Hot Mess! highlights moments of co-creation and gives the artists and the audience a play-space to meet each other across time, genre, cultures, perspective, experience.. it demonstrates the power of working together in the unknown, possibilities for Queering space, and the beauty in transformation while making art! All ages are invited to come witness these artists in person at Elastic or stream it online from home. This is a family friendly environment, so we invite you to bring the kids! We are especially pleased this Episode to welcome in person ASL interpretation by Olivia Ginn.
Episode 10 on Saturday, October 28
Two sets: 4:20pm & 8:00pm Central Standard Time
Hereaclitus (Chi) Fabulous Freddie (Chi) Mabel Kwan & Andrew Tham as MEGA LAVERNE & SHIRLEY (Chi) Karyna Herrera (Lucerne, Switzerland) Aurora Tabar (Chi) Iván Espinosa (Boulder, CO) with Joan Laage (Seattle, WA)
$15 Elastic Arts, 3429 W. Diversey Ave. #208 Chicago, IL 60647
Streaming: https://elasticarts.org/streaming
No advance ticket sales. Debit/Cash accepted at the door
Hot Mess! Curious?? Find out more
Featured Esteemed Artist bios:
Hereaclitus: In 87′ they met and collaborated with Linda Montano. Inspiring 2 decades of ART/LIFE biodynamic art.
Fabulous Freddie: Freddie’s dance journey is a self-exploration and healing practice in claiming himself whole through embodying his masculine and feminine energies as a Black Gay artist. By choosing to express himself through both Breaking and Vogue Femme movement foundations, he has opened a new space for an important conversation to happen through his body.
Mabel Kwan & Andrew Tham as MEGA LAVERNE & SHIRLEY is a band birthed from the fictitious art scene known as big TEEN. big TEEN bands revel in aesthetics of distraction, multiplicity, and metatheatrics. MEGA LAVERNE & SHIRLEY embrace this artistic framework with monolithic performances that incorporate synthesizers, MIDI sampling, multilingual declamations, choreography informed by Chinese calligraphy, and LED light worship. That is, MEGA LAVERNE & SHIRLEY attempt to overwhelm the audience in the hopes of bringing them into a new kind of focus; a kind of transcendence through multiplicity and confusion. It’s like witnessing a monumental event happen in two parallel universes simultaneously, or watching an episode of Laverne & Shirley in two languages.
Karyna Herrera: For me, art and culture are life companions. As an artist, I enjoy working in the areas of performance, photography, video and art research. Space and time are used consciously in my work. The starting point for my artistic work is usually personal observation and reflection on social and political events. At the same time, I am concerned with the question of the transience and continued existence of things, nature and humanity. In addition to time, space plays a central role in my artistic work. I want my experiences and feelings in space and time to be manifested in my works of art. Especially when I make performance art, I have to be able to create an immediate connection between myself and the space and convey this atmospherically to the viewer. I also find it exciting how traces left behind (relics) from a performance can themselves become art objects and take on a symbolic character. For me, these traces are part of the work of art.
In Lucerne I studied at the University of Art and Design and earned a master’s degree in art in public spaces. My acting studies complement my professional career. I have already taken part in several exhibitions and am active in various performance events. As a curator and co-organizer of performance events, I was active in the ((Ort)) studio until December 2018 in collaboration with Judith Huber and Silvia Isenschmid. “Make-Art-Happening” is my new project as a curator and organizer of exhibitions.
Aurora Tabar is a performing artist, occupational therapist, and multi-tasking mom. Her professional and creative practices examine the process of healing and the potential for transformation. Most recently Aurora had the pleasure of collaborating with members of WATCHTOWER (Rosé Hernandez, Ginger Krebs, Bryan Saner, and Sara Zalek) during a residency at Roman Susan Gallery. Aurora has presented solo and collaborative performances across Chicago including at Elastic Arts Foundation, Prop Theater, Links Hall, and High Concept Laboratories. As a special educator, Aurora is committed to inclusion and helping students build functional skills that they can carry into the future. She lives on the west side of Chicago with her partner, two adorable kiddos, and a cohort of cats.
Iván Espinosa is a Latino choreographer and interdisciplinary scholar that writes about and creates work engaged with mycology, climate change, interspecies performance, and Japanese Butoh. Iván is currently a PhD student in Performance Studies at the University of Colorado. Iván has presented his ecology-themed artwork nationwide at venues such as La MaMa Experimental Theatre in New York, Seattle International Butoh Festival and numerous academic conferences. Iván began his formative artistic training in Seattle with Pacific Northwest Butoh pioneer Joan Laage, who continues to serve as his foremost mentor and collaborator to this day. Since graduating from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, Iván’s artwork has been focused on studying the relationships between human bodies and mycelium fungi networks through the lenses of bioacoustics and site-specific performance. His recent multimedia installations involving mushrooms and mycelium bioacoustics were highlighted in a special issue of the PERFORMANCE RESEARCH journal titled “On Dark Ecologies.”
Hot Mess! cruise director Sara Zalek is a maker of situations and curious objects.They create performances as learning and listening situations to encourage thoughtful interpersonal connections. They enjoy wearing many hats. Zalek skillfully performs in both in person and online situations; in 2022 named an Esteemed Artist by The City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE). They have performed, curated workshops and produced citywide festivals at the Chicago Cultural Center, Elastic Arts, Experimental Sound Studio, High Concept Labs, Links Hall, Japanese Culture Center, CoProsperity Sphere, No Nation, dfbrl8r, Outerspace, and UrbanGuild in Tokyo, LightBox in Detroit, Arts+ Lit Lab in Madison, WI, B74 Raum für Kunst in Lucerne Switzerland, and many more.
Supported in part by Elastic Arts.
Elastic Arts is a non-profit organization that fosters a community of music, art and performance in the Avondale/Logan Square neighborhoods of Chicago and beyond through developing, hosting, producing, and promoting creative, independent, and local music concerts, exhibitions, and multi-arts performances.
Interested to Participate in 2023? Or to find out more specifically: https://forms.gle/JZ5dA6kajuF3un1u5
This is a paid opportunity.
Butoh Curious Chi 