. Conversations at the Edge (CATE)

Oct 23 – Cao Fei: Haze and Fog

Thursday, October 23rd | Cao Fei in person! Chinese artist Cao Fei mixes fantasy, documentary, and virtual reality to reflect on the ways China’s rapidly changing economy has transformed the everyday lives and imaginations of its citizens. Her latest film, Haze and Fog (2013) is a darkly humorous reinterpretation of the zombie film set in Beijing. Here the undead […]

On John Smith…

It seems apt this week that Chicago is experiencing such a torrent of rather British-like weather, as we prepare to welcome the legendary John Smith to Conversations at the Edge (CATE). This week is a very special event due to the fact Smith was the first artist to present at CATE in 2001. We are […]

October 16 – An Evening with John Smith

Thursday, October 16th | John Smith in person! In his playful and thought-provoking short films and videos, UK filmmaker John Smith explores the language of cinema and reflects on the image’s role in politics, war, and the global economy. The 2013 Jarman Award winner presents a selection from across his 40-year career, including the seminal The Girl Chewing […]

An Interview with Jonathan Monaghan

During his time in Chicago Jonathan Monaghan sat down with Kayla Lewis, a second year Art & Technology MFA candidate here at SAIC, to speak about his surreal explorations of power, value, and the role of technology. Monaghan presented a series of his works entitles Alien Fanfare at CATE September 18th 2014. He creates sculpture and animated video […]

On Andrew Lampert…

You lucky blog readers are in for another treat this week, with second year graduate Art History student Elizabeth Metcalfe’s musings on how Andrew Lampert as both a producer and a conservator questions, reconstructs and ultimately expands what we as an audience perceive the scope of Cinema to be.  The term curator derives from the […]

October 9 – Andrew Lampert: Tables Turned

Thursday, October 9th | Andrew Lampert in person! Artist, archivist, and curator Andrew Lampert is known for his mischievous live media performances and hilarious short films and videos, many of which cheekily turn “cinema” on its head. Lampert uses improvisation, unusual projector placement, and sets of game-like instructions to explore (and exploit) the dynamic relationships between projector, […]

On Carlos Motta…

This week SAIC graduate student Charles Rice writes about how he has drawn inspiration from Carlos Motta’s work in order to develop a practice informed by abandonment, autobiography and memory. My own artistic practice is centered on my own (queer) body and how I may establish a narrative that acknowledges my own lived histories. I […]

October 2 – Carlos Motta: The Nefandus Trilogy

Thursday, October 2nd | Carlos Motta in person! Carlos Motta’s practice draws upon various political histories in an attempt to articulate counter narratives that recognize suppressed histories, communities, and identities. Composed of the three films Nefandus, Shipwreck (Naufragios) and The Defeated (La visión de los vencidos) his 2013 Nefandus Trilogy is a haunting examination of pre-Hispanic homoeroticism […]

On Jennifer Reeder…

I’m delighted to publish SAIC graduate student Cassie Carpenter’s short text on why she, as a woman who traces her roots to the Midwest, is so excited to see Jennifer Reeder’s work at Conversation at the Edge (CATE) this week. Regional identity has always been somewhat of a challenge for me. I was born in […]

September 25 – Jennifer Reeder: A Million Miles Away

Thursday, September 25 | Jennifer Reeder in person! Jennifer Reeder’s pop-noir films explore women’s experiences in breakups, breakdowns, and new beginnings. The award-winning Chicago artist presents four recent shorts and a preview of her latest project, Blood Below the Skin. A Million Miles Away (2014) listens in on the bedroom conversations of teenage girls as they forge bonds over absent […]

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