EXPO CHICAGO 2025
Navy Pier’s Festival Hall
April 24 – 27, 2025
Featuring over 170 leading galleries from 36 countries and 93 cities, this year’s fair debuts CONTRAST, a new section curated by Lauren Haynes, and showcases a special collaboration with the Galleries Association of Korea (GaoK), alongside standout presentations across the core Galleries section, EXPOSURE and PROFILE.
“It is a privilege to welcome such a remarkable lineup of artists and galleries to EXPO CHICAGO 2025,” said Tony Karman, President and Director of EXPO CHICAGO. “As part of the Frieze network of fairs, EXPO CHICAGO showcases dynamic presentations that amplify Chicago’s standing as a premier cultural destination. Our sincere gratitude goes to Northern Trust, whose support allows us to continue our commitment to fostering meaningful dialogue through both contemporary and modern art.”
EXPO CHICAGO 2025: CONTRAST
Curated by Lauren Haynes, Head Curator, Governors Island Arts and Vice President for Arts and Culture at the Trust for Governors Island, CONTRAST brings together eight contemporary galleries each presenting artists whose work explores contrasts in culture, identity, and experience.
“CONTRAST will include a vibrant selection of galleries featuring work by artists, including Devan Shimoyama, Esther Mahlangu, Wangari Mathenge, Fahamu Pecou and Chico da Silva, whose work highlights diverse perspectives through visual storytelling” said Lauren Haynes. “This special section seeks to explore contrasts in culture, identity, and experience, with each artist contributing their unique voice to the dialogue. CONTRAST is designed to spark conversation around the artists and artworks on view.”
The full lineup of presentations includes:
- A special presentation by Gray titled So Be It! Asé! Photographic Echoes of FESTAC '77 featuring photographs by members of Chicago’s Black Arts Movement Roy Lewis, Bob Crawford, and K. Kofi Moyo. The presentation is curated by Chicago-based art historian Romi Crawford and unveils documentation of the U.S. delegation to FESTAC '77, the Second World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture, held in Lagos, Nigeria.
- A presentation by Jenkins Johnson Gallery of paintings & painted sculptural objects by multidisciplinary artist and cultural ambassador Dr. Esther Mahlangu, who draws from the abstract geometric mural tradition of the Ndebele people of South Africa; pseudoabstract, organic fibers sculptures by Nnenna Okore; expressionistic representational paintings by Enrico Riley; gestural abstract paintings by Patrick Alston; and poetic, traditional black and white photographs by Andre D. Wagner.
- A solo presentation of new paintings by Chicago-based, Kenyan artist Wangari Mathenge presented by Pippy Houldsworth Gallery. The new body of work titled ReMembering delves into an expansive study of Kenyan, specifically Kikuyu, culture, history and language within a social and political context impacted by the legacy of colonialism.
- Work by Brazilian Indigenous artist Chico da Silva, known for his vibrant portrayals of Amazonian creatures, mythological figures, and personal visions, presented by Galeria MaPa.
- A dual-artist presentation featuring Mexican sculptor Paula Cortazar and French textile artist Isabelle D presented by Gallery Nosco.
- A presentation by De Buck Gallery of several newer works from Devan Shimoyama’s Barbershop and Tarot Series as well as a selection of brand new works by Gommaar Gilliams.
- A group presentation featuring artists Fahamu Pecou, Cosmo Whyte, and Thornton Dial presented by Johnson Lowe.
- A group presentation by Melrose Gallery featuring Pascal Konan, Papytsho Mafolo, Mederic Turay and Clint Strydom.
EXPO CHICAGO 2025: EXPOSURE
Curated for the second year by Rosario Güiraldes, Curator of Visual Arts at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, EXPOSURE spotlights solo and two-artist presentations from galleries ten years and younger. This year’s focus includes galleries from Latin America, particularly Argentina and Brazil, alongside emerging Chicago-based galleries.
Highlights include:
- New paintings by abstract contemporary artist Richard Tinkler, presented by 56 Henry.
- A dual-artist booth featuring Los Angeles based sculptors Maddy Inez and Josh Cloud that engages with elemental materials sourced from the earth in Southern California, presented by Megan Mulrooney.
- A dual-artist presentation of Jimmy Beauquesne and Tyler Christopher Brown presented by Fragment.
