Artist Statement
William Dolan explores the relationship of society to the urban realm through an interpretation of the built environment. Focusing on ignored, outdated and well-worn bits of the city; the infrastructure that is left behind, as people reshape their surroundings to support an increasingly homogeneous existence.
These often-overlooked places are reflective of those that create and use them. Some of it will survive as an indication of what happened around the turn of the 21st. Century. Much of it will disappear. It is this simultaneous ambivalence and reverence that people have toward their habitat that Dolan expresses through his work.
The American city is ever-changing. As cultures continue to be economically and socially mobile, they are also physically on the move; one group leaves, another takes it’s place. Possibly, the constantly changing city is the most visible evidence of a society’s evolution.
Purpose
I hope that my work inspires people to experience and appreciate some of the more overlooked parts of the place where they live. By having a deeper more meaningful connection to their home, they are inspired, enriched and in turn become more productive and enjoy fuller lives.
Selected Solo and Two-Person Exhibitions
- 2020
- Chicago Streets and Ways, two person exhibition with Karen Perl, Hofheimer Gallery, Chicago
- 2015
- Alley Walk: A Trip Through Chicago’s Other Street Grid, AdventureLand Works on Paper, Chicago
- 2009
- Street Walk, Beverly Arts Center, Chicago
- 2008
- Art Chicago
- 2007
- Art Chicago
- 2006
- DePaul University, Chicago
- 2000
- Chicago Public Library
- 1989
- Morton College, Cicero, IL
Selected Group Exhibitions
- 2017
- Sense of Place, Curators: Frank Tumino, Curatorial Chair of the Elmhurst Artists’ Guild; Carrie Secrist, owner of Carrie Secrist Gallery in Chicago; and Jenny Gibbs, Executive Director at Elmhurst Art Museum, Elmhurst Art Museum, Elmhurst, IL
- 2016
- Heavy Metal, Berkeley Art Works, Martinsburg, WV
- 39th Harper College National Exhibition: Small Works 2016, Julie Rodrigues Widholm, Director of DePaul Art Museum, curator, Harper College, Palatine, IL
- Landscape: A Sense of Place, Site:Brooklyn, , New York
- 2003
- Morgan Park Art Center, Chicago
- 2002
- Under Contract: Artists Look at Chicago Real Estate, Steppenwolf Theatre, Chicago
- 2000
- Gallery artist, Raw Art Gallery, Chicago
- 1999
- Rogers Park Artists (shown in conjunction with David Mamet’s The Old Neighborhood), North Shore Center for the Performing Arts, Skokie, IL
- Gallery artist, Raw Art Gallery, Chicago
- 1996
1995 - Gallery Artist, Gallicurcci Original Works, Evanston, IL
- 1993
- World Tattoo Gallery, Chicago
- 1992
- The Center for Visual and Performing Arts, Munster, Indiana
- 1990
- Evanston Art Center, Evanston, IL
- 1989
- Akrasia Gallery, Chicago
- Artbenches, public art installation, Navy Pier, Chicago
- 1988
- Modern Love, , ARC Gallery, Chicago
Catalogues
- Small Works: 39th Harper College National Exhibition, exhibition catalogue, Harper College, 2016
- Alley Walk: A Trip Through Chicago’s Other Street Grid, exhibition catalogue, AdventureLand Works on Paper 2015
- Alley Studies 3: A Final Trip Through Chicago’s Other Street Grid, Neoteric Art 2014
- Alley Studies 2: Another Trip Through Chicago’s Other Street Grid, Neoteric Art 2013
- Alley Studies: A Trip Through Chicago’s Other Street Grid, Neoteric Art 2012
Writing
- Co-founder and contributor to NeotericArt.
Articles and Interviews
- Memory and Meaning: William Dolan and Karen Perl in “Chicago Streets and Ways,” , , New Art Examiner, April 12, 2020
- Memory and Meaning: William Dolan and Karen Perl in “Chicago Streets and Ways,” , , Medium, March 15, 2020
- Ghost Hunters, Eager to Know podcast, February 24, 2020
- Check out William Dolan’s Artwork, VoyageChicago, June 5, 2018
- 5 Questions: William Dolan, Esthetic Lens, October 30, 2017
- Modest Beauty: William Dolan’s Alley Drawings, Esthetic Lens, October 22, 2017
- Bob Sirott and Marianne Murciano Show (with Tony Fitzpatrick), WGN Radio, May 18, 2015
- William Dolan’s Art Captures Hidden Beauty Found Only in Chicago Alleys, DNAinfo, May 4, 2015 ,
- Artist William Dolan Captures the Essence of Chicago’s Alleys, Chicago Sun-Times, May 1, 2015 ,
- Alley Studies e o olhar de William Dolan – Periferia é periferia em qualquer lugar, Soul Art, July 22, 2013 (English Google translation) ,
- Drawings by William Dolan, Design Stories, July 11, 2013
- Drawings by William Dolan, Faith is Torment | Art and Design Blog, July 8, 2013 ,
- Three For the Show, Chicago Sun-Times, April 25, 2008 ,
- L’Art S’Eclate À Chicago, L’Éxpress, 3 Juin 1993 ,
- Exhibit Displays Variety, Gary Post-Tribune, June 12, 1992 ,
Artist Talks
- Artist Talk with William Dolan and Karen Perl, Hofheimer Gallery, Chicago 2020
- Alley Talk: A Discussion About the Drawings at Alley Walk, AdventureLand Works on Paper, Chicago 2015
- Dinner on DePaul:The Arts and Design, DePaul University, 2011
Award
- 46th Annual Grammy Nomination for Best Recording Package, The Road to Bliss, Cathy Richardson Band
Education
- 1984 BA Studio Art, DePaul University
- 1986 Smith Post-BA Scholarship, School of the Art Institute of Chicago
Other
- Studio assistant for William Conger