Get up off your couch and go to SOFA

It's November in Chicago and the temperature is dropping.  The temptation to stay indoors and avoid venturing out into the elements will grow stronger and stronger for many of us until March or April relieve us of the frigid air.  Fortunately it's not that cold this weekend, and the event I want to tell you about is indoors anyway.   And with numerous galleries represented in the vast Festival Hall of Navy Pier, located at the far end of the pier, you can get plenty of exercise walking to and around the SOFA (Sculpture Objects and Functional Art) Show. 

The The Intuit Show of Folk and Outsider Art is also part of the show this time around.  There you can find, among other creepy things, the creepy work of the ever inescapable Henry Darger, whose posthumous fame made him an outsider art superstar in recent years.

Here are some of my favorite artists exhibiting this year:

Doug Randall

Nathan Bennett 

Kimberly Willcox

 Nemo Gould

Veruska Vagen

Binh Pho

Vanessa L. Smith

Maisie Broadhead

Tim Tate

If you can't make it to the show to see these phenomenal artists' works in person, at least take a look at their websites.  And try to find video of Tim Tate and Nemo Gould's pieces if you can.

Here are some more details for those of you who would like to attend:

Dates & Hours: Saturday, Nov. 6 from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 7 from noon to 6 p.m.  Tickets: $15 for single day general admission (admits to both fairs)  $25 for a three-day pass (Be sure to sign up to be on some of the galleries' mailing lists.  Maybe you'll get a free ticket next year.  I did.)

Website:

http://www.sofaexpo.com/chicago/2010/index.htm


Shuttles:

Courtesy shuttles will circulate between Navy Pier (SOFA & The Intuit Show), the River North gallery district, and the Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA) throughout the weekend.  For more info, visit the Facebook event page.


Get up off your couch and go to SOFA.