After the reading, a creative re-reading will follow. We believe that language is a material to sculpt with and its presence penetrates all physical and intellectual surfaces of artwork.
For instructions how to get toStudio433, please text Olya Salimova at (517) 315 7349, or send an Instagram message to @olyasalimova_art or @fifteenth_element
Images: (Above) Margot McMahon; (Below) Sandra Wilcoxon
Margot McMahon at Ukrainian Museum of Art
CSI Member Margot McMahon is in a two-person exhibit at the Ukrainian Museum of Art, which opens on April 4th:
Land and Sea: Lichen-Coral
Margot McMahon & Sandra Wilcoxon
April 4th through June 29th, 2025
Opening Reception: April 4th, 2025, 1:00pm
Ukrainian Museum of Modern Art
2320 W Chicago Ave.
Chicago, IL 60622
773 227-5522
Hours: Wednesdays through Sundays, 12:00pm – 4:00pm
Margot will also be having an upcoming one-person exhibition at Epiphany Center for the Arts, scheduled for May 9th through July 5th, 2025, Opening Reception: May 9th, 5:30pm
The following are not CSI sponsored events but may be of interest to our members
Chicago Public Library’s 2025 Makers-in-Residence
Artist Residency Call
If you're a maker who's excited to share your craft and skills, you might be our next Maker-in-Residence.
The application closes at 11:59 p.m. on February 25, 2025.
As the Chicago Public Library Maker-in-Residence, you will lead classes that invite library visitors to share in your craft and you will create a work that will be displayed at the Harold Washington Library Center Maker Lab window on State Street.
Two residencies are available. Each residency runs for 12 weeks, with the first term running from April to June and the second term running from August to October.
The Makers-in-Residence will:
• Facilitate six classes for library patrons at the Harold Washington Library Center.
• Access Maker Lab equipment and staff assistance.
• Interpret local culture or history using their craft, Maker Lab tools and additional supplies.
• Create a work incorporating themes explored with class participants.
• Have their work exhibited at Harold Washington Library Center.
• Be compensated $6,000 for the 12-week residency.
• Have a supply budget of $800.
Classes may be in-person, online or developed as how-to videos. Classes can be scheduled on Monday evenings between 5 - 8 p.m. and Saturday afternoons at 2 p.m., with Wednesday mornings as an alternate possibility.
You’ll work 10 hours per week which includes scheduled Meet the Maker events so library visitors can learn about your work, your project and classes. Learn more about previous Makers-in-Residence.
About You
You are a current Chicago resident and can show a State of Illinois ID, Illinois Driver's License, Chicago City Key with your Chicago address, or be able to show two pieces of current ID. One of these must include your name and Chicago address
You can create an environment where participants feel comfortable sharing their stories. You have time-management skills and ideas on where to source materials with a $800 supply budget. You have a vision on how to fill a window approximately 7' by 7'with your thematic work. Your class ideas offer variation in technique or material.
Preference will be given to themes exploring any of the following: storytelling, community, connection, and curiosity.
Questions about the residency or application? Contact makerspace@chipublib.org.
The Maker-in-Residence program is in its eighth year and is generously funded by the Chicago Public Library Foundation.
Click here for more information and to fill out the application.
Call for Entries: Rooted in Rockford: Art and Tree Science at Klehm Arboretum & Botanic Garden
Klehm Arboretum and Botanic Garden Inc is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization whose mission is to maintain a living museum for the enjoyment, education and inspiration of all people. Our organization will develop Rooted in Rockford: Art and Tree Science at Klehm Arboretum & Botanic Garden, a seasonal outdoor exhibit for onsite display in 2025 -2026 that blends tree science with artistic interpretation of the concept of “roots” both literally and figuratively. The exhibit will feature artworks submitted by Illinois-based artists in order to comprise the exhibit itself. The exhibition will include interpretive signs that will combine educational content with narrative expression by artists related to the respective pieces chosen for inclusion. A total of 8 artworks will be selected for inclusion.
Artworks approved for this exhibition will be displayed outdoors for a period of approximately one
year, beginning no later than June 7, 2025 and continuing until May 30, 2026. Artworks shall be installed in select locations along paved, accessible paths at the facility.
Artists shall propose, via submission, to provide artworks from their existing collections or to create original artworks created specifically for this exhibit in relation to the theme “Roots” .
All Artists must be Illinois resident
All pieces must be available for sale. Botanic Garden receives 10% commission on artwork sold,
Artworks will be located on public display for approximately one (1) year from June 7, 2025 concluding on May 30, 2026.
Artists will receive a $4,000.00 stipend per piece selected for the one-year period.
Important Dates:
• Application Deadline: Friday, February 28, 2025 at 4:00PM
• Review and Selection: March 1st– March 14th, 2025
• Artist Notification: No later than March 21st, 2025
• Installation Dates: The installation window is expected to start May 12, 2025 and be
completed on or by June 7th, 2025.
Location:
Klehm Arboretum & Botanic Garden
2715 S. Main St.
Rockford, Illinois.
(approx. 2 miles south of downtown and 1.5 miles north of US Highway 20)
Unfolding Art Exhibition
Two-Person exhibit: Zsofia Otvos and Melissa Kolbusz
Unfolding is a solo exhibition by Zsófia Ötvös.
Good Times is a solo exhibition by guest artist Melissa Kolbusz of WIRED jewelry.
CSI Project Space
1912 N. Damen Avenue
Chicago, IL 60647
(corner of N. Damen & W.Cortland)
in the Bucktown neighborhood.
