Chicago Art and Artists in the Archives of American Art Exhibition Momentum

When the Art Institute of Chicago banned undergraduate works from eligibility for its annual “Artists of Chicago and Vicinity” exhibition, Exhibition Momentum was born to give those young artists a place to show their work. In the inaugural catalogue, the introduction states that Exhibition Momentum will aid in “retaining artists in Chicago who might ordinarily be forced to seek recognition elsewhere.” Indeed, many young artists trained in Chicago moved away soon after their schooling to seek greater exposure in New York. Ironically, Leon Golub, one of the founders of Exhibition Momentum, was among them.