You are invited to this free, public, large-scale projection art installation that will take place on Saturday, Sept. 15th & Sunday, Sept. 16th from 7:00-10:00 pm at the North-end wall of Cook County Jail. Join and experience as the North-end wall bordering the jail becomes a screen transformed by audio and animations created by currently and previously detained individuals. The audio and visual broadcasts will act as a space of exchange and communication between two communities – those outside the 96-acre compound and those behind bars.

At this event, you will hear/see original narratives and audio recordings that attempt to personify the jail’s interior and creatively reimagine the jail’s wall as amplifier in order to make visible and audible what is not often seen or heard. Through connecting those who live outside its walls with those inside the detention center, the project aims to dissolve, transgress, and collectively respond to the 96-acre compound.

Tune in to Lumpen Radio (105.5 FM) between 7-10 pm or join us live at the wall to engage in the artistic work of the Radioactive Ensemble! We invite you to park at the site to broadcast from your car radio, or bring a chair and your own handheld radio or boom box. Listening stations will be provided on-site by Free Write Sound & Vision.

Radioactive: Stories from Beyond the Wall is a series of community-engaged radio/visual broadcasts located between the largest architecture of Chicago’s West Side, The Cook County Jail, and the working-class residential area of the Lawndale communities. Radioactive focuses exclusively on centering the voices of those currently incarcerated by broadcasting and projecting intimate and creative stories from inside Cook County Jail to outside Cook County Jail.
Radioactive Ensemble: Eduardo Alanis, Rahmon Ali, Edgar Arce, Anthony C.Bailey, Paris Baker, Frederick Barker, Jacob Barth, Marlon Baymon, Rodney Cal, Christoper Coleman, James Collier, JD Edwards, Luis Encarnacion, Michael M. Evans, Pedro Gonzalez, Joseph Grant ,Steve Hatfield, Martin Howard-Paez ,Gary (Gypsy) Johns, Douglas Johnson, David Kahles, Anthony Miller, Alex V. Petik, Paul G. Robert Jr., Paul Robert, Enrique Ruiz, Pedro Sarmiento, James Skoda, Alex “Good Tree” Soto, Masean Spencer, Jessie Sulk, James Taylor, Herbert L. Turner Jr.

Producers: Maria Gaspar, Lead Artist; Radioactive Ensemble; Michael de Anda Muñiz, Co-instructor; Rocio Santos, Guest Artist. Videography/animation editing by Benjamin Kolak and animation editing/design by Giorgia Harvey at Scrappers Film Group. Sound engineering and design by Alex Inglizian. Radio broadcast and production support by Lumpen Radio and Free Write Sound & Vision.

96 Acres Project is a series of site-responsive art projects that involve community stakeholders’ ideas about social and restorative justice issues, and that examine the impact of incarceration at the Cook County Jail on Chicago’s West Side.

Sound & Vision is a program of Free Write Arts & Literacy. Free Write Arts & Literacy engages incarcerated and court-involved youth and young adults in the performing, visual, and literary arts so that they become the narrators of their own stories and the authors of their futures. By co-designing creative space with our students, Free Write supports them as they develop educational and career opportunities that reduce recidivism while also contributing to the public discourse around issues of youth incarceration.

Lumpen Radio, WLPN-LP 105.5 FM, is operated by a community of curators, producers and DJs working to connect you with the music and ideas we think you will love. Our aim is to spotlight the hidden parts of the city, amplifying its voices and sounds. We’re here to promote an open media, unite communities, and magnify the hard work of artists, musicians, activists and cultural workers like you.

Sponsors: This project is supported by the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation with additional support by Creative Capital. Additional support comes from the Joan Mitchell Foundation, the Chicago Architecture Biennial, and Metomic Corporation. Special thanks to the Cook County Department of Corrections and our community supporters, family, and friends.

For more information:
Contact: studiomanager@mariagaspar.com
Visit: http://96acres.org/radioactive-stories-from-beyond-the-wall-project-debut/
Watch: https://vimeo.com/264674126

Official Website

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Tags: 96 Acres Project, Alex “Good Tree” Soto, Alex Inglizian, Alex V. Petik, Anthony C.Bailey, Anthony Miller, Benjamin Kolak, Chicago, Christoper Coleman, Cook County Jail, David Kahles, Douglas Johnson, Edgar Arce, Eduardo Alanis, Enrique Ruiz, Frederick Barker, Free Write Sound & Vision, Gary Johns, Giorgia Harvey, Gypsy Johns, Herbert L. Turner Jr., Illinois, Jacob Barth, James Collier, James Skoda, James Taylor, JD Edwards, Jessie Sulk, Joseph Grant, Luis Encarnacion, Lumpen Radio, Maria Gaspar, Marlon Baymon, Martin Howard-Paez, Masean Spencer, Michael de Anda Muñiz, Michael M. Evans, Paris Baker, Paul G. Robert Jr., Paul Robert, Pedro Gonzalez, Pedro Sarmiento, Radioactive Ensemble, Radioactive: Stories from Beyond the Wall, Rahmon Ali, Rocio Santos, Rodney Cal, Scrappers Film Group, South Lawndale, Steve Hatfield