ROMAN SUSAN ART FOUNDATION is an artist-run nonprofit based in the Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. Roman Susan develops and supports new locally-focused opportunities to create, display, and experience contemporary art. The organization is named after the founder’s grandparents, Roman and Susan Lewandowski.
Roman Susan maintains year-round programming: 1224 W Loyola Ave is a storefront project space for exhibitions and events; ANNEX develops projects in collaboration with local nonprofits in the fields of contemporary art, public services, and education; Navigations are a series of artist-led projects shared and realized in public/common space; and Community-Hosted Collections are exploratory art collections created in order to place contemporary works of art in the homes of local residents. In addition, Roman Susan is a grateful partner of Performance Response Journal, an independent artist-run project. Please join our newsletter for programming updates.
Roman Susan accepts artist proposals year-round. Roman Susan has been organized and run with significant help from family, friends, neighborhood volunteers, and participating artists. In 2016, Roman Susan incorporated as a nonprofit organization, receiving 501(c)3 tax-exempt status as a public charity. Roman Susan Art Foundation NFP will continue to operate as an artist-run organization. The directors for the organization in 2022 are Joanna Furnans, Joelle Mercedes, Juan Molina Hernández, José Santiago Pérez, and Tracy Taylor. Ruth Hodgins, Siobhan Leonard, Angela Lopez, Madhuri Shukla, Polly Yates, and Gwyneth Zeleny Anderson are past directors. Kristin Abhalter is the founder and the Executive Director of Roman Susan. Nathan Smith is the Managing Director. Public feedback guides our ongoing work.
Roman Susan maintains year-round programming: 1224 W Loyola Ave is a storefront project space for exhibitions and events; ANNEX develops projects in collaboration with local nonprofits in the fields of contemporary art, public services, and education; Navigations are a series of artist-led projects shared and realized in public/common space; and Community-Hosted Collections are exploratory art collections created in order to place contemporary works of art in the homes of local residents. In addition, Roman Susan is a grateful partner of Performance Response Journal, an independent artist-run project. Please join our newsletter for programming updates.
Roman Susan accepts artist proposals year-round. Roman Susan has been organized and run with significant help from family, friends, neighborhood volunteers, and participating artists. In 2016, Roman Susan incorporated as a nonprofit organization, receiving 501(c)3 tax-exempt status as a public charity. Roman Susan Art Foundation NFP will continue to operate as an artist-run organization. The directors for the organization in 2022 are Joanna Furnans, Joelle Mercedes, Juan Molina Hernández, José Santiago Pérez, and Tracy Taylor. Ruth Hodgins, Siobhan Leonard, Angela Lopez, Madhuri Shukla, Polly Yates, and Gwyneth Zeleny Anderson are past directors. Kristin Abhalter is the founder and the Executive Director of Roman Susan. Nathan Smith is the Managing Director. Public feedback guides our ongoing work.
1224 W Loyola Ave has three descending stairs to a recessed floor; regrettably, the interior of the exhibition space is not wheelchair accessible. The public washroom is a very confined space, up two stairs from the exhibition floor. If these factors or others present a barrier for your visit, please write to art@romansusan.org or leave a voicemail at (773) 270-1224 in advance for alternate arrangements. Roman Susan at 1224 W Loyola Ave is located 85 meters northwest of the Loyola CTA Station, with direct access for public transit via the Red Line train and the 147 bus line. A Divvy bike-share hub is located at the west exit of the CTA. There is on-street parking on W Loyola Ave, and a paid parking garage at 1210 W Arthur Ave immediately to the south. For all projects at 1224 W Loyola Ave, open hours are scheduled in advanced, and available at other times by appointment. All projects are visible from the sidewalk immediately outside the space 24/7.
In recent years it has become a trend to acknowledge traditional homelands of the indigenous peoples of a particular area through a land acknowledgment. This type of activity is designed to bring more awareness and understanding of the history of indigenous peoples and their territories. But a land acknowledgment should also be more than that; it should be a call to rethink one’s own relationship with the environment and the histories of all peoples. In partnership, the American Indian Center and Roman Susan Art Foundation have crafted the following land acknowledgment to help all rethink their relationships with the city, the land and the environment. This acknowledgment demonstrates a commitment to beginning the process of working to dismantle the ongoing legacies of settler colonialism.
