"Slow Dance" At ACRE Projects Sunday

By Staff in Arts & Entertainment on Mar 24, 2012 3:30PM

Matt Austin, Bird Hanger, Archival Pigment Print, 20×24″, 2012

If you’re looking for an artistically stimulating way to spend your Sunday afternoon, we’d like to suggest "Slow Dance" at ACRE Projects in Pilsen.

ACRE Projects, an incubator and artist residency for emerging artists in Chicago, exhibits some of the most emergent work in the city. This Sunday, Matt Austin and EJ Hill will present an exhibition of new work in "Slow Dance," including the release of their new collaborative publication, "/".

"Slow Dance" explores the negotiation of individual positions within a given union. With this work, Hill and Austin study juxtaposed components that share united significance, such as how an inhale and exhale work together to create breath. Their collective work spans across the mediums of photography, writing, and drawing. Austin and Hill are releasing a book titled "/", printed in an edition of 30 by Matt Avignone's there's just no telling publishing. The publication is a 5"x8", 60-page book comprising of writing, photography, and drawings. Each edition is signed and numbered and they will be available for purchase at the opening for $40.

Hill's work often focuses around bodily investigations. His past work has included studies of his body's properties and limitations both physically and in the cultural space. Hill recently exhibited at One Inch Punch (Los Angeles), graduated with a BFA from Columbia College Chicago and is a current MFA candidate at UCLA. His past work includes exhibitions at Vis Projects (Chicago), The Mission Projects (Chicago), and a one day performance at LiVE WORK (San Francisco).

Austin's photographic work has been exhibited throughout the city, including Catherine Edelman Gallery, NEXT: International Exhibition of Emerging Art, MDW Fair, and the Art Institute of Chicago's Sullivan Galleries. He recently received the Illinois Artists' Council Grant that will fund the publishing of his book. Austin is a BFA graduate of Columbia College Chicago.

The opening reception is from 4-8 p.m. Sunday, March 25 at ACRE Projects. The gallery will also hold open hours on Monday, March 26 from noon-4 p.m. ACRE is located at 1913 W 17th St. For more info, check out http://www.acreresidency.org/

—Julia Weeman