Madron Gallery
Madron Gallery is the Chicago gallery world’s cool mullet — impressionism in the front, modernism in the back. It’s actually a party on both sides… if your taste in art transcends eras.
Half of this family-owned gallery is devoted to classical paintings from the late 19th century, while the other half houses modern paintings and sculptures from the mid-20th century. Madron Gallery champions historical artists who have been underrecognized in art history, contemporary Chicago artists, and Jewish artists. They display works from the Skolnik family’s personal collection, as well as work sourced from contemporary artists, curating research-based shows twice a year.
Edward Cucuel, Woman with Flowers
Charles Green Shaw, Untitled (Plastic Polygon Abstract Form)
Images courtesy of Madron Gallery
About the art/ists
Madron Gallery doesn’t represent artists like a traditional gallery. Instead, they use works from the Skolnik family’s private collection to curate new shows. Not to be limited by the not-for-sale artworks from the collection, Madron also accepts works from the secondary market (previously sold to the original buyer, and re-sold to Madron Gallery). They curate rotating shows using a combination of the family collection, secondary-market items, and work from contemporary artists that they invite to use the space.
Madron Gallery hosts two exhibitions per year, using the longer-than-average show durations to do extensive research for the next show. They use work from different time periods to demonstrate how art history progresses and how artworks are connected across art movements and eras. Contemporary artists and their predecessors tend to share inspiration, techniques, and other facets that might not be obvious when the artworks are seen in isolation. When these artists are brought together in Madron Gallery’s space, the connections between different works are illuminated.
What is impressionism?
Basically, the impressionists were a French clique of outdoor painters who loved landscape, light, and visible brushstrokes. There’s more to it than that (so don’t show this to your art history professor), but if you’ve ever rocked with anyone painting fields, girls in flowy dresses, or ponds that all look like they could be in Call Me by Your Name, you’re probably familiar with impressionism. Name-drop Monet, Renoir, or Cassatt for extra credit.
It’s not like other galleries
Madron Gallery sees its role as an educator and a connector. Like most galleries, one of their purposes is to bring artists to a wider audience, offering visitors the chance to discover new work. However, Madron Gallery adds to this discovery by highlighting historic artists that have been overlooked over time, writing extensively about their shows and the history of specific works within them, and showing works that might be atypical of the artist that made them, giving new life to their work.
In addition to their gallery spaces, Madron Gallery runs a small printing press in a side room, just off the impressionist-focused show. While they won’t print your English paper for you, they do print copies of original books about the artists they’ve shown. The show-specific books contain the depth of research they do for each show alongside photos of the work. These limited-edition publications are an extension of the care Madron Gallery puts into their shows, and a cool side hustle.
What is modernism?
Modern art refers to work made between the late 19th and mid 20th centuries. It does not describe one style, but encompasses many art movements that occurred during the time period, including fauvism, impressionism, surrealism, cubism, and abstract expressionism. The heart of modernism is its forward-thinking, boundary-pushing ethic. It describes a period of innovation and rejection of traditional aesthetics.
Inside the gallery
Located in a complex with neighbors like Epic Burger and Pottery Barn, a fun-filled day is just beginning at Madron Gallery. Because of its classy, low-profile nature, it’s up a nondescript set of stairs between Peet’s Coffee and West Elm. Think of it like the #12 Grimmauld Place of galleries. Too niche? Maybe. But for the Harry Potter fans here with us, that’ll make perfect sense.
Once up a few flights of stairs, I had to ring a little doorbell and I was greeted like a queen at the door. It was actually a pretty normal greeting, no red carpet or anything, but the gallerists at Madron Gallery were welcoming and eager to talk about the art.
Their space is one of the largest I’ve been to, so definitely budget some extra time to fully peruse the three rooms. I’m a modern & contemporary art gal at heart, so I have a special love for contemporary galleries, but Madron Gallery gave me the best of both worlds. They eased me in with their modern work — immaculately crafted wooden sculptures, jazzy expressionistic paintings, tiny comic-strip-like prints — and then pulled me back into the world of impressionism, calming my overcaffeinated mind with gardens, boats, and frilly dresses. Impressionism rocks, by the way. Madron Gallery has something for everyone, whether it’s an artist you already love, or one waiting to surprise you.
William Mark Fisher, The Orchard
Images courtesy of Madron Gallery
Visit Madron Gallery
1000 West North Avenue, Third Floor, Chicago, IL 60642
Hours
Monday-Friday
9:30 am–4:30 pm
How to get there:
Train
Take the Red Line to North/Clybourn. It’s a short, 8-minute walk from the stop to the gallery.