The Happening: Station To Station Chicago

By Staff in Arts & Entertainment on Sep 8, 2013 4:00PM

Station to Station image by Doug Aitken

On Sept. 10, from 6 p.m to 11 p.m., Union Station will become more than a place we trudge through on our way in or out of the ‘burbs as a traveling art show called Station to Station pulls in.

The show is sponsored by Levi’s, and it’s a throwback to the “happenings” popular in the 1970s. The event is billed as a “living film” and involves all types of art from sculpture and photography to film and animation, as well as music. The show stops in nine cities, and no stop is exactly the same.

Here in Chicago, that means performances by No Age and White Mystery, as well as the Chicago-based Theaster Gates and the Black Monks of Mississippi, a group of singers and musicians who build on blues tradition with emphasis on the participation of the audience.

A large variety of artists and art forms will be represented. Some artists whose work will be included in the show are: Allora & Calzadilla, Bruce Conner, Yayoi Kusama, Raymond Pettibon, Kelly Sears, Raymond Shore and Ryan Trecartin.

Tickets for the event are $25 but there will be some things you can see for free.

Outside Union, there will be five “Nomadic Sculptures” inspired by Asian yurts. Some are interactive pieces that are being built stop by stop or have holes that visitors can lob Frisbees through.

Levi’s will have its own yurts which will feature local artists as well, paying homage to their “Maker’s” program.
Proceeds from the event go to support its partners, which include Chicago’s own Museum of Contemporary Art. With the range of artists and art forms, we’re excited to see what “happens” at Union, and we think it will definitely be an improvement to our average Tuesday night.

By: Marielle Shaw