How did art dealers react to the artists boycott of Chicago?
Many of the art dealers realized this boycott would hurt the artists more than the politicians, so they proposed to organize a series of protest exhibitions instead of the boycott. Richard Feigen set it in motion with an exhibition on the theme of Richard J. Daley. Feigen was politically conscious, and aware of how the boycott would affect the art market and the art world. Ten other Chicago galleries quickly pulled together “response shows” scheduled for the weekend before the election in early November. They were conceived as a fundraiser for the American Civil Liberties Union, in support of the legal defense of those arrested in the events surrounding the convention. These ten shows were a strong assertion of the local art community’s political commitment. There was a distinction between Feigen’s Richard J. Daley show and the “response shows.” Feigen represented many well-known American and international artists, like Jim Dine and Claes Oldenburg. Some lent existing works in their co
