Starting this September, aspiring Dreisers and Dickinsons can earn a Masters of Fine Arts (MFA) degree at Northwestern University, studying under the likes of Alex Kotlowitz and Stuart Dybek. The part-time, evening program, which complements Northwestern's existing Master of Arts program (begun in 2003), will enable students to write a nearly book-length thesis, and position graduates for creative writing teaching positions. Interested? You have until July 25 to turn in your application for the upcoming September quarter.
- Lauri Apple |
Art Wed Jul 02 2008
Thirty-four teams have been selected for this year's Red Bull Flugtag, a competition in which mechanically inclined quirkyfolk design, build, and fly human-powered aircraft. Visit the official Flugtag Website to scope out the blueprints for this year's designs, including a wok (Stir Fly), a piece of deep-dish pizza (Pie in the Sky!), and an ear of corn (Team Iowa). Or, for more detailed description of the preparatory process, check out Red Hot Flyer II, which documents the construction of local designer/developer/artist/technician gReGo's 28-foot, hot dog-shaped biplane. Five years ago, gReGo built the Red Hot Flyer I, which came in at a respectable fifth place. The Flugtag takes place Sept. 6 at North Avenue Beach.
- Lauri Apple |
Theatre Tue Jul 01 2008
Superior Donuts, the new Tracy Letts play now running at Steppenwolf, has all the components of a fine piece of theatre. Fine acting chops, yes. A stunning set design that appears vividly, crisply real. Yet something is strangely lacking.
The story centers on a Polish donut storeowner's struggle to hold onto the past and resist the temptation to sell his store to a very persistent Russian who dreams of opening the electronics emporium of the neighborhood. The setting is Uptown, in the present, yet there's something distinctly retro about this story. The female cop who lusts after the protagonist feels reminiscently Hill Street Blues. And the donut lady — the shop’s one consistent customer — is funny but in a predictable way, like a character on the hit '70s T.V. show "Alice."
What’s missing in this play is some emotional bravery. The first act develops nicely, and the juicy dialogue (“Is Anyone Paying Attention in America?”) is entertaining. Yet there’s not a character like Deanna Dugan from Letts’s superior play, August Osage Country, that swept the audience into her tidal wave of debilitation and psychotic derangement. What we have here is a man that Letts slowly exposes as weak and ultimately uninteresting. Even when he sticks up for himself in the fight scene (the most compelling scene of the play), you can’t help but feel sorry for him. It’s a universal story of what happens to someone when they let their life pass them by yet this story fails to stir the audience or provide a resolution. And Franco (Jon Michael Hill), the African American co-worker who gets maimed by the bookie thugs and has his Great American novel torn to shreds, feels clichéd.
- Marla Seidell |
The Joffrey Ballet is in the process of moving into a beautiful new home at State and Randolph. The soaring steel and glass building, a Smithfield Properties development originally named MoMo (short for Modern Momentum), is now officially called the Joffrey Tower. Still, “momentum” remains a great word to describe this move: The new headquarters will provide the Joffrey with plenty of room to continue recruiting, training, and developing as a company.
The space features offices, a street-level box office, a black-box theatre, and six airy dance studios where rehearsing ballet dancers will be visible from the street below. These facilities will also contribute to a more unified organization: For years, the administration and performers have operated out of separate buildings, but now they will be based under the same roof.
The new 54-foot high Joffrey Ballet sign, recently mounted to the side of the building, will be illuminated for the first time this evening (Monday, June 30). A grand opening celebration for the Joffrey Tower is set for September.
- Laura Pearson |
We had written earlier about Louis Tiffany's (middle name: Comfort) dome in the Chicago Cultural Center. The restoration is nearly complete. In addition to the mass amounts of silver and gold leaf work, each piece of crystal-embedded glass is being cleaned, repairs or, if needed, replaced. Perhaps the most exciting aspect of the project is that the dome will glow from natural sunlight beaming through it.
While the restoration will reveal the dome in its original light, the effort has revealed truth behind an old myth. Rumors have long circulated the city that the dome was encased in concrete to prevent internal illumination glowing during World War II "black-outs". Research discovered that the dome was enclosed because of engineers' concerns for water leakage damaging the buildings interior.
Check out some amazing progress pictures here!
- Carl Giometti |
An international archicture firm has declared Chicago the best American city for architecture and design. RMJM Hillier, the North-American branch of global firm RMJM, evaluated cities with populations of 500,000 or more and created a list of ten candidates based on criteria like architecture awards received, the prevalence of "green design," and the number of employees in creative industries. Residents of those ten cities were polled by Zogby International for their opinions on their city's public transit systems, green spaces, and encouragement of creative activities The poll results were then incorporated with the quantitative research to determine the rankings.
And unlike in this poll of America's top art cities, Chicago came in first and New York second. For more information on the survey methodology and results, the Tribune architecture blog has a PDF copy of HMJM's report.
- Jamie Smith |
Art Fri Jun 27 2008
Homeless bodybuilders, high school students, heroin addicts, newlyweds: Since May 1, artist Mike Genovese has given all of them, and many others, opportunities to participate in his artistic process through his in-studio project, a program of the Chicago Cultural Center. (And you, dear reader, can also participate by stopping by Genovese's studio today for a special Gapers Block happy hour from 5-7 p.m.; 78 E. Washington St.) By working seven-to-nine-hour days, six days a week -- and accepting help and contributions from the public -- Genovese has nearly completed four projects:
• Black, red and white aluminum panels coated with enamel, upon which he has engraved his own designs, then invited others to contribute their own drawings and messages.
• Elotes carts that he fills with fruit, candy and snacks, then offers to a random street vendor in an intimate negotiation process that he documents through photographs.
