Celebrate Deadline Projects' Second Anniversary

By Lauri Apple in Arts & Entertainment on Apr 10, 2009 4:00PM

Deadline Projects put on its first show as a nameless group back in February 2007, and has since evolved into a collective that regularly assembles shows with a rotating line of artists. On Saturday, April 11, Deadline officially celebrates its second anniversary with Absolute Zero, a one-night exhibition of multidisciplinary art inspired by "scientific theories of unattainable purity and undefinable states of being." The show takes place at Happy Dog Gallery, their current home base, and is free.

Recently we spoke to photographer/sculptor/designer and Deadline Projects member Sarah Perez about the group's development and upcoming show-niversary.

Chicagoist: Tell us a bit about Deadline Projects' history. How many people currently belong to it?

Sarah Perez: Deadline Projects has been a collaborative effort, involving various artists over the past few years. What started out as a kind of artists' "support group" has evolved into a group of local artists who organize events designed to inspire each other to create new work. We currently have 13 active members who regularly exhibit work and contribute to event planning. We also bring in one to three guest artists for every show to expand our circle and to keep the shows fresh.

C: How do you like having Happy Dog Gallery serve as your happy home?

SP: We are proud to call Happy Dog - located at the six-corners in Wicker Park - our "home," and we hope to continue to show there. It's such a great space, and we have had nothing but positive experiences there. As far as alternative gallery spaces go, Happy Dog Gallery has been professional and overly accommodating -- plus you can't beat the location.

C: How did the theme Absolute Zero come about, and how do you normally choose your show themes? Do you all get together and brainstorm, or vote, or something else?

SP: Absolute Zero came from one of our newest members, carlsweets, at one of our brainstorming meetings. Typically, the group meets up to discuss theme ideas for the next show, dates and deadlines, and general plans for the future of the group. Sometimes schedules don't mesh well for meetings, so we also do a lot of decision-making over group emails. Open-forum discussions get the ball rolling, and then later the group will vote on important details like show themes and guest artists.

We try to keep a pool of ideas we can go back to, as well as encourage all members to suggest new ideas. We also encourage all members to contribute show card designs, which the group also votes on.

C: Looking back, what has been your favorite DP show so far?

SP: Ahh -- I don't know if I can choose. Each show is so different and memorable, and I honestly think that we get better at it every time. Plus, our guest artists really do add a special flavor to each show. The crowd we get is always so positive and fun, too -- it amazes me every time. Each show we do becomes my new favorite -- ask me on Saturday, and I'll probably tell you, 'Absolute Zero is our best show yet!'

C: What have you learned about putting shows together in the two years you've been doing this?

SP: I think that making art and having fun comes naturally to us, but working together as a large group of people might not. It takes patience and constant reevaluation. We always joke that the group is in itself a living, breathing entity that is constantly growing and changing shape. If you miss a meeting, or sit out a show, you can feel a little out of the loop, but you can always jump back in.

Learning how to stay open to change while maintaining some sense of stability in the group is always a challenge, but keeping an influx of new people and new ideas is really important.

C: Are most of your shows one-nighters? Do you wish they were up longer?

SP: So far all of our shows have been one-night events. We definitely want to do some longer-run shows in the future. We'd also like to increase the frequency of our events; right now we are averaging three shows a year. Labor and time constraints have been hard to work around, but recently we have had such a positive response recruiting volunteers, which has been so amazingly helpful. For now, though, we hope that having one-night shows makes our events something you won't want to miss -- because the next one probably won't be for another three months or so.

C: How did you personally convey "absolute zero"?

SP: Ha! To be completely honest, I'm still finishing up my piece. Originally, I was exploring an emotional state of "absolute zero" -- kind of like a void, or an absolute state of emptiness. I'm still going in that direction, but my piece has taken a much more abstract point of view than I had expected. I guess you will have to come to the show to see what I've finally come up with!

C: How do people find out how to participate in your upcoming shows?

SP: Artists and art lovers are highly encouraged to visit our website for more information about upcoming shows, past shows, participating artists, and how to get in touch with us.

Saturday, April 11 at Happy Dog Gallery. 1542 N. Milwaukee, second floor. 6-11 p.m. Live music will be performed by Moment Sound.