CHICAGO, IL.- Chicago Loop Alliance and Chicago Artists’ Coalition will transform the Loop into an interactive, multi-venue public art exhibition with the inaugural Art Loop Open, October 15 – 29, 2010, and Chicagoland’s diverse and talented visual artists are encouraged to participate!

Art Loop Open will not only offer the potential for artists to win cash prizes totaling more than $50,000 but also the valuable opportunity to reach new and coveted audiences. Work will be seen and voted on by potentially 500,000 daily visitors to the Loop, presented in such high profile venues as Macy’s, theWit Hotel, Palmer House, The Hard Rock Hotel, Block 37, Merchandise Mart, Cadillac Palace, Oriental Theatre, and more.

To ensure the highest quality of artwork on display for public voting, all submissions will be vetted by an expert jury which includes Mary Jane Jacob (School of the Art Institute, author and curator), Tricia Van Eck (Associate Curator, Museum of Contemporary Art), Theaster Gates (Director of Arts Development, University of Chicago), and Susan Aurinko (independent curator and former Director, Flatfile Galleries). A curatorial team, led by Shannon Stratton (Founder, three walls Gallery), will curate the selected works into the venues.

“The Chicago Artists’ Coalition and the Chicago Loop Alliance, partners in Art Loop Open, are thrilled to have the opportunity to create an event that empowers this city’s artists. Art Loop Open is designed to give every participating artist various tools to enhance their career, including evaluation by a renowned jury; technological marketing capabilities through the web site and voter experience; public programs; new audience cultivation; art sales and of course the chance to win prizes!,” said Carolina O. Jayaram, Executive Director, Chicago Artists’ Coalition.

Artists are invited to submit their application through August 31, 2010; for more information, including qualifications, entry process and fee structure, please visit ArtLoopOpen.com.

The public will be invited to “Visit, View and Vote!” at a dozen downtown venues and not only admire local artists’ works but also interact with them and each other via cutting-edge technology and public programming, between October 15-29. During the week of October 15-21, visitors to the Loop will be encouraged to vote on their favorite selections utilizing state-of-the-art social media tools designed by the IIT Institute of Design. Then, from October 22-28, the top ten vote-getters will compete in a week-long final round of voting. Three winners, as chosen by the public, will be announced at an awards ceremony, Friday, October 29.

“We’re proud that Art Loop Open will serve as the marquee event of the 14th Annual Chicago Artists’ Month - October 2010- and also takes place concurrent with the final month of CLA’s Art Loop 2010 initiative, the EYE and CARDINAL public art installation by artist Tony Tasset,” added Ty Tabing, Executive Director, Chicago Loop Alliance. “Art Loop Open also complements CLA’s current Pop-Up Art Loop™ initiative which has transformed empty storefronts in the Loop into a moveable feast of public art galleries, exhibits and studios.”