Special Events:
Opening Night Reception:
Saturday, February 8th, from 6-9PM
Thursday, February 13 - Grow Up!
Friday, February 14 - Love Note, Kris Rab (performing original and standard songs)
Closing Reception: Thursday, February 20th, 5-9PM
Ötvös is a portrait artist of both real and imagined characters. She will showcase paintings from major milestones in her career. In her earlier works, Ötvös explored the themes of emotions, using the female form as her vessel. Later, as her attention grew outward from the inner world, she began embracing fashion and attitude choices that she observed people make.
Guest artist Melissa Kolbusz is the founder of WIRED jewelry. She designs handmade, wearable artwork from reclaimed and surplus materials. Marrying aesthetics and environment, Kolbusz salvages components such as rubber, alternator wire, tubing, and craft beer cans. One-of-a-kind and limited edition, these pieces are inspired by industrial wastelands, underwater creatures, and the Chicago music scene. Melissa is a bold proponent of sustainability and solutions through design.
For more information, visit www.zsofiaotvos.com
Call for Entries: Rock Falls’ Art in the Park Sculpture Walk exhibition season
Rock Falls’ Art in the Park Sculpture Walk is making preparations for its 8th year of bringing sculptures to its RB&W District. They are now accepting submissions for sculpture art to be on display at the RB&W District Park along the Rock River. This open space park is used by many organizations putting on events and draws people from surrounding communities and states, which will ensure a high amount of visibility for your art throughout the year.
The Rock Falls Tourism Department has opened the selection process to all sculpture artists. The sculptures will be installed at the RB&W District, on August 22, 2025. Artists will be given a $1,250 stipend and will be able to make their sculpture available for purchase. Artists are encouraged to promote their sculpture throughout the year.
Requirements:
Sturdy sculptures that can withstand all types of weather
Base dimensions to stay within 4ft x 4ft
Artist must record an audio for the Otocast app
Must be able to deliver and install the work.
Artwork must be installed on August 22, 2025
Artist must submit pictures of the work they want to display
Artist responsible for transporting the sculpture to and from the park and making deinstallation arrangements with the park
Artist must install their own artwork and provide their own installation hardware
Upon request, the City of Rock Falls will help with assisting the placement of sculptures on concrete pads
Requests for boom, lift or crane must be submitted by August 1, 2025.
Benefits:
$1,250 stipend for 1-year installation
Exhibitor provides artist with a one-night stay at the Holiday Inn Express & Suites for the night of August 22, 2025, only
Opportunity for the artist to sell and promote their artwork
Constant exposure for the artist and their sculpture/artwork
Digital exposure on the Visit Rock Falls website
Notifications go out on July 1, 2025
Location:
Rock Falls Tourism
603 W 10th Street
(815) 622-1106
director@visitrockfalls.com
Include documents and submit everything (including photos ) on or before June 1, 2025, either by mail or as an email attachment to director@visitrockfalls.com. On the artist agreement, you only need to fill out page 3 (top with your name, address, etc.) and then page 4 of the sculpture name and specifications. The rest of the agreement can/will be filled out at a later time if your piece is selected.
Submit your News
Have any news to share?
Shows, awards, residencies etc? Submit here and we'll include them in an upcoming newsletter.
While you're at it, your profile and images on CSI’s website are important. When CSI applies for grants and upcoming shows, images are solely chosen from those you have uploaded to our website. Please take a minute to look over what you have posted and make sure you are presenting the best work. Member Shelley Gilchrist sgilchristart@gmail.com has volunteered to help you if you need it, so feel free to contact her.
CSI projects are partially supported by a CityArts Grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events.
Chicago Sculpture International acknowledges support from the Illinois Arts Council Agency for CSI programming including exhibitions and funding for Project Space Gallery.
CSI is a proud recipient of the Driehaus Foundation Arts and Culture Grant to help support funding and programming.
In Memory of Ron Gard
Chicago Sculpture International acknowledges Ivy Gard, who in 2020 graciously donated ongoing exhibition space (CSI Project Space) to CSI and its members in memory of Ron Gard and his achievements in sculpture and dedicated service for several years as treasurer of the organization.
Ron’s exquisite and exacting craftsmanship, along with his vast knowledge of materials and methods, is widely regarded and revered by CSI and his circle of peers.
Photos: (left) Ron Gard’s sculpture The Struggle Against Death (lef; (right) Ron in 2014 working in Lincoln Park on one of three tree sculptures, Dying to Survive Nos. #3, #6 & #9.
Land Acknowledgement
The City of Chicago, and its surrounding areas, have always been and always will be, home to numerous Native American communities. As a team dedicated to the uplifting of Indigenous People's sovereignty everywhere, we recognize that each program and exhibition associated with this project is taking place on the traditional homelands of the Council of Three Fires - the Ojibwe, Potawatomi, and Odawa - as well as the Menominee, Miami, and Ho-Chunk Nations. Further, we acknowledge that Chicago is home to one of the largest urban Native American communities in the US. We therefore invite each of our non-Indigenous colleagues to learn more about the forced removal of many of the communities listed above from the state of Illinois and to incorporate Indigenous knowledge into their line of work. To provide immediate assistance to Native American Communities in Chicago, you can send donations to the city's American Indian Center here
Visit the American Indian Center’s website.
Copyright (C) 2025 Chicago Sculpture International. All rights reserved.
This is the newsletter for Chicago Sculpture International.
Our mailing address is: Chicago Sculpture International 3141 North Hoyne Ave Unit 4 Chicago, Il 60618 USA
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe
Cover photo:
Margot McMahon Moorish Idol/Coral Reef
Mixed Media
