Expo Chicago 2023: Environmental Art, African Galleries, and Gio Swaby

Expo Chicago's tenth edition, held April 13–16, 2023, confirmed its status as the Midwest's most important art fair, attracting over 30,000 visitors. The fair featured more than 170 galleries and a robust program of dialogues, prizes, and special projects. Environmental themes were prominent, with booths like 6018North's 'Can Circularity Save Us?' using waste materials and Waterbricks. African galleries, including Ebony/Curated (Cape Town, Franschhoek) and Southern Guild (Cape Town), presented diverse works by artists such as John Newdigate, Ian Garrett, Anico Mostert, Zemba Luzamba, Kamyar Bineshtarigh, and Patrick Bongoy. Eight African galleries participated, up from two the previous year. Concurrently, the Art Institute of Chicago opened 'Gio Swaby: Fresh Up,' the artist's first solo museum show, featuring seven series from 2017–2021 plus fifteen new works, running through July 3. The fair also hosted a dialogue between Chance the Rapper and Hank Willis Thomas. Sunny weather allowed attendees to enjoy Chicago's architecture, parks, and lakefront.