William Pope.L's Factory Samples

By Justin Sondak in Arts & Entertainment on Jun 27, 2006 4:50PM

To challenge our racial preconceptions, William Pope.L has crawled down the street in a Superman costume and invented new stereotypes (like “White People Are Gold”) through his three-year Skin Set Drawing series. The man once dubbed the “Friendliest Black Artist in America,” and one of the country’s most subversive, is in Chicago as part of The Black Factory tour.

Pope.L notes this factory makes opportunity, not blackness, and is powered by people rather than gas. But since he’s speaking metaphorically and forking out $3-4 per gallon like everyone else on the road, this might be the Factory’s last hurrah. Once the Black Factory van is parked and the display has been set up, its crew invites the public to discuss and reconsider race and community. That means feeding, baiting, provoking, and talking with bystanders. They encourage your donations of so-called black objects—“anything, anything! a person believes represents blackness to him or her”—which they will resell at art world prices and donate the proceeds to charity.

Chicagoist readers who love speaking their minds and participating in online communities (read: giving our and other websites a piece of their mind) should get a kick out this interactive event, which starts around noon and wraps up around dusk at UIC’s Gallery 400, 1240 West Harrison St. Mention Chicagoist and get a free tarot card reading!*

Image via Creative Capital Channel

* The readings are free regardless and they’ll likely have no idea what a Chicagoist is. We just like it when you mention us.