SEEING CHICAGO Through Duro Olowu's Eyes
WDCB’s Gary Zidek talks to acclaimed designer Duro Olowu about curating SEEING CHICAGO for the Museum of Contemporary Art.
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“This is a city that’s very divided, like most of America. It has histories, good and bad. But there’s something about the unification of everyone when it comes to being from Chicago and how they see life.” - Duro Olowu talking about his perceptions of Chicago.
Mannequins wearing Duro Olowu’s designs in DURO OLOWU: SEEING CHICAGO
A new exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary Art is providing a “second look” at the diverse scope of Chicago’s cultural heritage. SEEING CHICAGO, both celebrates and holds a mirror up to the city in unexpected ways. The exhibit was curated renowned fashion designer Duro Olowu. Known for his sharp tailoring and bold use of patterns and colors, the designer has developed quite a following in the fashion world. But his eye for beauty and impeccable taste have also led to curatorial opportunities in contemporary art circles.
Duro Olowu installed works “salon-style” throughout the exhibit
Olowu’s connection to Chicago goes back 15 years, when the high-end boutique Ikram began selling his designs. He was approached around 2017 by Museum of Contemporary Art director Madeleine Grynsztejn to curate an exhibition in Chicago. Olowu says he wasn’t interested in creating a retrospective of his designs, he proposed curating an exhibit about Chicago, that would highlight the way he felt about the world and art.
The exhibit’s lone commission, And a River Runs Through It, comes from sculptor Maren Hassinger
There are 367 pieces of art in SEEING IN CHICAGO. The exhibit inspired a tremendous amount of collaboration within Chicago’s art community, the show includes works from the MCA’s permanent collection, other Chicago institutions and private collections.
“He brought up the phrase ‘a second look’ really in thinking about how his parents trained him to be observant in the world. The family traveled a lot; he said his parents would make him stop and say ‘have a look at that’. It taught him to realize that often times things in the world are intentionally put together, even if it looks haphazard or thrown together, people usually have some kind of thinking, logic (behind) it. You have to pay attention to what people are doing on other peoples’ terms, really be sensitive to how people want to live aesthetically.” - MCA senior curator Naomi Beckwith talking about Olowu’s notion of a ‘second look’.
Installation view of DURO OLOWU: SEEING CHICAGO
The Museum of Contemporary Art’s new exhibit, DURO OLOWU: SEEING CHICAGO is on display through May 10. You can find more information at mcachicago.org
Duro Olowu & WDCB’s Gary Zidek
