I'm putting myself on report. This edition of the Snack Report is dedicated to practicing what I preach, to nutting up or shutting up, to putting my money where my mouth is: or, more accurately, to putting my money where your mouth is. For once, the tables are turned, and instead of me showing up at your show, eating your food, and drinking your booze, it's the other way around!
In conjunction with the OpShop, run by Laura Shaeffer of Home
Gallery and The Larch,
Jeriah Hildwine (that's me!) has curated a group exhibition of
small works, themed along the idea of the old VHS-based video stores
common in the 1980s and 1990s. The title, VideoStore7.375x4x1, refers to the dimensions of a VHS cassette. In a fortuitous coincidence, this iteration of OpShop happens to be located in a former Hollywood Video location!
We also made snacks! We bought a case of Two Buck Chuck (it's three bucks apiece here in Chicago), and managed not to drink it all before the opening. We also brought a variety of healthful nibbles including walnuts, raisins, pepitas (pumpkin seeds), almonds, oranges, apples, and a papaya. But, the real centerpiece were two dishes Stephanie cooked: spinach balls, the recipe for which Stephanie got from the mother of an artist showing at Home Gallery a few months ago, and spinch-filled filo triangles. She used goat cheese instead of the traditional Greek feta, and the result was awesome.
The work itself consisted of two parts. In the main space, several display racks left over from the OpShop's former function were used to display small works of art scaled to the 7.375" by 4" by 1" dimensions of a VHS cassette. These included works by Annie Heckman, Jared Weiss, Aaron Delehanty, James Angello, Stephanie Burke, and myself. (And you can just keep that snarky "curating yourself into a show" naysaying to your self. This was more like a "I had this fun idea, who else wants to play?" kind of thing, not a "Woo hoo I'm a curator now I can make myself famous!" kind of thing.)
In addition to the basically-2D work on display on the racks, a downstairs screening room presented a video series called "Cultural Necrophilia," itself curated by Mike Morris who also contributed one of the videos. These videos were run on a loop until approximately 8pm, at which point Miguel Angel Casillas screened his film "Son Of A Bitch: The Movie."
After "Son Of A Bitch," Aaron Delehanty presented his Monster Movie Seminar, originally commissioned by Delehanty from monster movie expert Matt Fagan. I originally saw this seminar presented at LillStreet Art Center on Valentine's Day, by Fagan himself. Delehanty was good enough to re-present the seminar as part of VideoStore7.375x4x1.
Stephanie's filo triangles and spinach balls were a big hit, especially popular with a group of teenagers who'd been hanging around the OpShop with some friends, working on a mural. Fortunately, there were plenty for all. The fruit, on the other hand, had few takers. The papaya was confusing; I had several friends ask me what it was. "A squash? Is it cooked?" one ventured. Only by cutting off small pieces and basically forcing them down people's throats was I able to get anyone to try it. Even then, most of it ended up coming home with us, where it will end up in smoothies, I guess. (To be fair, it wasn't the sweetest papaya I've ever had; it was a little bland, and would have been better with some lime juice on it.)
The ratio of wine to attendees, as well the 12 pack of beer that Aaron and our friends Oli and Victoria provided, ensured that everyone was good and riled up by the time the seminar began. Aaron was a remarkably good sport about the rude pack of loud drunks we'd all become by the time he began his presentation. This was where the nuts and seeds, largely ignored before this point, came in. No, we didn't start throwing them at each other. They were a welcome source of munchies during the presentation, and guaranteed at least a few seconds of silence from the person who was eating them.
All in all, it was a fun night. I wish more of our friends had made it out, especially for the Monster Movie Seminar, but good news: rumor has it that Aaron may re-present the Seminar in the main space of the OpShop in the near future. Stay tuned to the OpShop's website and blog for further updates.
Simultaneous with, but independent of, VideoStore7.375x4x1, are a video installation by Annie Heckman, and an installation of static-filled televisions by Stephanie Burke. Both of these installations were in the basement, which is a really creepy space.
Originally conceived of as a one-night event, the two-dimensional component of VideoStore7.375x4x1 will remain in the space through the end of April, with a closing bash of sorts planned for May 1. Negotiations are in place for the OpShop to remain in this space through
the month of May, although these are not solid as of this writing. Stay tuned to the OpShop's website for more info.
Jeriah is an artist,
educator, writer, and snack enthusiast. You can see his work at www.jeriahhildwine.com, and read his columns at Art Talk Chicago and Chicago
Art Magazine. Jeriah lives
and works in Chicago, with his wife Stephanie
Burke.
Filed under: Uncategorized
Tags: Aaron Delehanty, Annie Heckman, Home Gallery, James Angello, JaredWeiss, Jeriah Hildwine, Laura Shaeffer, Miguel Angel Casillos, Mike Morris, OpShop, Stephanie Burke