- A solo presentation with Chicago-based artist Soo Shin featuring a large-scale installation alongside sculptures and canvases, presented by PATRON.
- A dual-artist exhibition of Kwaku Osei Owusu Achim and Tariq Oliver, two emerging artists with a shared reflection on language, meaning, and memory, presented by Omenai Gallery.
- A solo-booth of Gabriel Martinez. who had an exhibition at the Leather Archives & Museum in Chicago this year, presented by Bill Arning.
- A solo presentation of renowned Brazilian artist Denise Milan, by Zielinsky.
- A solo booth of Jamaican artist Simon Benjamin presented by Swivel Gallery exploring the ocean as a framework for investigating trade, ocean travel, importdominant consumerism, among other neo-colonial relationships.
- A dual-artist presentation by Rivalry Projects of midwestern artists Jen Everett and Ryan Patrick Krueger considering knowledge in queer and Black communities.
EXPO CHICAGO 2025: ACROSS THE FAIR
Notable solo and dual-artist presentations include:
- A selection of iconic early photographs by Rashid Johnson alongside works by Ebony G. Patterson, presented by moniquemeloche.
- A selection of works by Sergio Sister and Thiago Barbalho presented by Nara Roesler. The booth features works produced by Sergio Sister between 1967 and 1971, created during his confinement as a political prisoner during Brazil's military dictatorship.
- An installation by acclaimed interdisciplinary artist Deborah Oropallo presented by Catharine Clark Gallery.
- A solo presentation by ACA Galleries of multimedia Afro-Caribbean American portrait artist, Kandy G Lopez, in her first exhibition in Chicago.
- A solo presentation of renowned artist Juanita Guccione by Weinstein Gallery.
- A solo booth of new sculptures and prints by Vietnam born artist Vy Trinh who lives and works in Philadelphia, presented by Galerie Quynh.
Highlights of group or thematic presentations from notable galleries include:
- A thematic presentation of artists Melanie Flood, Amanda Ross-Ho, and Evan La Londe by ILY2 considering the prop as a tool of destabilization.
- Michael Rosenfeld Gallery will present the work of Romare Bearden, Bob Thompson, Betye Saar, and Beauford Delaney.
- A presentation by Rhona Hoffman of politically engaged artists centered around three themes: Nature & the Environment with Spencer Finch, Julia Fish, Jacob Hashimoto, Judy Ledgerwood, and Martha Tuttle; Mass Media & Identity with Derrick Adams and Amanda Williams; and War, Violence & Inequality with Gordon Parks, Bassim AlShaker, and Brian Maguire.
- Prints by esteemed contemporary artists Katherine Bernhardt, Elizabeth Peyton, Tschabalala Self, Cecily Brown, and Mel Bochner, presented by Two Palms.
- Works by color-field artists Helen Frankenthaler, Morris Louis, and Kenneth Noland presented by Yares Art.
- A presentation of work by historic 20th century artists Agnes Pelton, Louise Nevelson, and Raymond Johnson, focusing on desert transcendentalism, presented by Addison Rowe Gallery.
- A presentation of historic Afro-Brazilian artists Agnaldo Manuel dos Santos, Mestre Didi, Heitor dos Prazeres, and Rubem Valentim alongside contemporary artists Lídia Lisboa, Maxwell Alexandre, No Martins, and Sidney Amaral, considering ancestral power of the Black community in Brazil, presented by Millan and Almeida & Dale.
- A selection of works by prominent Australian First Nations artists Emily Kam Kngwarray, Warlimpirrnga Tjapaltjarri, Rover Thomas Joolama, Barbara Weir and Naata Nungurrayi paired with legendary Dutch artists Karel Appel and Marcel Pinas, presented by SmithDavidson.
- A reimagination of the 1946 art brut installation at Galerie Rene Drouin, inspecting Jean Dubuffet’s relationship to Chicago and Chicago’s relationship to ‘outsider’ art, presented by The Gallery of Everything.
EXPO CHICAGO 2025: HIGHLIGHTS FROM KOREA
In a significant new partnership, EXPO CHICAGO introduces a collaboration with the Galleries Association of Korea (GaoK), to present a selection of 20 leading Korean galleries within the fair’s core Galleries section. This initiative, supported by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Korea Arts Management Service, builds on the successful synergy between Kiaf SEOUL and Frieze.
