environmental art events fall 2006

NATALIE JEREMIJENKO
SEPTEMBER 27 Wednesday 6pm
SAIC Auditorium, 280 S. Columbus Drive
A design engineer and techno-artist, Natalie Jeremijenko explores the
interstices between art, social theory, and technology in projects that have
garnered international recognition—from her robotic toy dogs wired to sniff out toxic industrial waste to her One Trees project, in which genetically identical cloned trees planted around San Francisco take on unique characteristics in
their various environments.

BETH COLEMAN
OCTOBER 4 Wednesday 6pm
SAIC Auditorium, 280 S. Columbus Drive
Beth Coleman is co-founder of the SoundLab Cultural Alchemy project, a nomadic
multimedia event that has created environmental sound installations using all
forms of new media and technology. Working also under the name M. Singe,
Coleman takes on multiple forms and genres in her work, creating electronic
architectural interfaces that combine sound, text, media sculpture,
installation, and site mappings. She is an assistant professor of Writing and
New Media at MIT.

MEL CHIN
OCTOBER 11 Wednesday 6pm
SAIC Auditorium, 280 S. Columbus Drive
Mel Chin’s poetic and politically committed art sits at the intersection between sculpture, science, and social awareness. Long engaged in the
practice of environmental art, Chin created the ongoing Revival Field
ecological restoration project(1989-present), a series of sculptures in which hyperaccumulator plants that draw heavy metals from the soil are planted in toxic landfills to create a living, poetic process of transformation and restoration.

PROPAGATION SHOW: curated by Sabrina Raaf
October 13 - November 4, 2006; Polvo Gallery

The "Propagation" show, curated by Sabrina Raaf,
presents the work of artists who have bypassed
traditional exhibition systems, such as galleries and art
magazines, and instead have created their own systems
for the dispersion of their work. Their unique systems
may be considered as artworks in and of themselves
and will be featured alongside the art generated by
them. Experience the new media work of Andrea Polli,
sustainable systems by Amy Youngs and the
collaborative performance work of Matthew Wilson and
Adam Brooks as Industry of the Ordinary amongst
others.

ACCRA SHEPP
OCTOBER 25 Wednesday 6pm
SAIC Auditorium, 280 S. Columbus Drive
Accra Shepp is a photo based artist whose primary concern is how people use the environment and perceive this use. His projects have taken him from the steel mills of Cleveland to the rain forests of Indonesia. He is now focusing on the cultivation of tobacco. Working with farmers in three states, Shepp is
documenting land owners and migrant workers and exploring the economic,
political, and personal connections to the land.

RIDER PROJECT
NOVEMBER 20 Monday 6pm
SAIC Auditorium, 280 S. Columbus Drive
The RIDER Project is a Brooklyn-based do-it-yourself gallery located in the back of a 15 foot truck, created by New York City-based emerging artists. The
mobile RIDER Project invites viewers to enter the parked truck, view the
exhibited art and interact with participating artists. The RIDER Project brings contemporary art to people who rarely view art, and to people who view art frequently. As the founder and director of RIDER Projects from 2000-2006,
Michele Gambetta has brought provocative contemporary art exhibitions into
diverse neighborhoods throughout NYC, including Harlem, Lower Manhattan,
Bedford Stuyvesant, Williamsburg, Chelsea, and across from the Whitney Museum
of Art. The RIDER Project was voted “Best Mobile Gallery” in the Village Voice Best of NY 2005, and was reviewed by NY1, the New York Press, Block Magazine, NYArts, the New York Post, the Columbia Spectator, and international blogs.

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NEGOTIATED LOCALITIES:
ARTISTS, DESIGNERS, AND CITIZENS IN A GREEN CITY
NOVEMBER 19 Sunday
Negotiated Localities: Artists, Designers and Citizens in a Green City invites a diverse community to take a deep dive into the subject of how a city is best sustained.Interactive sessions, workshops and installations by leading thinkers—global and local—will focus on Chicago as a site for sustainable urban practices.
$25; $15 with student ID. Space is limited. Call 312-443-3711 for reservations.

environmental art events fall 2005

"Urban, Rural, Wild" opens Friday, September 9, 6-8 pm, I space Gallery / 230 W. Superior, Chicago. Lots of other events listed on website.

Thomas Comerford's Chicagoland Gridded/Revised, Thursday September 8, 6pm, Gene Siskel Film Center.

Beyond Green: Toward a Sustainable Art, October-December 2005
Location: The Smart Museum, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL.

About: Balancing environmental, social, economic, and aesthetic concerns, sustainable design has the potential to transform everyday life and is already reshaping the fields of architecture and product design. Beyond Green: Toward a Sustainable Art explores the influence of this design philosophy on an emerging generation of international artists who combine a fresh aesthetic sensibility with a constructively critical approach to the production, dissemination, and display of art.

Art and Sustainability Panel, November 15, 2005
Location: Chicago Green Drinks, Jefferson Tap and Grill
Cost: $2 with student ID, only students 21 and over can attend due to state liquor laws.

About: An opportunity for those interested in sustainability/environmental issues to gather, network, learn what others are doing, and to discuss issues important to them. Drop by any time 6:30–9:15pm.

7:15–8:15pm there will be a panel and exhibit on Art & Sustainability. Panelists include: Tiffany Holmes, Sabrina Raaf, and Nils Norman.

Tropicália, exhibition at the MCA Chicago, October 22, 2005 – January 8, 2006. Of particular interest might be the documentation of major works by Lygia Clark and others.

links for local environmentally-minded art-friendly organizations

www.believechicago.org - Participate in Chicago sustainability initiatives

www.foresightdesign.org - Group runs "Green Drinks", a monthly panel that discusses issues related to Chicago and sustainability