Expo Chicago Brings Grid System To Navy Pier's Festival Hall

By Julia Weeman in Arts & Entertainment on Sep 16, 2012 7:00PM

International exposition of contemporary/modern art & design Expo Chicago will take over Navy Pier's festival Hall starting Wednesday. Architecture firm Studio/Gang has created a floor plan inspired by Chicago's grid system.

Visitors will have the opportunity to visit every gallery in sequence or take a diagonal "avenue" that runs along a select group of installations. The street grid also includes places to stop and take a break with a chef's kitchen, dining space and lounges. Above the galleries are suspended, mirrored mylar cones which will simultaneously reflect the work and the visitors below, and act as private lounge areas.

Last year, architect Jeanne Gang of Studio/Gang teamed up with the Natural Resources Defense Council to create Reverse Effect, a book about re-imagining Chicago's waterways. Architect/artist Maya Lin is the Natural Resources Defense Council's featured artist. Lin is known for her National Vietnam Memorial design in DC, but has done a series of "pin river" pieces that are essentially topographical maps of various world waterways, including a Chicago River version that will be on display at EXPO. In a press release, Lin said of her work, “The Chicago River is such a rich environmental subject...It is my belief that visual art can help us all rethink the way we interact with urban waterways, starting in Chicago with one of the most abused rivers in the country." Lin's work on display will also include a sound/video installation about endangered species and ecosystems, entitled What is Missing?

Expo Chicago opens Wednesday, September 19 with Vernissage, a preview benefiting the MCA. It opens to the general public Thursday, September 20 and runs through Sunday, September 23 at Navy Pier's Festival Hall. We'll be at the media preview on Wednesday, so check back for details of what to expect from Expo on Thursday.