CHICAGO, IL.- Artists have long made drawings in preparation for works in other media. Printmakers, painters, and sculptors might dash off casual sketches to practice technique, keep notebooks as a way to gather and organize ideas, or draft formal renderings. When detached from such dependent functions, drawing stands alone as an expressive medium and has recently been flourishing as a vital aspect of contemporary art. Still, drawing as process persists. It continues to be one of the most effective and best-loved means to brainstorm and experiment and to propose, hone, circulate, and chronicle ideas as part of a broader artistic practice.

Drawing as Process in Contemporary Art is now on view at the Smart Museum of Art through January 14, 2007. Spanning the years 1991 to 2006, the exhibition is organized as a series of case studies that offer rich opportunities for behind-the-scenes examination of the working processes of artists Mark Dion, Julia Fish, Carol Jackson, Kerry James Marshall, Richard Rezac, Erwin Wurm, and Zhang Huan. Their work encompasses a variety of approaches to drawing in relation to a range of other contemporary media: installation, painting, performance, photography, printmaking, sculpture, and video. The exhibition includes drawings intended for public and institutional consumption as well as others made as part of private studio practice, some of which have never before been exhibited.

The artists in Drawing as Process represent varied aspects of the Smart Museum’s contemporary art program. The museum has led the field in introducing such experimental Chinese artists as Zhang Huan to American audiences and will continue its strong support of contemporary Asian art in future projects. Building on core collections of work by the Chicago Imagists and H. C. Westermann, the Smart Museum exhibits and collects work by artist with significant connections to Chicago. The museum presents a range of materials by such artists not only to document their key achievements but also to illuminate their processes and the contexts within which they work.