Summer Exhibitions Spotlight Fabiola Jean-Louis’s Spiritual Sculptures and Blondell Cummings’s Dance Films
(IN SHORT) This summer at the Chicago Cultural Center, two free exhibitions—Fabiola Jean-Louis’s Waters of the Abyss (June 19–September 21, 2025) and Blondell Cummings: Dance as Moving Pictures (now–July 27, 2025)—highlight the work of two visionary Black artists. Jean-Louis’s installation of portal-like sculptures and gold-leafed relics probes ancestral memory and liberation, while Cummings’s retrospective features her pioneering fusion of dance, video and everyday gestures. Commissioner Clinée Hedspeth emphasizes these shows as prime examples of how DCASE champions Chicago’s diverse creative voices. Both exhibitions originated from leading institutions and extend DCASE’s goal of broadening public access to transformative art experiences. Visitors can learn more at Chicago.gov/DCASE or via @ChicagoDCASE and @ChicagoCulturalCenter.
(PRESS RELEASE) CHICAGO, 2025-Jun-13 — /Travel PR News/ — This summer, the Chicago Cultural Center will host two compelling, admission-free exhibitions celebrating Black creativity and heritage. Opening June 19, Waters of the Abyss is a solo showcase by visual activist Fabiola Jean-Louis, while Blondell Cummings: Dance as Moving Pictures offers a sweeping retrospective of the late choreographer and multimedia artist. Both exhibitions, presented by the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE), invite visitors to engage with powerful stories of identity, memory and innovation.
Waters of the Abyss transforms the Chicago Rooms into a realm of spiritual portals and relic-inspired forms. Drawing from a portfolio of over 50 works, Jean-Louis crafted more than 15 installations using paper, glass, crystals, shells and 23K gold. These sculptures and tabernacle paintings explore themes of ancestral legacy, freedom and the layered experiences of Black life. Organized originally by the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, the exhibition runs through September 21, 2025.
Blondell Cummings: Dance as Moving Pictures traces the groundbreaking career of Blondell Cummings (1944–2015), whose dance-based video art foregrounded everyday gestures and Black domestic spaces. Featuring archival photographs, interview excerpts and video clips of landmark pieces like Chicken Soup (1981), the exhibit underscores Cummings’s gift for turning ordinary movements into poetic narratives. Co-organized by Art + Practice and the Getty Research Institute, this survey remains on view until July 27, 2025.
“DCASE is honored to showcase these exhibitions,” said Commissioner Clinée Hedspeth. “Jean-Louis’s visionary sculptural worlds and Cummings’s reimagining of dance in domestic settings exemplify Chicago’s commitment to elevating diverse cultural voices.” These presentations further DCASE’s mission to amplify Chicago’s artistic landscape and honor legacies that enrich the city’s cultural tapestry.
For a complete schedule of free exhibitions and events at the Chicago Cultural Center, visit Chicago.gov/DCASE or follow @ChicagoDCASE and @ChicagoCulturalCenter on social media.
DCASE Communications
dcasepr@cityofchicago.org
SOURCE: City of Chicago