Roman Susan at 1224 W Loyola Ave is open through sponsorship and support by Chrystal + Bob Abhalter, Kristin + Nathan Abhalter Smith, Ivy + Ali Abid, Alejandro Acierto, Clara Alcott, Randy Alexander + Susan Wexler, Joni Kat Anderson, Oscar Arriola, Adam Baker, Cynthia Bargar, Lynn Basa, Rebecca Beachy, Michael Blissett, Dan Boyd + Makiko Yamauchi, Lauren Brescia, Judith Brotman, Gabriel Chalfin-Piney, Salome Chasnoff, Laura Christman, Deirdre Colgan Jones, Kelli Connell, Paté Conway, Poppy Deltadawn, Meg Duguid, Maria Dunaevsky, Taylor Ervin, Chad Eschman, Paul Escriva, Esther Espino, Carolina Fernandez Del Dago, Noah Firestone, Peter Fleps, Joanna Furnans + Christine Wallers, Jason House, kg, Samantha Garcia, Amber Ginsburg, Ronen Goldstein, Becky Grajeda, Yhelena + Michael Hall, Erin Hayden + Jeff Robinson, Lorna + Curtis Henderson, Ruth Hodgins + Kit Rosenberg, Ben Hodous, Michelle Hooper, Josh Ippel, Olivia Junell, Kevin Kaempf, Colleen Keihm, Mel Keiser + Matt Martin, Millicent Kennedy, J. Kent + Andrew Bearnot, Vanessa Joy King, Brian Kirkbride, Thomas Kong, Mie Kongo, John-Michael Korpal, Davi Lakind, Elaine Lemieux, Patrick Lentz, Siobhan Leonard, Leah Levine, Emily Lindskoog, Angela Lopez, Alma + Marion Lucius, Elaine Luther, Erin Lynch, Kera MacKenzie + Andrew Mausert-Mooney, Susan Maller, John Marks + Crystal Myslajek, Yvette Mayorga, Barbara McDaniel, Lise McKean, Joelle Mercedes, Yunhee Min, Ruxandra Mitache, Nora Moore Lloyd, Sheree Moratto, Kalina Morrigan, Craig Neeson, Lara Oppenheimer, Melissa Oresky, Jason Pickleman, Colleen Plumb, Michael Pollard, Diane Ponder, John Preus, Erika Råberg, Austin Reilly, Adam Rogers, Michael Rogers, Nancy Lu Rosenheim, Amina Ross, Emma Rozanski, Vida Sačić, Jose Santiago Perez, Julie Schauer, Roberta Schmatz, Daniel Seara, Levi Sherman, Madhuri Shukla, Jean + Vic Smith, Elena Solomon, Natalie + Nate Solomon, Samuel Sotelo, Kevin Stuart, Lauren Sudbrink, Ruby T, Aurora Tabar, Maryam Taghavi, Savneet Talwar, Noah Taylor, Tracy Marie Taylor, Chiffon Thomas, Ryan Thompson, Will Thompson, Karen Townsend, Phong Tran, A.P. Vague, Tricia Van Eck, Betsy + Bill Vandercook, Zachary Vanes, Kaitlin Very, Lisa Vinebaum, David Vosburg, Allison Wade, Maura Walsh, Hope Wang, Jenyu Wang, Liz Weinstein, Leila Wilson, Emily Wood, Yaloo, Andrew Yang + Christa Donner, Polly Yates, Megan Young, Sara Zalek, Gwyneth Zeleny Anderson, Mary Zerkel, and other supporters.
Roman Susan Art Foundation NFP is a 501(c)3 tax-exempt public charity supported in part by grants from the Illinois Arts Council Agency through awards from the National Endowment for the Arts, CityArts and Foster Innovation grants from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events, Gen Ops Plus grants from The Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, The Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, Hyde Park Art Center Artists Run Chicago Fund, The Reva and David Logan Foundation, The MacArthur Funds for Culture, Equity, and the Arts at the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, 6018North, AD3 Innovation Bootcamp, An Sylvia Exhibitions, Foundation Source, Lucky Pierre, and Story Luck, as well as vital in-kind support from Archie’s Cafe, Cargo Collective, Lawyers for the Creative Arts, and Sloane Communications.
If you have the means to do so, please consider supporting our work by visiting romansusan.org/support.