WEINBERG/NEWTON GALLERY, SKYART AND ARTS + PUBLIC LIFE

Photo provided by SkyART
Photo provided by SkyART

WEINBERG/NEWTON GALLERY, SKYART AND ARTS + PUBLIC LIFE

CHICAGO – Weinberg/Newton Gallery (688 N. Milwaukee Ave.), a non-commercial gallery dedicated to promoting social justice causes, is partnering with South Side youth arts non-profit SkyART and Arts + Public Life, which fosters neighborhood vibrancy through the arts on the South Side of Chicago, to
present Can you see me?. Across three galleries, artwork by incarcerated young people, contemporary artists and arts-justice organizations will explore themes of ascendance, innocence and freedom. The exhibition aims not only to highlight the humanity and potential of young people affected by the juvenile justice system, but also to explore new aspirational possibilities for how art can be a tool of justice and healing. Extensive public programming will bring together diverse audiences and practitioners to create important dialogue and accessibility for new
communities.

Visitors will have the opportunity to interact with and contribute
to the exhibition, and will leave with a lasting impression of humanity in place of criminality, perseverance in place of violence and hope in place of despair.

The three exhibitions include:
• The primary Can you see me? exhibition at Weinberg/Newton
Gallery will open on Oct. 14, with a reception from 5 to 7pm, and will remain on view until Dec. 17, 2022

• Arts + Public Life presenting FREEDOM SPACE, Oct. 21 through Dec. 16, 2022, with the opening reception taking place Oct. 21 from5 to 7pm
 
• SkyART presenting Can you see me? Envisioning the future at
their flagship studio space in South Chicago (3026 E 91st St.) on view from Oct. 28 through Dec. 17, 2022, with an opening reception taking place on Oct. 28 from 4 to 7pm

Can you see me? aims to bring people together using art as a
catalyst to prompt restorative and healing conversations in order to imagine a future where all children are innocent, free and valued. This exhibition will provide a small example of a world in which young people are elevated as experts in their own experiences, alongside practitioners and contemporary artists;
where people who may disagree can find common ground; and where the justice system rights historic wrongs instead of perpetuating the trauma, oppression and systemic racism reflected in prisons and jails throughout the United States.

The exhibition originated from SkyART’s Just-Us program, which
provides weekly open studiostyle art therapy sessions for incarcerated youth. Across all three sites, the exhibition
features large-scale paintings made over the course of several
months at the Illinois Youth Center- Chicago (IYC-Chicago), a male medium-security Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice (IDJJ) youth facility located on the west side of Chicago.

The paintings, which provided the initial inspiration and foundation for Can you see me?, were created by incarcerated youth in collaboration with SkyART staff.

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