We’ve always been an “art-first” organization, a position I connect to life in a society that values art either mainly as a commodity or as second to disciplines with clear utility. I’ve always been and will always be a student of philosophy. Now, I say philosophy meaning that strict tradition in conversation with itself, most commonly associated with Plato and the Greeks. But I tend largely to agree with Arthur Danto that philosophy reached a point—he pins it to Warhol’s Brillo boxes—where it simply evolved into and carries on today as art. A simple, stock answer is that Bridge is a publishing and programming organization. Programming includes art exhibitions such as the Art Boat show at Navy Pier and the Bridge Art Fair (formerly Nova). We also spearhead various artists space projects, which for us largely involves the management of commercial leases.
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