Bodies Immersed: Megan Diddie & Jacquelyn Carmen Guerrero with ColectivoMultipolar

There will not be an opening reception for this exhibition, though we will host extended hours on March 5th, 4- 9 PM. Please see the homepage for appointment details.

For Bodies Immersed, Megan Diddie will present Hot House; an ongoing project that started in 2016. Hot House visualizes a fantastical and speculative public institution, the botanical bathhouse, by examining and reforming video footage of coldly real and extant structures: the four remaining public bathhouses in Chicago, the Garfield Park Conservatory, and the variegated infrastructure of the Enduring City. In addition, the project’s drawings and sculptures reflect upon these public work utopias. In Chicago, the forever striving ‘Global City’, luxury saunas and wellness spaces are becoming increasingly popular, with access hinging on a rarefied socio-economic status. Hot House plans an opposing vision, based on historical public works that provided free or inexpensive services through humble design and general provision. Hot House contemplates places of ‘encounter’, places where we see each other in intimate settings such as the restroom or the public pool. The conservatory element of this project considers how nature might take more precedence in daily life. The pieces are modular and visitors are encouraged to move and re-design the layout. In order to find plants that grow best in and around the sculptures, Diddie has been working with Sussanah Donne, an ecopsychologist and botanical artist. *Hot House was partially funded by DCASE and a printed book of drawings will accompany these pieces and be free to the public.

Jacquelyn Carmen Guerrero will exhibit a series of photographs, videos, and sculptural works produced in collaboration with visual documentarian ColectivoMultipolar, during the TRQPITECA 2021 Miami Artist Residency. During their residency program, the artists explored a variety of natural areas in South Florida, including the Oleta River, the Everglades, and the Florida Keys, where ColectivoMultipolar photographed and filmed experimental movement performances by Guerrero. These performances, many of which took place in and around bodies of water and during sunrise or sunset, reflected the connected transitional experiences and perspectives of human and non-human bodies over a period of time. An idea of “natural habitat” emerged in the context of South Florida as the birth place of artist Guerrero, and the significance of their body returning to home land. Corporeal immersion is also explored through contrasting image sets shot in manufactured spaces where bodies are absorbed and reflected, such as in a swimming pool and a stairwell of mirrors. As a whole, the series blurs the lines between natural, sensual, and spiritual, and allows viewers to immerse their own bodies into this world of experiences. This work was made possible by TRQPITECA and printed at Latitude Chicago

Megan Diddie is a Chicago-based artist working with video, animation, drawing, and ceramics. Her work explores the possibilities found where our bodies, nature, and the systems that organize our lives meet.

Jacquelyn Carmen Guerrero is an interdisciplinary artist whose practice explores relationships between identity and heritage, the natural and the supernatural, the ephemeral and the ancient. These subjects are expressed through ornate objects, installations, music, and movement performances that seek to provoke reflection and transformation.

ColectivoMultipolar (Sandra Oviedo) is a Chicago-based photographer and documentarian originally from Mexico. #DocumentingOurStory is an ongoing project, a historic testament of queer stories that encompass the relationships we build on the dance floor, in the prism of diverse identities. Her camera travels across social isolation and brings to light our bonds as a celebration of our existence.

Please note, we will be taking the following precautions to prevent the spread of COVID-19: Gallery visits are by appointment only. Three visitors are allowed in the gallery at a time. Masks are mandatory. There will be no public bathroom accessible. If you have tested positive for or are experiencing any symptoms of COVID-19, we ask that you stay home.