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| Sculptor Richard Hunt proudly holds his award for being "a famous Chicago artist." BlackArtistNews photo. All rights reserved. |
BlackArtistNews | October 27, 2011
On October 25, 2011 BlackArtistNews was on hand as Michelle Boone, Commissioner for the City of Chicago's Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events presented renowned sculptor Richard Hunt with the Ruth Horwich Award to a Famous Chicago Artist.
On October 25, 2011 BlackArtistNews was on hand as Michelle Boone, Commissioner for the City of Chicago's Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events presented renowned sculptor Richard Hunt with the Ruth Horwich Award to a Famous Chicago Artist.
Before accepting the award, Mr. Hunt took a moment to embrace Ms. Horwich who was seated in the front row.
He held the award high in the air as he stood at the podium. “This is tremendous, this is not some crystal or anything like that but a real sculpture by one of my favorite sculptors, this is wonderful,” he said referring to the award and its creator Terry Karpowicz.
“There’s a tradition in Chicago of great things,” he continued. “And I’m glad to be placed by Michelle Boone among these people and I’m going to put this right by my bed. I just love it. Thank you.”
The audience stood and applauded.
Thomas McCormick owner of the Thomas McCormick Gallery stepped to the mic and announced a show of Hunt’s work scheduled to open at the gallery in September 2012.
McCormick then segued into a Q&A session with the artist about his work process and keeping his practice in Chicago. “Did you ever think that there’s kind of an outsider panache to not being in New York?” he asked.
“I didn’t think of it that way, but if you want to think of it that way,” Hunt chuckled. The audience laughed.
Another lighthearted moment occurred when McCormick queried, “Do you ever go back to public sculptures you’ve done and see them say ten years later and say ‘I wanna change that’?”
Mr. Hunt responded, “Um, yeah, but I don’t.”
When the laughter subsided he added, “You can always – if you have the time and the opportunity – make something better but in real life you sort of leave a lot of things as they are.”
When the conversation was finished Mr. Hunt made a beeline to chat with Karpowicz before mingling with the rest of the attendees.
Among those present were art collector Daniel Parker, artist Joyce Owens with her husband Monroe Anderson, Chair of the Hyde Park Art Center Janis Kanter and the artist’s daughter Cecilia Hunt.
The event was held in conjunction with Chicago Artists Month and hosted by the Cliff Dwellers, a private club for people engaged and interested in art of which Mr. Hunt is an honorary member.
For the past three years, the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events has presented the Ruth Horwich Award to a Famous Chicago Artist in recognition of Chicago Artists Month. Ruth Horwich, for whom the award is named, is an iconic supporter of art and artists in Chicago. She was founding member of the Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA), served on the 20th century painting and sculpture acquisitions committee at The Art Institute of Chicago, and served as chairman for thirty years at the Hyde Park Art Center where she is currently an honorary chair. The Ruth Horwich Award to a Famous Chicago Artist references a 1969 show at the MCA curated by Horwich’s friend and colleague Don Baum called “Don Baum Sez ‘Chicago Needs Famous Artists.’” The award was created by sculptor Terrence Karpowicz.
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