by bye is a collaborative and opportunistic art practice that repurposes soon-to-be-gone spaces in Chicago into temporary sites for artistic explorations.

1.) The project views itself as a form of artistic labor; it is a production project. It aims to present artistic work, enable artistic manifestations, and open up spaces. By activating these transitional sites, by bye creates conditions for experimentation that exist outside traditional institutional frameworks.

Unlike other major capital cities in the U.S., Chicago presents unique artistic and spatial opportunities to eschew the conventional gallery model. Comparable to initiatives such as The Kitchen in New York or the HKW in Berlin, which emerged during periods of spatial availability and cultural flux, the city of Chicago finds itself in a transitional moment—between the forces of gentrification, the remnants of a vanished industrial era, and a vibrant, local art scene that continues to resist homogenization. This particular confluence creates pockets of possibility: buildings awaiting demolition or redevelopment become temporary commons, sites where artistic practice can unfold without the pressures of permanence or commercial viability.

2.) The architectural space which the project temporarily occupies is a meeting place for people—a site of convergence where residents, artists, audiences, and passersby encounter one another.

Through these prototypical interventions and exhibitions, by bye critically engages with the spatial and social conditions of these environments as well as the entanglement of art and architecture. Each iteration of the project asks: what does it mean to make work in a space marked for disappearance? How do ephemerality and precarity shape both artistic production and reception?

3.) The project is dependent on hints from the public for future locations. You can contact us via contact@bybye.net

Artists:
Noelle Africa
Tauba Auerbach
Kaya & Blank
Camille Casemier
Matthew Girson
Philipp Groth
Gordon Hall
Gary LaPointe
Makayla Lindsay
Matthew Metzger
Jonas Müller-Ahlheim
Steph Patsula
Josue Pillot
Richard Rezac
Cameron Spratley
Aleksandra Walaszek
Ruby Que
Xu Yue
Elena Ailes
Janine Antoni
Gin Bahc
Elizabeth Cote
Pia Dobrowitz
Lindsey Dorr-Niro 
Shir Ende
Max Guy
Anas Kahal
Michael Madrigali
Neiva Mulhern
Jeff Prokash
David Sprecher
Fondation Tschuess
Kezia Waters
Olivier