Eleven artists find themselves thrown about by a twenty-first-century storm, distinct in its demands and challenges. Pulled to and fro, they are tasked with renegotiating how we coexist with nature and one another, contending with novel and threatening technological advancements, and reconstructing notions of gender, race, and social understanding. Sensing these changing atmospheric conditions, their varied, imaginative responses point in a multiplicity of directions and towards un-forecasted futures. Weathervanes, the first group show in Chat About's exhibition history, offers a glimpse into the evolving practices of these artists as they navigate the precarity of the current moment.
Here, they confront concepts such as memory, environment, identity, sensation, and political ideology through a variety of physical media. Scholar-written labels deepen these entanglements and tie contemporary theory to contemporary methods. Weathervanes is an exercise in humanistic expression during a time when the political forecast is constantly shifting.
Founded in 2021, Chat About pairs students in the Master of Arts Program in the Humanities and the Master of Fine Arts program in the Department of Visual Arts and provides them with resources for critique, programming, and exhibition. From February through April 2026, Chat About participants will bring the campus community into their process through workshops and lectures. We invite you to join an upcoming event and get pulled in new directions yourself; find the schedule on Instagram @chatabout.uchi.
Curators
Weathervanes is curated by Faye Yingfei Liang (MFA'26), Frances Millar (AM’26), and Emily Slavin (AM’26).
Artists
Weathervanes showcases work by Jef Biesinger (MFA’26), Xing Raffaella Chen (MFA’27), Nathan Holder (MFA’27), Hannah Michelle Ivanov (MFA’27), Nikki Kelsay (MFA’27), el n.k. lee (MFA’26), Zihan Qiu (MFA’26), Olivia Isabel Rosato (MFA’26), Kiana Shahnia (MFA’26), Bradley Verhelle (AM’27), and Siwei Simon Xu (MFA’27).
Scholars
Labels featured in Weathervanes are written by Xiyue (Scarlett) Ding, Esme Graham, Molly Hurley (AM’26), Evan DaYu Ling (AM’26), Eric Liu, Frances Millar (AM’26), Emily Slavin (AM’26), Amanda Sukenick, John Xu, Henie Chang, and Coco Zhou.
Support
CWAC Exhibitions is organized by the Department of Art History’s Visual Resources Center. Additional support provided by the Master of Arts Program in the Humanities, the Center for the Art of East Asia, and the Department of Visual Arts. Installation support, preparation, and fabrication provided by the curators and artists, Noël Da, Libby Konjoyan, and Evan Da Yu Ling. Special thanks to Carl Fuldner, Erica Warren, and the Chat About Student Advisory Committee.
Related Programming
- Opening Celebration, March 26, 2026 at 5pm
Chat About Events
- el n.k. lee & Coco Zhou, Monday, February 23 at 4 pm, Logan 801
- Nathan Holder, Molly Hurley, & Evan Ling, Friday, March 6 at 5pm, CWAC 157
- Scarlet Ding & Siwei Simon Xu, Saturday, March 28 at 6pm, CWAC 157
- Emily Slavin & Bradley Verhelle, Friday, April 3 at 4pm, Logan Center for the Arts Courtyard
- Eric Liu, Zihan Qiu, & John Xu, Saturday, April 4, at 4pm, CWAC 157
- Jef Beisinger & Frances Millar, Monday, April 6 at 6pm, CWAC 157
- Olivia Isabel Rosato & Henie Zhang, Thursday, April 9 at 5pm, Logan 801
- Esme Graham & Raffaella Chen, Saturday, April 11 at 5pm, Logan 017
- Nikki Kelsay & Amanda Sukenick, Friday, April 17 at 6pm, CWAC 157
Accessibility
CWAC Exhibitions is committed to accessibility for all our exhibitions. However, the second floor of the Cochrane-Woods Art Center is accessible only by stairs. To request an accommodation or alternative format, please email visualresources@uchicago.edu.
Image
Detail from Nathan Holder, im baby, 2026.