The 2026 Chicago Art Fair at the Merchandise Mart

If you've been reading this blog for a while, you know that I miss the way things were pre-pandemic. One thing I especially miss is the fall art shows I once looked forward to attending. So I was excited to visit the first Chicago Art Fair. It was small, relatively speaking, but I think it got off to a good start. Here are some of my favorite artists from the show.

Kayla Mahaffey

Alison Price

C Dutch

Karen L. Kirshner

Peppy Colours

Mark Liam Smith

Alexandria Mooney Jones

Fernando DaSilva

Kate Vogel and John Littleton

J Ruel Martin

Mitchell Craig

Andréa Stanislav

Michel Mirabal

I enjoyed the show and hope that it will return next year and become a fixture of the fall art show schedule like SOFA used to be. This was also my introduction to the work that Black Figure Bureau is doing and I was very intrigued and impressed. I'm glad I had the opportunity to see so much incredible work by talented artists.

Additional October Events

The Loop Arts Fest is happening on State Street on Saturday, October 17th from noon until 6 p.m. Celebrate local artists in the Loop! Of course, we all know how Chicago weather can be, so in case it rains or snows, you can find me in the studio since the Fine Arts Building is participating in both days of Open House Chicago!

Since I can't be in 2 places at once, my Open House Chicago open studio will be on Sunday, October 18th from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. It's a rare opportunity to visit on a weekend if you're too busy on Fridays.

The 2026 Ravenswood Art Walk

This weekend's theme could be Everything Everywhere All at Once because there were so many events happening at the same time! One of the events I was able to make it to was the Ravenswood Art Walk, which I haven't been to in a while precisely because of this problem. Honestly, it's a nice problem to have, one of the perks of living in a big city with so much to do. 

Ravenswood is so photogenic. Every time I go up there, I end up taking so many photos. I would like to begin this post with them and then I'll share some links to the artists who left an impression on me today.

Lillstreet Art Center

Flight of the Honey Bee by Ross and Elizabeth Fiersten

Ravenswood Walls of Togetherness by Mac Blackout

Miscellanea Etcetera

Nadeau Furniture

And now for the art and crafts:

Las Crafty Anties

Whittington Handcrafted

Manifold

The nice thing is that so many of the places that I visited are the permanent locations of these businesses, so I can go back and visit again on a less hectic weekend.