Mary Gehr was a highly respected painter, printmaker and book illustrator. A native Chicagoan, Gehr grew up in Ravinia. She lived and worked in Old Town for 40 years and was one of the founding artists of the Old Town Art Fair. Mary Gehr attended Smith College, then undertook a brief career in dance. She studied painting at the Art Institute of Chicago and etching at the Illinois Institute of Technology.
Gallery 1756 presents her artworks through May 22. These works include prints, intaglios and original etching plates.
Mary Gehr traveled all over the world with her sketchbooks, recording her impressions. France, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Spain, Morocco, Papua-New Guinea, Indonesia, India, Nepal, China, Tibet and Oaxaca-Mexico were among some of the places she visited.
Also, Mary Gehr is a well known illustrator of books for children—more than 30 books, one of which she wrote herself. In addition to her original sketchbooks and papers, the Newberry Library has a collection of books illustrated by Mary Gehr.
Mary Gehr's artwork is represented in several permanent collections including the Art Institute of Chicago, the Library of Congress, the Philadelphia Museum and the University of Illinois at Chicago, Special Collections Library.
Located at 1756 N. Sedgwick, Gallery 1756 is directed by Chicago architects Gunduz Dagdelen and Bruno Ast. Gallery hours are noon to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday. For more information, call (312) 642-6900. |
