The COMP Magazine Vincent Uribe - Sugar Talk & Winter Chat

Serving as a central hub for sharing new innovative work by a diverse roster of artists, LVL3 Gallery continues to offer challenging exhibitions and an intoxicating media presence. Directed by Vincent Uribe, The COMP Magazine recently visited the Wicker Park space to discuss the longevity of LVL3, what shows stick out under his direction, what are the challenges in running an independent gallery, and his curatorial philosophy.

LVL3, Sugar Talk (exhibition view), Chicago, IL, 2016
artists: Jaime Angelopoulos, Benjamin Barretto, Robert Chase Heishman, Morgan Mandalay, and Adam Parker Smith

You’ve been running LVL3 Gallery in Wicker Park since 2010. This is rather remarkable in an age where the average shelf life for an independent gallery tends to air closer to only a couple of seasons. What has been the staying power for LVL3?

Chicago has been a really remarkable place to grow into adulthood and be the place I’ve learned about art the most. I’ve found the atmosphere here in Chicago to be super supportive and inspiring, seeing so much talent come and go year after year. There’s always change happening, and it’s not pretensions or fake.

LVL3, we no longer see it (exhibition announcement), Chicago, IL, 2016
artists: Dan Rizzo-Orr and Ginevra Shay

Do you have a specific curatorial philosophy that underlines the exhibitions and projects at LVL3? Has this evolved throughout your tenure running the gallery?

I think the main thing we aim at promoting is new connections between creatives from around the world. The aim has always been supporting diversity and giving opportunities for exploration on all levels.

LVL3, Sugar Talk (exhibition view), Chicago, IL, 2016
artists: Jaime Angelopoulos, Benjamin Barretto, Robert Chase Heishman, Morgan Mandalay, and Adam Parker Smith

During the tenure of LVL3, are there any specific exhibitions for which you hold a fondness?

Because we are always working with a new group of artist, every show has its special moments. The ones that hold the most fondness would be the ones where we’re working late into the night on an install and all the artist are present collaborating collectively with us on the install usually over pizza and beer.

Idyll (Angelina Lucero and Jojo Yang) played LVL3’s 6th anniversary party, Chicago, IL, 2016

What are some of the ongoing challenges in maintaining a successful independent gallery?

Figuring out when to take the next big plunge into a new opportunity. There seems to be a real need to do multiple art fairs a year but financing these opportunities in order to push an artist career forward is always a big hurdle. Thank god for credit cards.

LVL3, Sugar Talk (exhibition view), Chicago, IL, 2016
artists: Jaime Angelopoulos, Benjamin Barretto, Robert Chase Heishman, Morgan Mandalay, and Adam Parker Smith

Do you see any recurring aesthetic interests or practices in the artists you have worked with?

I’m sure looking through our history of exhibitions anyone might be able to find similarities between shows and aesthetics in the work. Naturally as artists I think we are commonly drawn to work we can relate our own creative practice to, but we do not have any set medium that we restrict our shows to.

LVL3, Sugar Talk (exhibition announcement), Chicago, IL, 2016
artists: Jaime Angelopoulos, Benjamin Barretto, Robert Chase Heishman, Morgan Mandalay, and Adam Parker Smith

Your “Artist of the Week” series is a curious way to highlight the pulse of contemporary art investigations. Can you share with us the process you employ in selecting these artists?

The Artist of the Week series is our way of doing “studio visits” on a weekly basis that we otherwise wouldn’t have the time to travel and arrange for so regularly. It requires hours or scouring the internet on artist website, visiting exhibitions, and fairs researching and keeping track of hundreds of names we might find interesting. Since we don’t represent any artist full time as an artist-run space, these interviews become the foundation of where our exhibitions stem from.