The Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events has announced a free fall and winter season at the Chicago Cultural Center. It includes three new exhibitions, a quilt series by Dorothy I. Burge honoring Black veteran freedom fighters, and a film series tied to the city’s “Creative Worker Rights: Art is Labor” initiative. Programming runs through early 2027.
Key Takeaways
- Admission to all Chicago Cultural Center exhibitions and DCASE programming this season is free and open to the public.
- Dorothy I. Burge’s quilt series Freedom Fighters opens October 2 in the historic Grand Army of the Republic Hall and runs through October 3, 2027.
- To Be Remembered: Woven Matters of the Heart presents five contemporary textile artists in the Chicago Rooms through February 28, 2027.
- The Claudia Cassidy Theater Film Club opens its “Art is Labor” screenings on September 30 with Julio Torres’ Problemista.
- DCASE staff will host monthly Consult DCASE sessions on October 14, November 12 and December 9, offering artists access to city resources and industry feedback.
DCASE Frames The Season Around Artists As Workers
Arts institutions usually build a season around exhibitions and performances. The Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events has built this one around the people who make the work. The fall and winter lineup at the Chicago Cultural Center, 78 E. Washington St., mixes gallery shows with pitching workshops, industry conversations and staff consultations. Taken together, the programming treats artistic practice as a profession with its own labor concerns.
DCASE Commissioner Kenya K. Merritt said the department is “investing in artists and creative workers” this season while activating the historic building with visual art, film, music and hands-on programming. The emphasis matches the city’s “Creative Worker Rights: Art is Labor” initiative, which runs through the season’s film programming. The Chicago Transit Authority and Millennium Garages sponsor the Cultural Center programming, which helps keep it free.
Dorothy I. Burge Brings Freedom Fighters To The GAR Hall
The Grand Army of the Republic Hall, originally a memorial to Civil War veterans, hosts the season’s most site-specific exhibition. Chicago artist and activist Dorothy I. Burge presents Freedom Fighters, a new series of quilts honoring Black veterans whose struggles extended beyond military service. The series begins with Harriet Tubman and extends to the Fort Hood 43, a group of Black soldiers connected to the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
Through textiles and portraiture, Dorothy I. Burge links military service to abolition and civil rights history. Placing the work in the GAR Hall creates a direct conversation between the room’s original purpose and the stories the quilts tell. For Chicago audiences, the series also brings a local chapter of that history back into a downtown public building.
To Be Remembered Explores Memory Through Five Textile Practices
On the second floor, To Be Remembered: Woven Matters of the Heart presents work by ebere agwuncha, Nnaemeka Ekwelum, Hale Ekinci, Josué Esaú and Thương Hoài Trần. Each artist uses fiber to trace time, memory and cultural inheritance. Through layered designs, research and handwork, the exhibition examines how personal and family histories are preserved and passed forward.
The exhibition’s public programs extend that idea into hands-on learning. On October 3, ebere agwuncha gives a visual lecture on the sculptural portals made for the show, drawing on family archives, oral histories of the artist’s parents’ move from Nigeria to Chicago in the 1980s, and traditional Igbo craft. Hale Ekinci leads a workshop on oya, traditional Turkish lace edging, on November 6, and an embroidery workshop on November 21. Thương Hoài Trần hosts two accessible weaving sessions on December 5 and December 11, using cardboard and secondhand yarn to remove cost barriers for beginners.
The Art Is Labor Film Club Pairs Screenings With Industry Talkbacks
The Claudia Cassidy Theater Film Club anchors the season’s labor theme. The series opens September 30 with Problemista, Julio Torres’ surreal story of an aspiring toy designer navigating an overwhelming bureaucracy. A talkback follows with Stephanie Manriquez of Lumpen Radio and Jorge Valdivia of the Chicago Latino Theater Alliance.
Later screenings include Boots Riley’s I Love Boosters on October 21, Showing Up on November 18 and Mike Birbiglia’s Don’t Think Twice on December 16. Each is paired with a discussion featuring advocates for creative worker rights. On November 6, Kathy Byrne of SAG-AFTRA and director George Ellzey will discuss the current film and television industry from both creative and professional perspectives.
Professional Programs Give Chicago Creatives Direct Access To The City
Several events serve as practical career resources rather than traditional arts programming. Four-time Emmy-nominated producer Deniese Davis leads a pitching master class on October 2 through Cinema/Chicago’s free Chicago Industry Exchange. On October 18, Industry Days: The Pitch, part of the Chicago International Film Festival, lets Chicago and Midwest filmmakers pitch narrative feature projects to a live audience and panel of judges.
The monthly Consult DCASE sessions rotate department teams by topic. The Chicago Film Office and Creative Worker Rights teams attend in October, Public Art and Exhibitions in November, and Cultural Grants and Programming in December. Creative Hour, a networking salon curated by Alexie Young of Art West LLC, follows each consultation in the Learning Lab.
Under The Dome And City Civics Day Round Out The Calendar
On October 22, Preston Bradley Hall hosts Under the Dome, an all-ages evening featuring two Chicago musical artists alongside a clothing swap with Chicago Fair Trade and Conscious Closet Club. On November 14, the Department of Planning and Development and DCASE host the fourth annual City Civics Day, a free, day-long gathering connecting residents with civic organizations and city officials.
Other exhibitions on view include Creative Rebellion on the fourth floor, part of the 2026 Veteran Art Triennial, and the ongoing Great Ideas of Humanity with the Design Museum of Chicago. Together, the season positions the Chicago Cultural Center as both a gallery and a working resource for the city’s creative community.
FAQs
Is The Chicago Cultural Center Free To Visit?
Yes. Admission to all exhibitions and DCASE programming at the Chicago Cultural Center is free and open to the public.
When Does Dorothy I. Burge’s Freedom Fighters Exhibition Open?
Freedom Fighters opens October 2, 2026, in the Grand Army of the Republic Hall at the Chicago Cultural Center and remains on view through October 3, 2027.
What Is The Chicago Art Is Labor Initiative?
“Creative Worker Rights: Art is Labor” is a City of Chicago initiative focused on the working conditions of creative professionals. At the Cultural Center, it shapes a film series with talkbacks on creative careers.
Where Is The Chicago Cultural Center Located?
The Chicago Cultural Center is located at 78 E. Washington St. in the Loop, across from Millennium Park.
How Can Chicago Artists Meet With DCASE Staff?
Artists can attend Consult DCASE sessions on October 14, November 12 and December 9 from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. for access to city resources and feedback on creative projects.
