Opening during one of the city’s most celebrated moments for contemporary art, EXPO Chicago week, I Used to Live in Chicago is a multidisciplinary exhibition exploring memory, displacement, and cultural resilience across Chicago’s historically black neighborhoods.

Curated by Anefertiti Bowman, the exhibition brings together leading contemporary artists Norman Teague, Max Sansing, and Steve Bravo, alongside elder Chicago artists Sura Dupart, Tyrue “Slang” Jones, and Patric McCoy. Together, their work forms a layered, intergenerational dialogue rooted in lived experience, cultural memory, and the evolving realities of the city.

Through furniture and object-based design, mural-scale painting, sculptural forms, and graphic storytelling, the exhibition examines what it means to belong to a city in constant transformation and who retains access to space, identity, and legacy amid redevelopment and erasure.
At its core, I Used to Live in Chicago is both a love letter and a retrospective. It holds the emotional weight of change while honoring the communities that have long defined the city’s cultural fabric. We invite viewers into a space of reminiscence and nostalgia, of pickles and peppermint, of front porch conversations that felt like ceremony, of a time when ease lived more readily in our bodies and belonging felt less fragile. It gestures toward a Chicago many remember not as perfect, but as deeply alive, rooted in connection, creativity, and possibility. A city where basslines from passing cars became a shared soundtrack, and community existed not just in proximity, but in practice, embodied and lived in real time.

A Collective Archive

Positioned at the intersection of art, design, and cultural storytelling, the exhibition highlights the richness of black creativity that lives across the 77 community areas and over 200 neighborhoods, from the Plaza to the Brickyard, an epicenter of life, migration, and creative production.
The inclusion of elder artists serves as a critical anchor, grounding the exhibition in lived testimony and ensuring that histories shaped across generations remain present within contemporary discourse.

Public Programming + Cultural Activation

Expanding beyond the gallery, I Used to Live in Chicago will be accompanied by a series of public programs designed to deepen engagement and activate dialogue across the city:

May 3, Court Theatre’s Agora Series – We Are Still Becoming: For the second installment of the Agora Series, in partnership with the LGBTQ+ Intergenerational Dialogue Project, photographers Diana Solis and Patric McCoy discuss their decades long work documenting Chicago’s queer history.

May 9, 2pm, Sonorous Somatics 010 (curated by BSA Gold): An immersive, body centered series exploring sound, memory, and spatial awareness through performance and collective gathering.
Additional programming and dates will be announced

About the Curator

Anefertiti Bowman is a curator, art administrator, and cultural strategist whose work centers community, memory, and Black cultural production. With over a decade of experience across the nonprofit, corporate and institutional sectors, she is known for creating safe spaces that are both critically engaged and deeply human. Throughout her career she has worked and collaborated with visionary artists and institutions including Kara Walker, Calida Rawles, Fred Moten, Shirin Neshat, The Getty, the California African American Museum, and Otis College of Art and Design. Her practice lives at the intersection of storytelling, public programming, and collective care, crafting experiences that invite reflection, honor lived experience and foster meaningful connection. Grounded in cultural stewardship and community-rooted engagement, Bowman’s work challenges traditional frameworks while cultivating environments where artists and community feel seen, held, and affirmed.

About Blanc Gallery

Blanc Gallery, founded in 2010, is an artist-led space dedicated to supporting Black creatives and preserving the cultural legacy of Chicago’s Bronzeville neighborhood. Rooted in community, Blanc champions both emerging and established artists, prioritizing collaboration, curiosity, and resource sharing over commerce. Through a dynamic program of exhibitions, performances, and events, the gallery has become a vital platform for showcasing the depth and diversity of Black creative expression.

About Futuregrow

Futuregrow is a cultural media program and mentorship platform dedicated to equipping the next generation of storytellers with the tools, access, and skills to explore careers within the arts industry. Co-founded by Doug Kenney, the program operates at the intersection of culture, technology, and work-based learning providing young people from underrepresented communities with hands-on training from professionals in design, video journalism, photography, event production, and more.

Press + Media Contact

For press inquiries, interviews, and additional information, please contact:
Anefertiti Bowman
anefertiti@solacontemporary.org

Social Media
@blancgallerychicago, @audacity_creative, @simplynef @kenneydoug
@steve_bravo, @maxsansing, @normanteaguedesignstudio

Official Website

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Tags: Anefertiti Bowman, Blanc Gallery, bronzeville, I Used to Live in Chicago, max sansing, Norman Teague, Patric McCoy, Steve Bravo, Sura Dupart, Tyrue "Slang" Jones