Life Cycles is curated by Ionit Behar, Ph.D., Associate Curator, with contributions by David Maruzzella, Ph.D., Collection and Exhibition Manager, and DePaul University Students Spencer Bolding, Chiara Conner, Charlie Delgado, Zoe Hamilton, Ellie Naughton, Eli Schmitt, and Bernardo Soares and organized by DePaul Art Museum as part of the ongoing Learning Studio initiative.
Ionit Behar, Curator
Ionit Behar is a Curator at DePaul Art Museum (DPAM), Chicago, and the co-founder and co-director of BeharXSchachman, a Chicago based curatorial and exhibition design agency. Most recently she curated the site-specific installation Claudia Peña Salinas: Quetzalli and co-curated LatinXAmerican at DPAM; Fuera de tiempo at SUBTE (Montevideo, UY); and Ellen Rothenberg: ISO 6346: ineluctable immigrant at Spertus Institute. Forthcoming curatorial projects include Nelly Agassi: No Limestone, Nor Marble at the Chicago Cultural Center; A Natural Turn: María Berrío, Joiri Minaya, Rosana Paulino, and Kelly Sinnapah Mary at DPAM; Solo(s): Krista Franklin at DPAM, and a large-scale public art project at O’Hare International Airport as part of BeharXSchachman. Previously she was the Curator of Collections and Exhibitions at Spertus Institute, Chicago; Research Assistant for the exhibition Hélio Oiticica: To Organize Delirium at the Art Institute of Chicago, and a Graduate Curatorial Assistant at Gallery 400, University of Illinois at Chicago. Her writing has appeared in exhibition catalogues and art journals such FIELD: A Journal of Socially-Engaged Art Criticism, The Chicago Reader, THE SEEN, and The Exhibitionist. Born in Israel and raised in Uruguay, Behar holds a Ph.D. in Art History from the University of Illinois at Chicago, an M.A. in Art History, Theory, and Criticism from the School of the Art Institute, and a B.A. in Interdisciplinary Arts from Tel Aviv University.
Chiara Conner
Chiara Conner (they/them/theirs) is a DePaul University student majoring in Communication Studies. Their minors are Anthropology and Photography. Facilitating connections between artists and art lovers alike is something they are extremely passionate about.
David Maruzzella, Exhibition Manager/curatorial contributor
Ellie Naughton
Ellie Naughton is a '23 DePaul graduate with a B.S. in Marketing and minor in Music Business. She is currently working alongside Jim Duignan as Program Coordinator for the Learning Studio.
Eli Schmitt
Eli Schmitt is from Indianapolis, Indiana. They moved to Chicago to study Art History at DePaul, where they immersed themself in the local art/music scene. They are interested in how art can be used to grow community.