In songs and poetry, monologues and presentations, collages and photographs, ACM students will celebrate the creative process at the Chicago Arts Festival on Friday, May 20, from 2-5 p.m. at Studio BE on Chicago’s North Side.
Chicago Arts Festival |
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May 20 at 2-5 p.m. Studio BE 3110 N. Sheffield Ave. |
The Festival is the ACM Chicago Arts Program‘s showcase of the students’ independent work developed during their four-month experience in the city. This semester’s participants will explore subjects ranging from Chicago’s fabled “El” trains to art history to contemporary stories of women’s lives.
This is an eclectic, adventurous group of students, according to Martina Nehrling, an artist and instructor who leads the program’s Independent Study Project Workshop and the Arts Seminar. Collectively, they are pursuing majors in psychology, art history, Spanish, economics/business, biology, sociology, education, and theatre. Throughout the semester they have crisscrossed the city to pursue their interests by visiting galleries and museums, attending poetry slams and improv theatre, taking guitar lessons, and much more.
Spring 2011 Chicago Arts Program students at the iO Theater to see an improv show: (l-r) Sarah Wool, Emily Wells, Shana Blanz, Maggie Schlundt, Mrinalini Chakraborty, and Amrit Calhoun.
“I encouraged them to think of the coursework as an opportunity to pursue creative stimulation and to get to know Chicago,” Nehrling noted. “There’s just so much cross-pollination between all of our activities and also all that’s happening in the city.”
Along with the seminar and the workshop, which incorporates the students’ independent study projects, the program’s curriculum includes an internship with an arts-related organization and the interdisciplinary Chicago Programs Core Course.
The Festival’s performances and exhibits will include:
- An excerpt presented by Mrinalini Chakraborti (Knox College) from her art history research on the evolution of the female nude in painting;
- Amrit Calhoun (Colorado College) playing guitar and presenting a selection of her poetry and songs;
- Original monologues performed by Maggie Schlundt (Cornell College), based on interviews she conducted with women in Chicago;
- Emily Wells (Beloit College) exhibiting her photo essay and sound recordings on the Chicago “El” trains; and
- An exhibit of collages including self-portraits by Sarah Wool (Colorado College).
The Chicago Arts Festival is free and open to the public. The venue, Studio BE, is a non-profit performing arts training and development facility located at 3110 N. Sheffield Avenue. Studio BE offers youth programs in acting, musical theatre, and comedy/improv, as well as a full schedule of performances.
For more information about the Chicago Arts Festival, call the Chicago Programs office at 312-915-0919.
Links:
- ACM Chicago Programs:
– Chicago Arts
– Business, Entrepreneurship, & Society
– Urban Studies - Read the Chicago Arts student blogs for an inside view of the program
