CHICAGO, June 12 (UPI) -- Art Chicago, the international art fair, has chosen a new venue -- the 2005 edition will be in a 125,000-square-foot tent in downtown Chicago.
Thomas Blackman, the fair's owner and producer, said the location of the tent in 2005 will be announced next month, but that move returns Art Chicago to its roots when it was also held in tents in the early 1990s, the Chicago Sun-Times reported Saturday.
The change of venue was necessary because the show needed to change its date from early May to July 14 to 18 because many top collectors and dealers were involved in the expanded art-auction season at Sotheby's and Christie's in New York City.
The Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority was unable to book the necessary dates for the much-in-demand Navy Pier and McCormick Place, according to Blackman.
"We've been hamstrung by the success of those buildings," said Blackman. "It just seemed to us that it would be better to try and seek another venue that would be more flexible so that the fair could continue to be strong."
