Tony Fitzpatrick's studio on North Damen Avenue in Bucktown was, for seventeen years, the place where he made his work. He has since moved his artmaking practice into his home, in order to convert the studio into an exhibition space. Firecat Projects opened on Friday, November 19th, 2010, with an inaugural exhibition of Tony's work, called The Night Parade.
The new "webisode" of Fear No Art Chicago, hosted by Elysabeth Alfano and featuring Tony Fitzpatrick, is now up on YouTube. Hard-nosed art world professionals may find the program's very accessible treatment a little too much so, as its intended to introduce a wider, more general audience to the work of creative professionals in Chicago. However, even the most entrenched member of the art scene should be able to appreciate these little vignettes of various creative workers in Chicago. The episode featuring Tony is probably my favorite, and even in the ten-minute segment his personality really shows.
Tony's play "Stations Lost" opens at the Steppenwolf on July 7th, following last year's production of "This Train." Working on the play has kept Tony pretty busy lately, but with the help of his assistant Stan Klein he's kept up a steady exhibition schedule at Firecat Projects as well. Tonight is the opening of Lantern Fly Sex Cure: New Insect Drawings by Lauren Levato. This is the eighth exhibition at Firecat. The previous exhibitions were Tony Fitzpatrick, Randy Regier, Jenny Scobel, Duncan Anderson, Alex Blau, Joe Amrhein, and Jared Joslin.
Lantern Fly Sex Cure features a collection of Lauren Levato's insect drawings. Levato collects insects, and works directly from the specimens. The two I've seen online include a drawing of a longhorn beetle executed entirely in No.2 pencil, and a drawing of some strange, exotic cicada that has markings on its back resembling a skull, a misshapen heart, and the traditional Irish Claddagh, which Levato describes as "traditional symbol and love token or wedding ring from Ireland." Some of the drawings were exhibited back in March at Firecat Projects' booth at Verge: Art Brooklyn. For those of us, like myself, who were not fortunate enough to make it out to Brooklyn for the fair, it's not too late to see what this woman can do with bugs! Come on out tonight and see what she's been up to. According to the press release, the event also promises a special screening of The Three Organizations of L.R. Levato, a collaborative film by Chris Hefner, featuring Lauren's three collections (including insects), poet Dave Snyder, professional interlocutor Megan Larmer, and soundscapist Tommy Jansen. We are also promised an explanation of what this "lantern fly sex cure" is, exactly.
Lantern Fly Sex Cure: New Insect Drawings by Lauren Levato opens Friday, June 24, 7:00pm - 10:00pm, at Firecat Projects, 2124 N. Damen, Chicago, IL. More info available on the Facebook event page.
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.
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