Wright Auction

“I discovered art on my own at a very young age. Obviously, I’ve always loved the great architecture here, but I have especially always loved the intimacy of Chicago neighborhoods and its side-street bungalows. No other major American city can claim those. Artistically, I was immediately drawn to the Chicago Imagists and the Hairy Who?, with artists like Art Green, Gladys Nilsson, Jim Nutt, Suellen Rocca, Karl Wirsum, and Ray Yoshida playing a pivotal role. Ed Paschke was a major influence as well. I remember calling him personally at the age of eighteen to try to get an internship with him—I was willing to sweep his floors and do whatever it took to be close to his artistic energy. Obviously, I'm now surrounded by my contemporaries here in Chicago, and some who have left, like Dawoud Bey, Bernard Williams, Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle, Laura Mosquera, Rashid Johnson, Angel Otero, Robert Davis, Michael Langlois, and Theaster Gates. We are friends and very much supportive of each other. It's inspiring.”

—from the Artspace Q&A with Dzine (Carlos Rolón)