Marilyn Monroe Invades Chicago Cultural Center

It's a good season for Marilyn Monroe in Chicago. At 82 she'll be the toast of Chicago culture into September.

The tragic 50's movie-glamour queen. presidential paramour and cultural touchstone - she died just about 46 years ago - is being re-viewed, re-considered, and re-lit through an impressive series of programs offered through the Chicago Cultural Center.

Opening Saturday

Opening Saturday is a touring exhibtion that was hatched from a major collector's stash in Chicago Sister City Hamburg, Germany: "Life as a Legend: Marilyn Monroe." It is the centerpiece of the celebration. Featuring the work of over 80 artists, it tracks the rise of her fame through some 300 objects ranging in styles from fashion photography to Pop Art. The line up of artists is impressive: Andy Warhol, Allen Jones, Peter Blake, Richard Avedon, Bert Stern, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Mel Ramos, and a regiment of other well-and-lesser-known artists and photographers.

Cultural Center officials allow that this is a "higher visibility show" than most, and are hoping for sume buzz. Deputy Commissioner for Visual Arts Gregory Knight says he likes that "This show brings a European perspective to an American iconic figure and it shows that Marilyn is not just an American phenomenon. Marilyn is like Princess Di, forever young and beautiful, frozen in a time in our culture."

From Norma Jeane to Andy’s Queen

According to city Media Relations Manager Christine Carrino, the exhibition traces Marilyn's "transformation through Bernard of Hollywood's photographs of the 19-year-old Norma Jeane Baker before her Hollywood career began, Tom Kelley's renowned 'Red Velvet Pose' for Playboy, Douglas Kirkland's sensuous bed sheet photographs, and Bert Stern's poignant 'The Last Sitting.' The exhibition also depicts recognizable moments in Monroe's film career, such as the famous subway grate scene with Thomas Ewell in 'The Seven Year Itch' by Sam Shaw, as well as the pensive behind-the-scenes shots of the 'Misfits' by Ernst Haas. Even beyond their documentary and artistic value, these photographs have become more representative of the present image of Marilyn Monroe than her films."

Besides photographs, the exhibit presents familiar interpretations of Marilyn in other arts. These images, especially the famous one by Andy Warhol, demonstrate how art can perpetuate and enlarge myths - and turn an icon into a brand name.

Madonna’s Mother?

"I am curious to see how younger viewers respond to this show," says Knight. "I wonder if she is less well known to younger people who may be much more familiar with women who have modeled themselves on Marilyn. People like Madonna and Anna Nicole Smith."

Related Monroe events, most of them free, include a series of lectures on Marilyn's - as well as the exhibition's -importance and meanings, a slide show on the exhibition, two screenings of "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" and a Marilyn cabaret night at Maxims.

Organized by Artoma in Hamburg, Germany, and circulated by International Arts & Artists, "Life as a Legend: Marilyn Monroe" show has been seen in six European and one Muslim city (Istanbul) before arriving on Michigan Av.

For hardcore fans, collectors and even the rest of us, the show offers a 144-page hardcover catalog. Docent-led private tours are offered to groups of 10-20 people, based on availability. Tours are free but reservations are required and must be made at least one week in advance. (312-744-6630).

"Some Like It Hot"

The cabaret night, "Some Like It Hot - A Tribute to Marilyn Monroe" will turn the Maxim's de Paris into a "mini Marilyn Museum" of personal effects, clothing, letters, original movie posters and more. Actress/singer KT McHammond will host a 7 p.m. reception as Marilyn and later McHammond and singer Elizabeth Doyle and pianist Bob Moreen will tackle many of Marilyn' signature tunes: "Diamond's Are a Girl's Best Friend," "I Want To Be Loved By You," "Old Black Magic," " Just Two Little Girls From Little Rock," and others. The program is Presented by the Department of Cultural Affairs in collaboration with ChicaGourmets.Tickets are $45 and include refreshments. Maxim's is at 24 E. Goethe St.

Exhibition-related lectures and a screening, all free, go on well into August at the Cultural Center:

Thursday, July 17, 5 p.m. Exhibition curator Alexander Sairally will discuss this traveling exhibition in Exhibit Hall and Yates Gallery.

Sunday, July 20, 12:15 p.m. Slide lecture: Exhibition curator Alexander Sairally will discuss this exhibition and its larger curatorial concepts. Exhibit Hall.

Saturday, July 26, 2 p.m. "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" Cassidy Theater

Thursday, July 31, 12:15 p.m.
Gregory Knight, Deputy Commissioner, Visual Art, Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs, will discuss the exhibition in Exhibit Hall and Yates Gallery

Saturday, August 2, 2 p.m. "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" Cassidy Theater

Thursday, August 21, 12:15 p.m. Sofia Zutautas, Assistant Curator of Exhibitions, Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs, will discuss this exhibition. Exhibit Hall.

And in conjunction with all this, Project Onward will present "Goodbye Norma Jeans: Project Onward Remembers Marilyn Monroe," a series of paintings and drawings depicting the iconic celebrity. George Zuniga, Blake Lenoir, Kathleen Buchek, and others offer their own interpretations of Monroe's life and times. Project Onward is the Department of Cultural Affair's studio program for artists with special needs. The program supplies workspace, art materials, and professional guidance to over 30 adult artists living with developmental and mental disabilities.

Exhibition Hours

"Life as a Legend: Marilyn Monroe" will be on display July 19 to September 21 in the Exhibit Hall/Yates Gallery at the Chicago Cultural Center, 77 E. Randolph St. Viewing hours for it and other exhibitions are Mondays through Thursdays, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Fridays, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Saturdays 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sundays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Closed on holidays. Admission to exhibitions is free. For more info on "Life as a Legend: Marilyn Monroe" and Chicago Cultural Center exhibitions, the public can call 312.744.6630 or visit www.chicagoculturalcenter.org