Not every day, you walk into a venue and run into a painting of yourself in an exhibition, and the artist coming in to check out his installation for the first time, and we COLLIDE. How random is that?
Hope, 2021 60" x 60" Oil, Acrylic, Ink, Marker, Spray paint on canvas, $15,000, Cesar Conde
Cesar Conde & CJ Hungerman C+C= COLLISION
July 29, 2022, to September 10, 2022
Abstract collides with Realism. The exhibition C + C = COLLISION presents a collaborative series between Cesar Conde and C.J. Hungerman.
With their unique style, Cesar Conde, a realist painter, and C.J. Hungerman, an Abstract Modernist, decided to collaborate two years ago. Hungerman approached Conde about the Collision concept: a collaboration that would require complete, blind trust.
Conde hands off his portraits for Hungerman to apply his expertise; he never knows what's going to happen to his paintings. Every time a canvas is invaded by Hungerman's high energy and explosive colors, it takes on another life that is delicious, exciting, and explosive. "I never know what's coming next. It's like unwrapping a present and never disappoints," Conde of their collaboration. "I tell C.J. who the person I'm painting is, what they are like, their character, their passion. C.J. interprets them with his own visual language. I feel that both disciplines just feed off of each other. I totally love it!
I completely trust C.J. Hungerman; speaking on his perspective on the collaboration, he said, "I have incredible satisfaction while creating artwork with Cesar. The icons and imagery I utilize construct the subconscious personality of the human portrayed in each painting. These works are an exciting new adventure that has reinvigorated our skills and desire to produce art. Combining our forms and techniques with the subject matter has led to a series of artworks that reveal each portrait's visual description in a new, dynamic fashion."
The vibrato of Cesar Conde's portraiture guides the tone of the symbols C.J. Hungerman chooses and the forms he fashions. It is no small thing for an artist to hand over their work without knowing what it will look like when they receive it; it is an exercise of trust and friendship. The flow of these works creates a surreal environment that engages the viewer's imagination.
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The Guild Room at Epiphany Center for the Art
201 S Ashland Ave
Chicago, Illinois
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About the Artists
Cesar Conde is a contemporary painter who uses old-world techniques with modern materials to paint his realistic portraits. He studied at Angel Academy of Art in Florence, Italy, and with the master of Technique Mixte, Patrick Betaudier, in his atelier in southern France and Ed Hinkley in Chicago. His artwork has been exhibited internationally, and he deals primarily with social justice issues.
CJ Hungerman, originally from Pittsburgh, completed his graduate degree at Northern Illinois University. He has created many public art projects in Chicago; his most notable is a 500-square-foot artwork conceived and designed for the Chinatown Library in Chicago, funded by the mayor's office and the City of Chicago. He won the Alice & Arthur Baer Award from the Beverly Arts Center in 2013, and in 2014 he received a grant from the Illinois Art Council Agency that enabled him to exclusively produce art.
Our Mission
To instill an artistic, cultural experience in all patrons who cross our threshold, hoping that each will be inspired to realize their own Epiphany.
Conceived with the vision to return Epiphany to a place for people to once again congregate, the shuttered, historic Church of the Epiphany has been preserved and adapted into an iconic cultural hub, 'For the Good of Art, Entertainment and Events. Thoughtfully designed, the exemplary 42,000 square foot campus boasts three distinct venues and a stunning array of amenities, including art studios, classroom, exhibit space and gallery, a commercial and catering kitchen, café, VIP suite, and a collection of artistically appointed outdoor spaces; a charming quarter-acre courtyard, spacious terrace and stunning patio. In addition, Epiphany's diverse and inclusive art programming unites community and artists alike while 'Bringing Chicago Together.'
Exhibitions
Located in Chicago's West Loop, The Epiphany Center for the Arts provides a platform for a diverse selection of artists from Chicago and beyond. Our mission is to showcase women's work, the LGBTQ+ community, artists of color, and artists with disabilities. Our top priority is to curate an inclusive program where established artists can collaborate with emerging ones. Artists exhibit in eight different galleries spread across our campus, providing visitors with the unique experience of viewing contemporary art. At the same time, they enjoy live performances, food, and all Epiphany offers.
Research:
2021 LANDMARKS ILLINOIS RICHARD H. DRIEHAUS FOUNDATION AWARD FOR ADAPTIVE REUSE
(Photo credit: MacRostie Historic Advisors LLC)
Through creative adaptive reuse, developers and husband and wife team David Chase & Kimberly Rachal turned a former 1885 Episcopal church on Chicago's West Side into an arts center for visual, performing, and culinary arts. The church was constructed in 1885, designed by architects Edward Burling and Francis Whitehouse, and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1998. Chase and Rachal adapted the former church's interior, exterior, and 1953 parish building for the purposes of the arts center and made the structures 100% ADA accessible. The space is now home to an eclectic collection of eight art galleries, three resident artist studios, Studio 4 (a space dedicated exclusively to classes, workshops, and lectures), four performing arts venues, and three event spaces.
Chase and Rachal were married at the former church in 1996. That same year, they purchased a building across the street from the church. This personal connection to the building and neighborhood inspired the couple to buy the church when it hit the market in 2017, six years after the last church services were held at the facility.
Serving Chicago's diverse population, the goal of the center is "To instill an artistic, cultural experience in all patrons who cross its threshold with the hope that each will be inspired to realize their own Epiphany." This is a forward-thinking solution to an underused religious space, which exists, as its mission states: "For the Good of Art, Entertainment, and Events."
