"Orphan Works" Reinterpretation Series Kickoff May 25, 2007

The Chicago Underground Library is pleased to announce Orphan Works, a new reinterpretation series. Unlike traditional reading series, our performers are not reading from their own work. Some of them won’t even be reading. We’re calling upon a variety of the most creative minds in Chicago to burrow deep into our collection of anonymous works or ones for which no further information on the author can be found. Commonly referred to as “Orphan Works,” these lost publications will be brought back to life: read, reinterpreted, and reunited with the audience they’ve been missing. There is an ongoing debate on the status of works like these, and a number of groups and individuals are fighting to keep them free for creative reuse and artistic exploration.

These works may never see the light of day again unless you adopt them.

We invite you to join us for the series kickoff Friday, May 25th at 7:00pm at MoJoe’s HotHouse, 2849 W. Belmont (Belmont/California/Elston)

Appearing this month:

Sara Schnadt is a Chicago-based performance installation artist, curator and Webmaster of Chicago Artists Resource. Her artwork often involves specific sites and public spaces, information systems, rituals, found materials, common fantasies and ordinary experiences. Sara holds an MFA from The School of The Art Institute of Chicago, and was raised on a new age international commune in Scotland called Findhorn. She has performed and exhibited her work in Chicago, Glasgow, Paris, and Frankfurt. Sara also curates performance art events for the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs.

Fred Sasaki has published work in MAKE, Venus Zine, Newcity, and Featherproof Books, among others; works on Poetry, Stop Smiling, and ACM; and is the editor of the Printers’ Ball: an annual celebration of print literature in Chicago.

Eric Strom is a writer and a DJ currently living in one of those gentrified Blue Line neighborhoods where everybody dresses funny. On Monday nights he has a funk and soul show on WLUW and a few nights a month he goes around town as one third of the Machine DJ Collective playing music from native Chicagoans. His work can be found in The Banana King, Newcity, THE2NDHAND, and Gapers Block under a variety of assumed names. He has been the guest curator of literary arts at Around the Coyote for the past two years.

Orphan Works will occur regularly on the last Friday of the month at MoJoe’s. We would like it if you occurred regularly, as well.

Official Website: http://www.underground-library.org