Theaster Gates Channels Marvin Tate in New East Garfield Park Exhibition

Artist Theaster Gates’ latest exhibition, OH, YOU’VE GOT TO COME BACK TO THE CITY, opens Oct. 16 at GRAY’s Chicago gallery, 2044 W. Carroll Ave. in East Garfield Park, and runs through Dec. 20.

The show draws inspiration from a song by North Lawndale native Marvin Tate, whose lyrics personify Chicago as a city luring its residents back home. Gates’ installation combines tar paintings, ceramics, and stone sculptures that explore decay, repair, and rebirth in urban life.

The exhibition—his fourth with GRAY—features a grid of marble, granite, and concrete forms topped with everyday artifacts, evoking the remnants of city life. Surrounding works extend Gates’ signature use of tar, which he describes as a “bonding and patching” strategy tied to Black space and collective resilience.

Gates, a University of Chicago professor and 2025 Guggenheim Fellow, said the exhibition continues his exploration of Chicago’s “unattended corners” and the beauty that persists in neglected infrastructure.

The show coincides with Gates’ Unto Thee exhibition at the Smart Museum of Art, on view through Feb. 22, 2026.