CHICAGO, IL.- The inaugural EXPO CHICAGO, The International Exposition of Contemporary/Modern Art and Design, proudly announces highlights of large-scale and site-specific works that will be on view, as well as selections from the speaker series taking place September 20–23 in Festival Hall at Navy Pier.

IN/SITU Situated throughout the exposition floor, IN/SITU provides a dynamic opportunity for our exhibiting galleries to showcase large-scale installations, site-specific and performative works by leading international artists. IN/SITU is organized by writer and independent curator Michael Ned Holte.

"I'm excited to be organizing a diverse selection of sited installations, videos, and other projects responding to the capacious site of Navy Pier and Festival Hall," Holte notes. The initial list of artists announced for IN/SITU includes Robert Barry, Fiona Connor, Theaster Gates, Tony Feher, Roy McMakin, Jaume Plensa, Sarah Rara, Steve Roden, Jennifer West, and several sited performances are also in development.

"Site-specificity might seem like a counterintuitive notion in the context of a fair, but I am particularly interested in how these artists and their works will address those conditions. I'm calling these interactions 'Temporary Landmarks and Moving Situations'—emphasizing an itinerary of momentary and sometimes surprising opportunities for engaging viewers within the bustling framework of the fair. I've worked with many of these artists over the years and am thrilled to work with all of them in the context of IN/SITU."

DIALOGUES Presented in partnership with The School of The Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC), EXPO /Dialogues offers scheduled discussions, providing provocative artistic discourse along with more intimate conversations with leading artists, architects, curators, designers, and arts professionals on the current issues that engage them.

Thursday morning, September 20, will include a talk by noted art critic Jerry Saltz. Nominated three times for the Pulitzer Prize, he is currently senior critic for New York magazine and has appeared as a judge on Bravo's Work of Art. On Friday, Los Angeles-based artist Sterling Ruby will be in discussion with art adviser Todd Levin. Internationally renowned curators, Michael Darling, James W. Alsdorf Chief Curator of the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago; Lisa Dorin, Assistant Curator of Contemporary Art, Art Institute of Chicago; and Dominic Molon, Chief Curator, Contemporary Art Museum, St. Louis will participate in a panel. Other highlights will be a talk by the acclaimed artist Alec Soth, represented by exhibitors Sean Kelly Gallery and Weinstein Gallery. Artist Eve Sussman will be in conversation with Michelle Grabner, Professor and Chair of the Painting and Drawing Department at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Another panel of note will be Katharine DeShaw, Executive Director of United States Artists, in conversation with USA Guthman Fellow Inigo Manglano-Ovalle and artist Deborah Doering, moderated by USA Artists Board of Directors, Jack Guthman. Dialogues will also feature a musical performance by Sun Foot featuring Chris Johanson, Brian Mumford, and John Burns.

Art Expositions, LLC presents the inaugural EXPO CHICAGO, The International Exposition of Contemporary/Modern Art and Design, at Navy Pier's Festival Hall at 600 E. Grand Avenue, Sept. 20–23, 2012. This four-day art event features 100 leading international galleries and offers a curated blend of contemporary/modern art and design.