For some reason this weekend is pretty stacked with lots of student shows, so good luck to those involved. As usual, the links below are just my picks, but you can click here are more listings and here for pretty much all of them.

An Evening With Your (Con)Temporaries @ The (Con)Temporary Art Space

Check out the inaugural reception for the new (Con)Temporary Art Space, Chicago’s latest hub of discourse and action and research with a roster of some very serious art workers: Douglas Burns, Tom Burtonwood, Emily Clayton, Theodore Darst, Josh Finck, Marian Frost, Elizabeth Furani, Laurra Hieber, Serena Himmelfarb, Holly Holmes, Henry James Glover, Nate Lee, Sarah Loude, Ed Marszewski, Rachael Marszewski, Tim Mellon, Andrew Rigsby, Chris Roberson, Kevin Stanton and Kenneth Zawacki. Reception for An Evening With Your (Con)Temporaries is tonight, Thursday, February 18th from 4:30 to 8:30 PM @ The (Con)Temporary Art Space, 208 S Wabash Ave.

A selection of LA artist and SAIC alum Sterling Ruby‘s video work is going to be shown at the Gene Siskel Film Center tonight as part of the Conversations at the Edge series. Catch the show and maybe meet the artist tonight, Thursday, February 18th @ 6 PM @ the Gene Siskel Film Center, 162 N State St. (Note: tickets are $10 general, $7 for students, less for members/SAIC relations.)

Markus Hahn and Sean Ward @ Noble and Superior Projects

Two installation artists, Vienna’s Markus Hahn and Chicago’s Sean Ward put together a dual show for us this month at Noble and Superior Projects. Lots of surrendering to materials and found objects going on in both, so I guess we’ll see what the stuff has to say. Check out the opening this Friday, February 19th from 6-10 PM @ Noble and Superior Projects, 1418 W Superior St, Apartment 2R.

Scott Wolniak @ 65GRAND

New videos and paintings(!) from Scott Wolniak go up this month at 65GRAND. Be warned: the show, You Can Lose Your Balance, will be full of appropriately disorienting work set to which may send you tumbling down the space’s long spooky staircase. Show opens this Friday, February 19th from 7-10 PM @ 65GRAND, 1378 W Grand Ave, #3.

Room-a-Loom @ Swimming Pool Project Space

After successful instances around the country, Julia Sherman brought her Room-a-Loom idea to Chicago and turned the entire Swimming Pool Project Space into a big functioning loom. This Saturday the space will be showing off the resulting machine with a very fun, very participatory reception, where you’re invited to bring your own blue (and only blue) materials to the space and learn to weave on the loom. The show’s been up since January, but the reception event is this Saturday, February 20th from 6-10 PM @ Swimming Pool Project Space, 2858 W Montrose.

it was here all along. it never left.