October Artist News
published: Sept. 23, 2024
Cecilia Beaven, Inflorescence, 2022, acrylic on canvas, 60 x 72 inches Courtesy of the Hyde Park Art Center
CAITLIN EDWARDS (2021 3Arts/Walder Foundation Awardee)
On Oct 1, Davóne Tines joins D-Composed for ROBESON: An Electro-Gospel Acid Trip at Harris Theater. The performance is a reimagination of Paul Robeson’s musical repertoire as the soundtrack to a fever dream in a Moscow hotel room. “The score is comprised exclusively of songs Roberson sang—across gospel, classical, Broadway, and folk music— but in new arrangements and interpretations that shape-shift and time-travel through styles and genres to fully explore the material’s connection to Tines’ own work and our time.”
CRISTAL J. SABBAGH (2021 Make a Wave Awardee)
On October 2-6, Afrofuturist Weekend takes place at Elastic Arts. Cristal’s Freedom From and Freedom To headlines the weekend and is a cross disciplinary event featuring improvising dancers and musicians. Audience members will select the performers by chance. The 5-day celebration also includes a variety of music, art, and performances that envision radically positive future for Black people. “Deploying new technologies, drawing upon history, and subverting/inverting exploitative hierarchies, Afrofuturism puts Black people at the center of narratives about the future.”
DONNETTA “LILBIT” JACKSON (2023 3Arts/Walder Foundation Awardee)
On October 4-6, Donnetta and M.A.D.D. Rhythms host the Chicago Tap Summit at the Harold Washington Cultural Center. The Chicago Tap Summit offers three days of dance, discussions, classes, and performances celebrating the tap dance community. The event culminates in the world premiere of To Love You All Ways by M.A.D.D Rhythms company member Andrew Carr.
GEORGETTE VERDIN (2021 Make a Wave Awardee)
On October 2-27, Georgette directs IRONBOUND, a play following Darja, a Polish immigrant cleaning lady in New Jersey, through 20 years and three relationships. In the play, “Darja negotiates for her future with men who can offer her love or security, but never both.”
NORMAN TEAGUE (2019 3Arts/Denise & Gary Gardner Awardee)
Opening on October 10 (and on view through May 11, 2025), the Museum of Modern Art in New York opens Norman Teague—Jam Sessions. “Norman Teague invites us to reimagine the past by moving beyond "good modern design" as defined by institutions like MoMA. Drawing inspiration from artists and designers traditionally excluded from museums, and assisted by generative AI, he offers a reinterpretation of design history. These reimaginings—posters and full-scale prototypes shown alongside objects from MoMA’s collection—foreground makers of color and embody the cooperative, inventive spirit that guides Norman Teague Design Studios.”
MABEL KWAN (2017 3Arts/Restoration Hardware Awardee)
On October 10, Mabel performs in “Mabel Kwan and Chris Wild play the music of Isang Yun” for an Evening Public Concert at the Arts Club of Chicago. “Composer Isang Yun wrote music that feels rhapsodic, taut, and crystalline, at times. Arrested for composing songs in Korean during the Japanese colonial period and then kidnapped for suspected espionage in Germany in the 1960s, Yun underwent a great deal of political turbulence while simultaneously garnering great acclaim for his musical accomplishments, according to artist Haegue Yang, who holds him up as an inspiring influence.” The event includes a pre-concert lecture on the work of Isang Yun from Northwestern University professor and musicologist Ryan Dohoney.
CAITLIN EDWARDS (2021 3Arts/Walder Foundation Awardee)
On October 11, Caitlin performs with D-Composed in Hip-Hop Orchestra in Chicago! The performance asks viewers, “When was the last time you witnessed; strings, horns and piano at a Hip-Hop concert? Add to that, a party-rocking DJ, a soul-stirring female vocalist and a fire-breathing MC and that is still but a fraction of what you’ll see when you catch Thee Phantom & The Illiharmonic Orchestra in action!”
MARY TILDEN (2021 Make a Wave Awardee)
Opening on October 11 (and showing through November 16), Mary is part of the cast of Coronation debuting at The Ben Theatre. “After another female candidate loses the 2040 presidential election, three passionate but disillusioned women dream up a 4th branch of government - a monarchy to be run by only the Queen of America. This 3-act femme-futurist, political satire features a gas mask fashion show, a ball gown made out of blue jeans, and a walking, talking, plotting Siri.”
CECILIA BEAVEN (2024 3Arts/Chandler Family Awardee)
Opening on October 13 (and on view through April 6, 2025), Cecilia’s solo show titled Cecilia Beaven: Flickering Cocoon debuts at the Hyde Park Art Center. “Her creative narrative storytelling through mystical environments—commonly taking the form of expansive graphic wall paintings—will be showcased alongside a new temporary mural and sculpture that delves into the women-centered worlds she has been developing over the past five years.” Flickering Cocoon is the companion exhibition to Semilla concurrently on view at the National Museum of Mexican Art from October 24, 2024, until March 30, 2025. Both exhibitions present new murals by Cecilia as the artist “reflects on her journey from Mexico to Chicago and the creative communities that sustain her evolving art practice.”
WINIFRED HAUN (2022 3Arts/Walder Foundation Awardee)
On October 18, Winifred Haun & Dancers present Absent Moon, a performance featuring six dance works, including the premiere of Winifred’s acclaimed Absent Moon. SeeChicago Dance described the performance, stating “the choreography transcends the traditional boundaries of modern dance, margining elements of classical technique with avant-garde experimentation. Haun creates a sensory experience that is captivating.”
TERRY GUEST (2022 Make a Wave Awardee)
Through October 20, Thirst, a play written by Terry will be performed at the Williamston Theatre in Williamston, Michigan. Set in Michigan in the not-too-distant future, “thirst occupies the minds of everyone, especially those without access to fresh water, as the Great Lakes have been poisoned by a catastrophic spill.” The play follows Jazz who is asked to question her moral standards in exchange for water for herself and her community.
ISAAC COUCH (2021 Make a Wave Awardee)
On October 28, the Arts Club of Chicago hosts “Close Look and Cocktails with Fashion Fellow Isaac Couch.” This intimate evening soiree to culminate his LuminArts Fashion Fellowship and a Fashion Council Fellowship term at The Arts Club. Viewers will be able to enjoy his latest wearable collection, have a drink, and listen to some mood music.