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Art Sat Aug 02 2014
Radical Tenderness @ High Concept Laboratories
High Concept Laboratories is an organization which supports Chicago artists through production services, space for creatives and various forms of administrative assistance. HCL has a wonderful open space located inside of Mana Contemporary, an old warehouse in Pilsen which houses artist studios, and hosts events and shows. This past week on Thursday, HCL hosted an event entitled, "Radical Tenderness" which featured performance, sound, poetry and video as a collective event with a small and intimate audience. Artists Amir George, Sofia Moreno, La Spacer and Anna Vitale, were each featured in the event where they brought their voices, their bodies and their overall energy in depicting the theme for the night.
The night began with a short film from Amir George which focused on an injured or dying butterfly being nurtured and guided by a faceless hand. Following the imagery of this piece, was the passionate artist, Anna Vitale who read two poetry pieces that mentioned Eminem, Detroit and an inclusion of Drake's song, "Just Hold On." Following a short break for refreshments, mingling and meditation, Sofia Moreno performed a piece involving a video camera which was live streaming us, the audience, and Sofia as the artist. This interactive piece proved to be surprising and provocative as the artist walked around the room taping little baggies to the glass walls which were filled with condoms, used tissues and other little remnants. The evening ended with a two hour dance party led by La Spacer, a creator of Techno and House music--we danced until the clock struck 11 and La Spacer ended their set.
This specific event, "Radical Tenderness" was created by Artificial Ear, which is a performance and poetry series made up of EAR EATER and Artifice Books.
High Concept Laboratories hosts events, lectures and screenings in the Mana Contemporary space located on 2233 S. Throop Street. The next upcoming events are Francisco Avina: A.R.T(Anti Retroviral Therapy), August 29th and Cultural Conversations and Bright Nights book release with Tod Seelie September 22nd.
Most events are free and open to the public although some may require an entrance fee.