Chicago, Illinois- Woman Made Gallery is pleased to announce the opening of a new group exhibition, "Icons," and solo exhibitions by Carmen M. Perez and Mary Stoppert. The Artisan Gallery is hosting an Invitational with fine craft work by 30 women.

Please join us at the artist reception on Friday, November 21, from 6 to 9 p.m., at 685 N. Milwaukee Avenue in Chicago. Works will be on display until December 18, 2008.

In addition to group and solo exhibitions, Woman Made Gallery presents a poetry reading hosted by Nina Corwin on Sunday, December 7, from 2 to 4 p.m..

Regular Gallery hours are Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from 12 to 7 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 12 to 4 p.m.

Consistent among the 39 art works selected by juror Margaret Denny is the idea that icons are as numerous as they are diverse and, though the idea may seem antiquated, icons can be modern devices as well.

Juror Margaret Denny is a Ph.D. Candidate at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Her dissertation, From Commerce to Art: American Women Photographers, 1850-1900, investigates women's experience as fine art photographers and professional studio photographers in the early days of the medium. She teaches at both Columbia College and the University of Illinois at Chicago.

The following artists have work on display: Connie Begg, Karen Bell, Ilona Brustad, Mary Button, Maya Chachava, Liz Chilsen, Priti Cox, Mary Ellen Croteau, Andreea Davidescu, Pat Dumas-Hudecki, Linda Durkee, Mary Farmilant, Debra Fitzsimmons, Linda Rudin Frizzell, Sarah Gabel, Niki Grangruth, Mary Harden, Mallary Johnson, Mary King, Felice Koenig, Lily Mayfield, Julie McIntyre, Ruth Aizuss Migdal, Hanne Niederhausen, Alison Overton, Trude Parkinson, Jessica Pribola, Karen Rechtschaffen, Stephanie Stanley, Holly and Ashlee Temple, Chris Twomey, Emily Wharton, and Bahar Yurukoglu.

The Artist Reception is on November 21 from 6 to 9 p.m. and works will be up through December 18, 2008.

Images: (top right) "Rituals and Reliquaries: Air Blower / Duster" (2008) - basswood strips, string, acylic paint on museum archival hardboard and wood support, 12.25 sq. x 3 inches, by Mary Stoppert
(left) "Mickey on Wujiang Rd." - archival inkjet print, 20 x 24 inches, by Liz Chilsen

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The human form is the central visual element in Perez's sculpture. Her ideas are generated by life experiences and reactions to those experiences. Her materials of choice are copper, silver, brass, and wood.

Of her work, Perez says, "There are important issues and pressures when one is raised bi- culturally. My work addresses the tensions that arise from accommodating to the expectations that traditional Latin culture has for a woman, and my own needs and ambitions that are a result of growing up and being educated in a contemporary urban American setting."

Exhibition Dates: November 21 - December 18, 2008

Image: "Reclining" - brass, copper, marble base 6.5 x 8.5 x 1 inches; by Carmen M. Perez

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The exhibition includes works from 1973 when Stoppert was a founding member of Artemisia Gallery. Also included is photographic documentation of eight site-specific installations and select related sculptures that were inspired by the sites, including The Queen's Ring Temple which was an installation created for The New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York in 1982. The exhibition ends with a brief glimpse into her most recent series: Rituals and Reliquaries.

Mary Stoppert has been named one of America's Outstanding Sculptors by Contemporary American Women Sculptors (Oryx Press) and, if her work is not proof enough, her extensive credentials certainly confirm this title. After earning her MFA in Sculpture at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Stoppert taught at Northeastern Illinois University for 30 years, chairing the art department for 2 years, and serving as gallery director for 15 years. Her lengthy exhibition history includes the New Museum in New York, DePaul University and Hyde Park Art Center in Chicago, and nearly all points between.

She was a founding member of Artemisia Gallery and also the Chicago Women's Caucus for Art. Stoppert is the recipient of many awards, including an NEA grant, the Art Institute of Chicago's John G. Curtis Prize and the Frank G. Logan Award. Her work is in many private and public collections, including the Museum of Contemporary Art (Chicago), Northeastern Illinois University, and the State of Illinois. In addition, Stoppert has served as an instrumental advisor, curator, and mentor to Woman Made Gallery and gallery staff since its inception.

Exhibition Dates: November 21 - December 18, 2008

Image: "Rituals and Reliquaries: Shoe Button Hooks" - steel vintage button hooks, flax string, astrological drawings, basswood sheet and strips, acylic paint on museum archival hardboard and wood support 12 x 24.25 x 2.75 inches; by Mary Stoppert

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