Free School of the Art Institute Lectures. The SAIC hosts the spring series of the Mitchell Lectures. All lectures and events are free and open to the public, supported by the William Bronson and Grayce Slovet Mitchell Lecture Series.
When: See dates below.
Where: The LeRoy Neiman Center, 37 S. Wabash Ave.
Wednesday, February 27, 6:00 p.m. Rafa Esparza
In conversation with Faysal Altunbozar (MFA 2019) and Xavier Robles (MFA 2019)
Introduction by Alberto Ortega (MFA 2019)
Rafa Esparza’s multifaceted, often collaborative practice involves durational performance and sculpture, and considers the impact of migration, colonization, and collective histories on the formation of identity and communities.
Wednesday, March 13, 6:00 p.m. Lydia Kallipoliti
In conversation with Ellen Grimes
Lydia Kallipoliti is an architect, engineer, and scholar, currently an assistant professor of Architecture and the director of the master of science program at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Kallipoliti is the founder of EcoRedux, an innovative online open-source educational resource and ANAcycle thinktank, a research and writing practice.
Monday, March 18, 6:00 p.m. Zoë Ryan and Matylda Krzykowski
Zoë Ryan is the John H. Bryan Chair and curator of Architecture and Design at the Art Institute of Chicago. A curator and author, Ryan’s projects focus on exploring the impact of architecture and design on society. Matylda Krzykowski is the Mitchell Visiting Professor at SAIC. A curator, designer, and art director, Krzykowski’s work focuses on collaborative and performative projects in physical and digital space.
Monday, March 25, 6:00 p.m. Calibrated Lens: A Focus on South Side Narratives
Conversation with Lee Bey, Candace Ming of South Side Home Movie Project, and Eric Hotchkiss
Moderated by Mejay Gula
Rooted within the architecture, constructed objects, and daily lives of residents, a history of community creativity and collective action manifests within familiar scenes of play, convening, and recreation. These visual narratives of South Side spaces are presented through a multifaceted lens, with each moment referenced through objects, films, photos, and sounds drawn from South Side lives.
Thursday, March 28, 6:00 p.m. Renee Gladman
In conversation with Jonathan Solomon
Renee Gladman is a writer and artist preoccupied with lines, crossings, thresholds, and geographies as they play out in the interstices of poetry and prose. She is the author of twelve published works, including Event Factory (2010), The Ravickians (2011), Ana Patova Crosses a Bridge (2013), Houses of Ravicka (2017) and Calamities (2016), a collection of linked autoessays on the intersections of writing, drawing, and community.
Thursday, April 11, 6:00 p.m. Luftwerk
In conversation with Iker Gil
Light, color, and sound are primary elements in work by Luftwerk—the artistic collaborative of Petra Bachmaier (BFA 1999) and Sean Gallero (SAIC 1993–98). Luftwerk’s art installations use light to transform experiences of space and site. Their immersive artwork has exhibited at venues such as Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway in Boston, Chicago’s Millennium Park, Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater in Pennsylvania, Mies van der Rohes’ Farnsworth House in Illinois, Chicago’s Garfield Park Conservatory, and more.
Monday, April 15, 6:00 p.m. Nicole L’Huillier
In conversation with Andrew Yang
Nicole L’Huillier is a transdisciplinary artist from Santiago, Chile, currently based in Boston as a PhD student at MIT Media Lab. Her work explores spatial experience, perception, and the relationship between sound and space, based on the idea of sound as a construction material of spaces, identity, and agency.
Monday, April 29, 6:00 p.m. Alfred Zollinger
In conversation with Thomas Kong
Alfred Zollinger is an associate professor of Architecture and Interior Design at the Parsons School of Design in New York where he currently directs the Master of Fine Arts in Interior Design program. He is also a coprincipal of Matter Practice, an architecture and exhibition design firm in Brooklyn focused on public projects foregrounding social justice issues.
Chicago on the Cheap is a member of Living on the Cheap, a network of websites published by frugalistas, journalists and consumer advocates. Find practical advice on saving money on groceries, travel and shopping, plus tips from our experts on how to live the good life for less at 