• A giant sign featuring the Zora Neale Hurston quote, "All My Kin Folks Ain't All My Kinfolk," done up in Mexican black lettering (created at Chicago's Museum of Contemporary Art, the piece will be installed on the South Side as public art).
• And, to advertise his in-studio, green "showcards" designed to look like the city's bright "no parking/street cleaning" signs. Genovese asked the Department of Streets and Sanitation's vendor to print up the signs, which he then tied to poles across the city using the same type of twine and knotting style used by city workers.
Continue reading this entry»
- Lauri Apple |
Theatre Fri Jun 27 2008
No, this is not a lost play by Horace. It is a wonderful, radio-style play that is being put on by the Oracle Theatre. Inspired by the life of Lev Termen, a Russian inventor and spy no less, the play utilizes a pre-recorded sound, pantomime and other on-stage devices to portray a fantastic and fictional dramatization of its subject. You'll have to wait until Saturday to see it, but I believe it's worth the wait. Go check it out!
Where: The Oracle Theatre 3809 N. Broadway (773) 244-2980
When: June 28th through August 3rd
Price: $18
- Norman Doucet |
Women & Children First in Andersonville, one of the nation's oldest and largest feminist bookstores, is looking for: "provocative lesbian-identified queer artists and scholars to present their work at our new, monthly Sappho's Salon series. We're looking for poets, writers, spoken word artists, comedians, visual artists with slides who can talk about their work, queer academics with provocative lectures, queer burlesque performers, musicians, performance artists, filmmakers and/or others we haven't thought of. Sappho's Salon will occur from 7 to 9 on the third Saturday of every month." For more info, see the salon's MySpace page.
- Lindsay Muscato |
Dance Tue Jun 24 2008
Local dance collective Live Animals hosts a “performance-infused social event” on Saturday, June 28, at Around the Coyote Gallery. The event, aptly called Dance/Party, will feature repertory work; sneak peeks of upcoming pieces choreographed by Live Animals members Kate Corby, Tess Dworman, and Caitin Marz; raffles; gummi bears; and—yep, you guessed it—one helluva a dance party. The night’s festivities will also include the Movebooth, a live take on the photo booth. (For participation in the Movebooth, bring an iPod.)
On the Live Animals blog, the three choreographers explain their motivation for throwing such a party: “One of our primary goals [as an organization] is to seduce you away from your couches and televisions…. We are fiercely committed to creating and maintaining breathing, moving, and feeling live human animals through events like this.”
For a very live, very moving experience, head to the ATC art space, located at 1935½ W. North Ave, at 8 pm on Saturday. General admission is $15 and includes refreshments. Student admission is $12 with a valid ID.
- Laura Pearson |
As first reported by the Chicago Tribune's Blair Kamin, world class architects Zaha Hadid and Ben van Berkel will be designing temporary pavilions for the Centennial Celebration of the Chicago Plan. Continuing what is sure to be an onslaught of articles, exhibits and events celebrating the historic document, the selection of Hadid and Berkel is sure to get the architecture community excited. This will be both architects' first foray into Chicago. The exhibits, as stated in the press release from the University of Chicago, will be installed next summer and fall in Millenium Park. Few design details were released but the exhibit will incorporate video displays explaining the history of the plan and how it may shape the future.
Other celebration events are in the planning stages. Currently listed on the Celebration's website, programs begin in March and revolve around commentary, recent work, and "the next 100 years." Check back here for more details on specific events as they are released.
Continue reading this entry»
- Carl Giometti |
This Thursday, June 26, Lucky Pierre and Mess Hall host a discussion and "dinnerluck" about politics and arts funding. How do artists stay true to their political beliefs and values when applying for and receiving arts funding? Do artists flat-out say "no" to certain funders for political reasons? Bring a dish or beverage and pipe up. 7 p.m. 6932 N. Glenwood.
- Lauri Apple |
Art Sun Jun 22 2008
The
Chicago Artists' Coalition has
online galleries of some of their members' work. Searchable by artist, media, subject and technique, they're a gorgeous way to wile away an afternoon and find a few new favorite artists while you're at it.
Painting "Factories on Ravenswood" by Karen Perl.
- Jamie Smith |
Art Sun Jun 22 2008
Last October, Sighn of Multipolar Projects and the brand-new Believe Inn gallery began cutting out the word, "It's OK," from bass wood, and has since created about 2,000 pieces. In order to speed up progress toward his goal of producing a "limited edition" of one million pieces (which he estimates will take 50 years), and to "push [him]self to extremes," Sighn will embark on a 24-Hour Cut-a-Thon starting at noon on Thursday, June 26, during which he will produce about 500 ITSOKs from 1/4" bamboo.
Bamboo is an eco-friendly choice for ITSOK, which Sighn says creates a fair amount of waste. To further lessen the project's environmental impact, he has also arranged for one tree to be planted by the Arbor Day Foundation for each piece purchased. Sighn keeps the opposites of each piece, and says he will soon have to rent a storage space for them. Anyone willing to donate an empty garage to Sighn for the next five decades should give him a call.
- Lauri Apple |
Art Sat Jun 21 2008
Matthew Schommers has owned the same deck of old-timey, paper playing cards since he was a little kid. Six years ago, he began transforming the cards into a series of art works – the results of which were on display Friday night at AllRise Gallery on N. Milwaukee. The most striking aspect of the series was the variety of lines Schommers used: Some portraits were raw and choppy, while others – particularly his portraits of women, and decapitated characters of both sexes – showed smooth, rounded curves. And a few drawings drew inspiration directly from pin-up posters of the 1950s. Schommers' show was the last at AllRise’s current location; the gallery's first show at its new location at 1370 W.Grand Ave. will feature the works of Chantala Kommanivanh on Friday, July 11.
- Lauri Apple |
