Artist Bernard Williams creates projects that investigate the complexities of American history and culture through painting, sculpture, and installation. In The Arts Club’s garden, he premieres a new work entitled The Black Tractor Project, inspired by the 2016 Black Farmers Settlement and the injustice experienced by thousands of African-American and minority farmers at the hands of the USDA since the 1960’s. The project straddles the contentious notion of reparations simmering in public discussions around the U.S. and across the globe. Williams will be joined by musician Damon Locks, launching The Black Tractor Project with discussion and the convergence of two art forms. Reflecting on Williams’ garden sculpture with a new sound piece, Locks presents an intuitive layering of found sounds, appropriated content from popular music, and documentary material related to the subject. He mixes all of the above with archival recordings from Williams’ recent visit to Alabama, creating a work to operate alongside the black tractor sculpture, an abstract tangle of audio commentary on cases of institutional racism in agriculture.
For her Garden Project “garden/ruinate”, artist Eliza Myrie will open a gate to The Arts Club, hosting monthly gatherings within the transformed garden space. This series of programs, under the heading “Tie Up”, will explore the nature of extended invitations, caring, community, and existence mediated by both built and imagined structures. Programming will include conversation, sound, and poetry, among other things, so feel free to drop by and hang out. If you’re late to your plans later on, you can just let your friends know you got “tied up” hanging out in the garden.
To close the project, Eliza Myrie will be joined by writers Emily Bock, Jersey-Shabazz Hosier, and others for a reading of written works related to black women and/or the Caribbean diaspora that have inspired, fortified, or soothed them. Please join us and feel free to bring words that you may want to share.
Free and Open to All.
About Eliza:
Eliza Myrie, b. 1981, New York. Myrie is a sculptor working in Chicago, IL. She received her MFA from Northwestern University and BA from Williams College and was a participant at The Skowhegan School. Myrie has been in residence at Yaddo, Bemis Center for Contemporary Art, The MacDowell Colony, and Arts + Public Life at The University of Chicago. Myrie is a lecturer at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and is a co-founder of The Black Artists Retreat [B.A.R.]. She has received grants from The Propeller Fund and 3Arts. Exhibitions include Gallery 400, Chicago; Vox Populi, Philadelphia; Shane Campbell, Chicago; Roots and Culture, Chicago; Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, Chicago; New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York; Hyde Park Arts Center, Chicago; Davidson Contemporary, New York.
We are deeply grieved to share the news of the passing of two esteemed members of The Arts Club, Mr. Stanley M. Freehling and Ms. Marilynn Alsdorf. Each served as a member of The Arts Club, guiding its institutional and artistic vision, for several years: Mr. Freehling was President for 24 years from 1981 to 2005, and Ms. Alsdorf followed as President from 2006–2011.
Both Mr. Freehling and Ms. Alsdorf served many cultural institutions throughout the city of Chicago, supporting the arts and culture with generous and fearless patronage to keep the city on the cutting edge. We honor their insight and love for culture through the Alsdorf-Freehling fund, an annual lecture fund which supports ambitious programming at The Arts Club.
Since its founding in 1916, The Arts Club has maintained a permanent collection that tracks the history of the avant garden. Shaped by our exhibition history, it includes works by Modern Masters displayed intimately throughout the Club quarters, graced by interiors designed by Mies van der Rohe.
We’re thrilled to welcome guests on the first Saturday of each month for an exclusive tour of the collection on the second floor of the Club, which is typically restricted for use by members and their guests. Visitors will learn not only about the works in the collection but also about how the Club has been a site for experimentation, exploration, and creativity for artists and their supporters throughout the last century.
All tours are free, but reservations are required.
For her Garden Project “garden/ruinate”, artist Eliza Myrie will open a gate to The Arts Club, hosting monthly gatherings within the transformed garden space. This series of programs, under the heading “Tie Up”, will explore the nature of extended invitations, caring, community, and existence mediated by both built and imagined structures. Programming will include conversation, sound, and poetry, among other things, so feel free to drop by and hang out. If you’re late to your plans later on, you can just let your friends know you got “tied up” hanging out in the garden.
On Saturday we’ll be celebrating the new season with a kickback in the Garden. DJ Major Taylor will be spinning some reggae tunes, the gate will swing open for all visitors, and some light refreshments will be provided. Enjoy the project space for the new exhibition in the gallery when you stop on by!
Free and Open to All.
About Eliza:
Eliza Myrie, b. 1981, New York. Myrie is a sculptor working in Chicago, IL. She received her MFA from Northwestern University and BA from Williams College and was a participant at The Skowhegan School. Myrie has been in residence at Yaddo, Bemis Center for Contemporary Art, The MacDowell Colony, and Arts + Public Life at The University of Chicago. Myrie is a lecturer at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and is a co-founder of The Black Artists Retreat [B.A.R.]. She has received grants from The Propeller Fund and 3Arts. Exhibitions include Gallery 400, Chicago; Vox Populi, Philadelphia; Shane Campbell, Chicago; Roots and Culture, Chicago; Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, Chicago; New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York; Hyde Park Arts Center, Chicago; Davidson Contemporary, New York.
