The inaugural Chicago Architecture Biennial, which kicked off on October 3, presents the work of artists, architects, activists, and policymakers to the global public as a way of encouraging new perspectives on how we live and experience our spaces. This year’s Biennial, The State of the Art of Architecture, explores everything from applications of creativity to issues of space through panels, exhibits, demonstrations, and film screenings that will run until January 3, 2016. The Weekly presents a handful of artists whose work either focuses on or is being exhibited on the South Side. More information on events with these artists and the rest of the events of the Biennial can be found at chicagoarchitecturebiennial.org. (Compiled by Jonathan Poilpre)
CARLOS BUNGA
Stony Island Arts Bank, 6760 S. Stony Island Ave. October 3-January 3. Tuesday–Saturday, 11am–6pm. Free. (312) 857-5561. rebuild-foundation.squarespace.com
Portuguese artist Carlos Bunga creates work that tries to engage with its environment as opposed to living beside it. His installation “Under the Skin,” commissioned for the Biennial, is a site-specific piece. Bunga often works with commonplace materials like cardboard and adhesive tape to reference what he has called “the interrelationship between doing and undoing.” (Jonathan Poilpre)
AMANDA WILLIAMS
Chicago Cultural Center, 78 E. Washington St. Tuesday, October 27, 6pm–7:30pm. Free. RSVP required. (312) 744-6630. chicagoculturalcenter.org
Amanda Williams creates art with a focus on elements of space, color, and race. One of her contributions to the Biennial is an appearance on a panel that will discuss the intersections of public space, art, and architecture. Williams has explored this intersection on the South Side through her work painting abandoned and foreclosed houses in vibrant and culturally resonant colors. (Jonathan Poilpre)
FRIDA ESCOBEDO
Stony Island Arts Bank, 6760 S. Stony Island Ave. October 10–January 2. Tuesday–Saturday, 11am–6 pm. Free. (312) 857-5561. rebuild-foundation.squarespace.com
An independent architect from Mexico City, Frida Escobedo creates projects that the Biennial describes as raw, ready to change and develop with their environments. Her work encourages questions about topics like cultural differentiation and the concept of time as a social operation. The Biennial will offer tours of a courtyard she designed at the Stony Island Arts Bank. (Elizabeth Ortiz-Menchaca)
Alternative Scenarios for Chicago
Chicago Cultural Center, 78 E. Washington St. Tuesday, October 20, 6pm. Free. RSVP required. (312) 462-6300. chicagoculturalcenter.org
In this panel, architects whose work is featured in the Biennial-long exhibition “BOLD: Alternative Scenarios for Chicago” at the Chicago Cultural Center will suggest their own innovative projects and ideas for the city of Chicago. These projects delve into Chicago’s limitations, and subsequently, its possibilities. The exhibition features several South Side architects: David Brown, a professor who researches process-oriented methods for urban design in the city; David Schalliol, a sociologist who conveys the metamorphosis of urban centers through film and photography; and Landon Bone Baker Architects, a group that applies responsible design to affordable housing and neighborhood planning for low- and middle-income residents of Chicago. (Elizabeth Ortiz-Menchaca)
Forms of Imagination
Arts Incubator Gallery, 301 E. Garfield Blvd. September 18–January 8. Tuesday–Friday, 12pm–6pm. Free. (773) 702-9724. arts.uchicago.edu
As part of the UofC’s Arts + Public Life initiative, the Arts Incubator Gallery aims to build “creative communities” on the South Side. “Forms of Imagination” showcases the program’s architecture and public design projects, highlighting its relationship with the neighboring community. The exhibit features projects by Mikel Patrick Avery, PORT Urbanism, and Carlos Rolón/Dzine, as well as ideas for the future Green Line Arts Center. (Hafsa Razi)