Chicago City Wire

The Art Institute of Chicago has announced the upcoming exhibition, "Charles Gaines: Night/Crimes," which will be on display from August 9, 2025, to February 1, 2026. This exhibition highlights a series of works by Charles Gaines created between 1994 and 1997. The series combines archival photographs of violent crime scenes with images of constellations visible in the night sky at the time of the crimes. This marks the first museum exhibition of the Night/Crimes series since its initial presentation thirty years ago.

Since the 1970s, Gaines has utilized numeric systems and visual structures to explore representation. His work spans various themes, including race theory and language theory. In this exhibition, each photograph pair is accompanied by details such as the location and date of the crime and astronomical data about the constellations. The works also feature future dates that have mostly passed, prompting reflection on history's trajectory over fifty years. For this exhibit, Gaines has created two new pieces focusing on Chicago.

Grace Deveney, David C. and Sarajean Ruttenberg Associate Curator for Photography and Media at the Art Institute of Chicago said: “Viewers will be challenged to think critically about how narratives are formed based on the images we consume. By pairing images of the aftermath of violence with the night sky, the works invite a consideration of lofty topics such as justice and fate, without providing easy conclusions.” Deveney further remarked on how Gaines’ complex works encourage viewers to explore questions about chaos versus order and violence versus history.

In addition to this exhibition, there will be a performance version of Gaines’s "Manifestos 4" presented by an ensemble in Rubloff Auditorium on September 18. The event will include a conversation between Gaines and Deveney discussing this work's connection to "Night/Crimes."

The exhibition is curated by Grace Deveney.