Opening Reception: January 20, 2006 from 6-9pm Woman Made Gallery is starting the new year with a group show and three solo shows exhibiting photography by women. Simultaneously Woman Made is featuring masks by fourteen women in its Artisan Gallery. The exhibitions will open with an artist reception on Friday, January 20, 2006 from 6-9pm at the Gallery's new home, 685 N. Milwaukee Avenue. The event is free and open to the public.

Gallery hours are Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from noon to 7pm and Saturday and Sunday from noon to 4pm.

Entries were juried by Chicago artist Whitney Bradshaw who serves as the Assistant Curator of the LaSalle Bank Photography Collection. In her juror statement Whitney Bradshaw writes: "Jurying an exhibition is always invigorating. I usually curate exhibitions from a collection of photographs I know quite well which is exciting and challenging, but choosing pieces for a juried exhibition such as this allows me to work more instinctually. The time to look and consider is much shorter. It feels spontaneous and experiential.

In the end, the pieces I chose were the ones that were fresh, engaging, and well executed. Each artist I’ve included has a unique perspective that when grouped together gives a sense of the myriad visual ideas at work within contemporary photographic practice."

The exhibition opens on January 20th with an artist reception from 6 - 9 pm at Woman Made Gallery's new location, 685 N. Milwaukee Avenue in Chicago's River West neighborhood.

Exhibiting artists include Theresa Bertocci, Ellie Brown, Mare Dianora, Christine DiThomas, Mary Rachel Fanning, Mary Farmilant, Courtney Kotsionis, Judy A. Langston, Kate Love, Amy MacWilliamson, Monika Merva, Lydia Moyer, Colleen Plumb, Christina Richards, Kris Sanford, Karen St. John-Vincent, Susan Tennenbaum and Martha Thomas.

Image: 'Visitor' color photography, 16 x 20", by Karen St. John-Vincent

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I began the installation and artists’ books that comprise 'Crossing the Divide' shortly after the death of my father. My mother predeceased him by 34 years. He never remarried. I am intrigued with the idea that they are now reunited, at least figuratively, and perhaps in a more tangible form."

The Solo Show by Karen Hanmer will be on display from January 20 to February 23, 2006.

Image: 'Reunion' - artists' book: Pigment inkjet prints, silk brocade, goatskin, 7 x 7.5 x .5" by Karen Hanmer

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"Soul Tree reflects my response to the place, space, and the trees I find there. I photograph what I see, what I want to preserve and what I want to bring back to share with others. When working, I also think of "sole tree" and of making individual images, not emphasizing the landscape nor creating a scientific or botanical study.

I purposely use the formal considerations, or visual grammar, of black and white photography to organize and create each image before pressing the shutter. The prints are titled by location, but the images are not meant to reflect the totally external. Soul Tree is a canvas for my visual thoughts - ones that aren't always translated at the time into words, but can be further examined later. "

Photography by Jody Magrady is on display from January 20 to February 23, 2006.

Image: 'Trees, Sarasota, Florida (0331050D-1)' - archival selenium toned gelatin silver print, 20 x 16" by Jody Magrady

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Photographic work on display includes a piece made in 1998 called "Atavism." It consists of 24 portraits of Nancy's female maternal relatives fitting together into one large installation.

Another work depicts a portrait (~5ft h x 4ft w) from her MFA thesis work from 1992, showing four generations of her family (Nancy, her mother, daughter, and granddaughter.)

The Tribute Exhibition with work by Nancy Maguire is on exhibit from January 20 to February 23, 2006.

'All Manner of Masks' at Woman Made's Artisan Gallery begins an exhibition cycles of eight weeks rather than four. The exhibitions will explore material, as well as conceptual themes in an effort to provoke both artists and viewers into thinking differently about the notions of function, decoration and narrative as they pertain to the craft disciplines.

'All Manner of Masks' features women artisans exploring the concept of mask or masking in a variety of craft media. The artists were asked to approach the idea of mask or masking as a literal, abstract or conceptual exercise and result.

Participating artists include: Beth Bartley, Judie Benzer, Parbati Dasgupta, Wendy Deerly-Reese, Arlene Egelberg, Judy Freeman, Barbara Harris, Nicael Leistikow, Melissa Maguire, Darcy Meeker, Lynne Richards, Harriet Schneider, Marian Slepian, Kathy Zajac.

The "All Manner of Masks" exhibition is up through March 30, 2006.

Image: 'Cross Hatch', unglazed clay by Darcy Meeker, Blacksburg, VA

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Woman Made Gallery is a tax-exempt, not for profit organization founded in 1992. Its goal is to support women in the arts by providing opportunities, awareness, and advocacy. It specifically accomplishes this through monthly thematic exhibitions which raise public awareness and recognition of women's cultural contributions.

Woman Made Gallery is supported in part by grants from the Illinois Arts Council a state agency; a CityArts Program II grant from the City of Chicago, Department of Cultural Affairs; the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation; the Polk Bros Foundation; the Hugh M. Hefner Foundation and the generosity of its members and contributors.