Dan Gunn @dangunn7
“Raggedy” (2020)
Dan Gunn’s work centers on the imagery, materials, and craft traditions of the American Midwestern vernacular and investigates their ideological function for politics, and for the formulation of male subjectivity. Born in Kansas where the sunflower is the state emblem, the sunflower has appeared in his recent work as a stand-in person, with a ‘head’ and a ‘face’ that changes direction. The central image of Raggedy is taken from a Wisconsin local news report of a crop of sunflowers that were “vandalized” by hooligans who drew smiley faces, hearts, and peace signs into the disk florets. The doll-like interior figure is set against a multicolored pattern of chair caning. Drawing inspiration from the tactics of Surrealist artists like Dorothea Tanning, the flag conjures some of the anxiety lurking behind ‘Midwestern nice’.
Edition 4+1AP
$200 (excluding shipping)
All profit goes to the artist
Four Flags Chicago
CHICAGO, IL— Chicago Manual Style is pleased to present the Chicago Edition of the international project Four Flags. The project is designed to support and promote local artists in public and online space during this period of isolation and unrest. In a moment when physical encounters are limited and viewing art is primarily restricted to the virtual experience, the Chicago edition of Four Flags instills a sense of collectivity while providing a platform for creative local voices. The exhibition will be installed on the façade of the Chicago Manual Style building in the West Town gallery district, and viewable to all pedestrians and vehicles from the street.
Ongoing exhibition documentation will be accessible via Instagram:@fourflags2020 @chicago_manual_style
Flags by more than 35 artists from across Chicago will be shown simultaneously; new flags are presented on Tuesdays and Saturdays. Flags will be produced as an edition of 4 (+1 AP) and sold at $200 USD (plus additional shipping costs) to a domestic and international roster of collectors and institutions. The project will feature both established and emerging artists to create an iconic exhibition for our times.
The entirety of the proceeds from sales will go directly to the artist, excluding production costs.
Initiated in The Netherlands, sister projects under the same title of Four Flags have been installed in São Paulo, Belgium, Bogotá, and Düsseldorf. Chicago will be the only site in the United States, visible on the façade of Chicago Manual Style.
About Four Flags
Four Flags was founded by Julia Mullié and Nick Terra in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, and was launched on April 15, 2020. Exhibited artists to date include Evelyn Taocheng Wang, Das Institut (Kerstin Brätsch & Adele Röder), Kasper Bosmans, Jennifer Tee, Willem de Rooij, Rodrigo Hernández, Maria Roosen, Anna-Sophie Berger, Dora Budor, and Lena Henke, among others.
Bloemstraat 140B, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Chicago Manual Style and P.S. (Publishing Services) is a project space sited in a garage in Chicago, IL. Directed by Stephanie Cristello, the program is dedicated to exhibitions featuring established and emerging artists, and the production of critical writing. Positioned at the convergence of exhibitions and publications, each show results in the production and commission of essays and texts on contemporary art. Ruslana Lichtzier will be collaborating on curating this specific project.