The owners of Maison Rouge gallery have a discerning eye for art
and have always been drawn to the spirit of the independent artist.
Many of their working days ended with visits to the studios
of Ed Paschke, Tony Fitzpatrick, Ron Seymour, Tim Anderson,
Juan Angel Chavez, Jean Moss and Art Shay. They were attracted
to the fact that the artists had an independence that most people didn't -
they were doing what they wanted to do, where they wanted to do it
and when they wanted to do it. There are few collections (and owners) that are as
phenomenal and engaging. They are always eager to tell visitors the stories
and personal recollections behind each piece, how they acquired it
and the artist who created it as well as recount personal encounters with great
detail and enthusiasm. The gallery offers works in various media from
turn of the century to mid-century, as well as pieces from contemporary
and represented artists. Black subject matter by artists of all ethnicities is a predominant force
within the collection. The gallery includes Carl Van Vechten's portraits
of Harlem Renaissance luminaries and a large collection of Jazz photography
(1942-1960) which includes portraits of Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Ella Fitzgerald,
Duke Ellington, Theolonius Monk, Dizzy Gillespie, Sarah Vaughn and
many other groundbreaking figures of the movement. There are expressionist drawings by Rudolph Weisenborn (1881 - 1974),
whose WPA mural Contemporary Chicago appears in the Nettelhorst School,
Neo-Surrealistic works by contemporary Italian artist
Pino Tersigni, stylized nudes by Czech photographer Frantisek Drtikol,
a collection of Farm Security Administration Photography (1938-1942)
by Esther Bubley, Arthur Rothstein, John Vachon, John Collier and works by
Annie Leibovitz and Medard Klein, among other legendary figures. The owners' eclectic sensibilities ensure that the gallery houses an impressive,
interesting and ever-evolving collection of established and emerging artists.
They always welcome collectors, artists, designers and the art appreciator. Paraphrased, in part, from an excerpt in Chicago Magazine |
