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The newest exhibit to open at the Chicago Cultural Center is anything but ordinary; yet, that’s what it is exactly. Industry of the Ordinary: Sic Transit Gloria Mundi, which opened on Friday, August 17, is a ten-year retrospective of the collaborative team of Adam Brooks and Mathew Wilson whose work is a celebration of the everyday.
“As we continue to engage Chicagoans and visitors to be involved in our cultural community, it’s a fitting time to have an exhibit that is so inclusive to the viewing public,” said Michelle T. Boone, commissioner of the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events. “Not only does it include elements of every day life, but also, this installation invites the public in, blurring the boundaries between artist and the viewer.”
While their work takes many forms, it is largely performative and seeking to engage the viewer as an inclusive display. The show includes a sampling from over 80 of the Industry of the Ordinary (IOTO) projects displayed with objects, photos and video documentation that includes “Line in the Sand” which engaged the public directly as the artists drew a line on State Street with a flesh-colored crayon to encourage on-lookers response.
Brooks and Wilson were raised in England but have been living and working in Chicago for many years and they will be sharing some of the exhibit with local artists including the platform stage which will change throughout the show.
Opening on the platform stage is Jim Zimpel: Angle, which runs through September 25. Yet another seemingly ordinary act, the artist draws parallels between the practice of fishing and the practice of art. The rituals, the tools, the solitary moments and the resultant frustration or reward have led the artist to a career in which he works in both fields, and to discover the familial bonds that draw him to the sport.
Angle will include handmade fishing rods, bait buckets, aerated coolers and a real tank of fish. Participation is also part of Zimpel’s installation and visitors to the show or to www.jimzimpel.com will be able to enter to earn the opportunity to fish from the tank. Each Sunday, five lucky participants will enjoy the art of fishing, and making the ultimate decision to release or dine.
Brooks and Wilson have solicited a number of Chicago-based artists to be part of Industry of the Ordinary: Sic Transit Gloria Mundi creating their portrait in a wide variety of media. IOTO will also produce Everyone 2012, an animated scroll listing of all of the artists in Chicago.
Source: Chicago Cultural Center
