Fun Fun Fun Film: 'Hairy Who And The Chicago Imagists'
By Carrie McGath in Arts & Entertainment on Oct 8, 2014 9:30PM
As we mentioned a few days ago, Leslie Buchbinder's documentary, "Hairy Who and The Chicago Imagists" is an engrossing and informative documentary about this decidedly significant group of artists in the '60s and beyond with their heyday spanning two decades, entering into the 1980s. The style of the documentary, equipped with animation and kinetic collage, adds a great texture to the story of these incredibly dynamic artists who are still exhibiting and who are powerful inspirations for a whole new generation.
The narrator and Chicago theater star, Cheryl Lynne Bruce, is firmly at the wheel guiding the audience through this captivating tale, her voice adding to the palpable excitement that is so ingrained throughout, an excitement that is born of the artists' magnetic work and dedicated energy to their process and their exhibitions.
The Hyde Park Art Center, still a space for emerging and established artists who push boundaries in style and content, was run by Don Baum during this era burgeoning with experimentation and HPAC was the first to exhibit these artists who came to be known as The Hairy Who. The title of the exhibition was born from the group's humor while they were hanging out talking about a radio show by Harry Bouras to which Wirsum replied, "Harry Who?" The name stuck with these artists who included Jim Nutt, Gladys Nilsson, Karl Wirsum, Suellen Rocca, Art Green, and Jim Falconer and really represented the humor and the bounty of creativity among them.
The panel with five of the artists—Nutt, Nilsson, Rocca, Green, and Falconer—lasted an hour after the film and lent even more texture to the film with the artists responding to audience questions and speaking about their reactions to watching the film. They expressed a reverie in looking back on those days where they were quickly emerging onto an art scene that was "hot" as opposed to New York's "cool" as Rocca explained in the film.
The film also acquaints viewers with the processes of the art world as Buchbinder and her team interviews collectors, curators, critics, and gallerists. So much information is conveyed amid the stimulating imagery that jumps along with the catchy and driven musical score by the composer and cellist, Tomeka Reid. This is a wholly engrossing film that transports a viewer while inspiring and educating them about such a pinnacle time for the arts in Chicago and beyond. Screenings and panels continue through Oct. 9 at The Gene Siskel Film Center, so check out the full schedule here and be sure not to miss this infectiously fun film.