A selection of highlights includes:
- Digital prints by YOON Hyangro that transform pop culture imagery into abstraction by erasing characters and text presented by ONE & J. Gallery.
- PYO Gallery will present The Stillness of Water: Tschang-Yeul Kim’s Final Reflections on the Flow of Life, prominently featuring the artist’s images of water droplets and the contemplations on the concept of water itself.
- A group exhibition From Blindness to Awareness presented by Lee & Bae featuring mixed media works by atelierJAK, Hyojin Park, Lee Sangmin, Jinwook Yeom, and Janghee Jang that explore transformation and perception, including Yeom’s laborintensive embroidery-like paintings.
- Works by Korean artists Jimok Choi, Suzanne Song, and Lee Jaeseok, Kim Doki, Belgian artist Koen Van Den Broek, and Japanese artist Yuichi Hirako, presented by Gallery Baton.
- Abstract paintings by Kwak Hoon and Lee Jung-ji that explore human affairs through layered textures and expressive forms presented by Sun Gallery.
- Masterpieces of six Korean masters Park Seobo, Lee Ufan, and Yun Hyongkeun, presented by WELLSIDE Gallery.
- The works of Yoo Geun-young, a mid-career artist from Daejeon who captures Korea's turbulent history through unfamiliar shapes, vivid colors, and contrasting textures, presented by Gana Art.
- Oil and mixed media impasto paintings by Lee Jaehyun that use thick layers of matiere to evoke personal memories and emotional landscapes presented by GalleryJoeun.
- Hyper-realistic oil and sand paintings on board by Kangyong Kim that simulate photographic realism while questioning perception and illusion presented by The Columns Gallery.
EXPO CHICAGO 2025: PROFILE
PROFILE presents solo booths and focused projects by established international galleries. Showcasing ambitious installations and tightly focused thematic exhibitions, this section features major projects by a single artist or collective.
Presentation highlights include:
- Corbett vs. Dempsey will present a solo booth featuring a selection of historical prints by Diane Simpson. Created over a period from the mid 1970s to the early 1980s, most of these extraordinary works on paper have never been exhibited. Deploying various techniques including collagraphy and collage, the works' images consist of some of the same types of forms Simpson would explore over the subsequent five decades: architectural shapes and ideas drawn from women's clothing. The earliest prints are uncommonly vivid, later ones more subdued, in browns, blue, and grey tones. Made in tiny editions, some in fact unique, these printworks allude directly to the artist's work in three dimensions; one of them was designed to be cut out and folded into a kind of origami sculpture. Diane Simpson (b. 1935) is one of the great artists to emerge from the Imagist period of Chicago art, however, although she studied with Ray Yoshida and was dear friends with Barbara Rossi and Christina Ramberg, she was not herself an Imagist. Her earliest shows were at the legendary Phyllis Kind Gallery, and she has continued to make all her work in her studio in Wilmette. Simpson will be the subject of a major retrospective starting in 2026 at the Sara Hildén Museum in Tempere, Finland, traveling to Mumok in Vienna, Austria in 2027. In October of this year, on its Bluhm Terrace, the Art Institute of Chicago will present Simpson's first ever exhibition of outdoor sculpture.
- A solo presentation of new paintings by Sam Jablon presented by The Pit loosely rooted in themes of lightness and frivolity with mantras such as “No Bad Days” and “Don’t Panic” adding both humor and levity to the work.
- A solo presentation by Charlie James of new paintings and drawings by Manuel López informedf elements found around his environment: from his home, his neighborhood, and studio.
- New work by Los Angeles-based artist Ben Crase presented by PIERMARQ*. Born in the midwest, Crase invents whimsical scenes inspired by his hometown of Butte, Montana and his subjects are living testaments to the eccentricities of the isolated area.
- A solo-booth of Chicago-born Caitlin Cherry by The Hole.
- A large scale installative booth of work by Sami Tsang featuring a free-standing ceramic work and wall drawing by Claire Oliver Gallery.
- New sculptures made with hair-bonding glue by Trinidadian-American artist Allana Clarke, presented by Library Street Collective.
- A solo display of geometric works by Italian artist Esther Stocker presented by Alberta Pane.
