Art Chicago, 2010- You have to go.

Whew!!! Oh, man. Wha?? Uh, oh, sorry, just left the latest iteration (cool word, eh, iteration) of Art Chicago, the annual spring migration of big time contemporary art to the Merchandise Mart in Chicago. Well, where else would Art Chicago be, after all? Sorry, again, but it's just so overwhelming, you know? Dozens of galleries, thousands of pieces, total value in the zillions, plus there's another floor ( floor 7, as opposed to the main show on floor 12, of new stuff, unknowns, more "cutting edge" whatever that means, trying to break into the big time), plus yet another floor, 8 this time, of antiques. What better confluence of artistic karma could there be than to have the old sandwiched between the new and the newer-new?

I'll admit that as I, ah, mature, my appreciation of contemporary art has actually grown. Flowered, if you will. What once rankled my somewhat narrowminded singularly focused nose, I now embrace. My view of art has morphed from a narrow, realism is all, especially hyper-realism, mindset to a more all-encompassing acceptance of all kinds of expression. As a result, Art Chicago was an almost cathartic experience.

Well, that may be overstating it a bit. 3 hours spent at the preview opening does not a tranforming epiphany make. This show is so big that it's impossible to really take it all in at one time. 5 cities in 6 days on a European tour? Piece of cake compared to this. At best, you can only skim the surface unless you know what you're looking for. It's like being a kid in ten candy stores at the same time.

There's ArtSpeak, and then there's art that speaks to you. There's still plenty of the former at Art Chicago, but I noticed a bit of a shift in the seismic construct of  contemporary art as represented here, compared to previous shows. Realism, whether grounded in true reality or portrayed as part of an alternative artist inspired universe, seemed to be a recurring theme. It was much more noticable than in years past.  Many galleries displayed works that showed a consumate technique and attention to detail but also pushed the boundaries of conventional realism to new unexplored regions.

The more abstract pieces also seemed to be a little more creative this year. Odd juxtipositions of artistic disciplines, less reliance on shock for shock's sake, less "let's see what we can do to totally screw with your mind". These themes gained prominence in this year's show.

There's no danger of contemporary art reverting to images of doe-eyed kids or dogs playing poker, but there does seem to be a renewed commitment to craftsmanship and substance. It was refreshing to see pieces that made you stop and study them. Really study them. To see layers of meaning and beauty. And passion and commitment.

Alas, we did not venture into the world of NEXT, the 7th floor nexus of new, next generation art, so no comment here, other than they offered free beer, which the main show didn't, so that's a plus for them. I can't comment on it further except to say that today's anarchists are tomorrow's establishment. Take from that what you will.

The antiques show would seem to be the odd man out, an intrusive past bullying its way into the future, but that's not really the case. After all, much of the work on display there was cutting edge a few generations ago. The time constraints of the opening preview dictated that the contemporary preceded the ancient. Thus, we ascended (actually descended a few floors) to the old after the new.

Whoever said everything old is new again was absolutely right. Once you get past the shock of the time difference, it's easy to see how everything is influenced by that which came before. Admittedly, I'm more comfortable with new stuff than with old. But I can see the direct relationship between pieces that were made 200 years ago and those made yesterday. It's been that way forever. Look at Picasso and Mayan pottery. Dali and Bosch. Etc. Etc.

Art Chicago is so massive as to be overwhelming unless you take some precautions. Don't try to see everything. Stay the whole day. You can't see the Louvre in a couple of hours, so don't try to do it here. Pace yourself. Even if you don't like antiques, go to that floor. It'll give you insight about the rest of the show. Keep an open mind. You never know what you might tumble on. Don't be intimidated by the size and scope of the thing. Let yourself go wherever it takes you.  Don't worry if you miss something. Enjoy and absorb what you do see. You'll notice I haven't included any pics of pieces or gallery booths. That means you'll have to go there and see for yourself. Also, I didn't want to impose any of my personal biases on you. Above all, have fun.

When Alan isn't frantically racing around art fairs, he creates sculptural art at alancarterstudio.com.