Britt Julious

Why do artists leave Chicago?

By: Britt Julious | Apr. 19, 2013

Apr. 19, 2013
 
These migrations all occur at once. Or at least that is how they appear initially. Whether is was for school or work or opportunity, they left in droves and it always hurt. Growing older is acknowledging and accepting the complications of life. We begin adulthood with hopes and aspirations. Aging is both the working toward and the acceptance of success and defeat. This is okay. It must be okay.
 
The great artistic pilgrimage feels painful because our identities are tied into where we live. Leaving here is like leaving your friend. We feel abandoned and left behind, as if we are missing out on something important. To leave is to reject what we've always known. And when you live in one place long enough, you begin to adapt it as your own. I once heard that to call a city one's own, one must live there for at least seven years. I have lived here my whole life. Losing a friend to a move is a deeper rejection. It feels personal. 
 
But really, the decisions others make are on the part of those who leave. They leave because they want to or they have to. Their identity is not tied to this place. What they set out to do in life can not be accomplished here, not entirely.

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Oak Park's Jonah Ansell on his film starring Tavi Gevinson

By: Britt Julious | Apr. 16, 2013

Apr. 16, 2013
For Jonah Ansell, Chicago mattered. His experiences growing up in and near the city in the Western suburb of Oak Park directly nurtured his creative pursuits. His latest work, Cadaver, is a lushly-constructed and visually-mesmerizing graphic novel and animated short film starring Oak Park teen and fashion/media mogul Tavi Gevinson, Academy Award winner Kathy Bates, and Christopher Lloyd. It tells the story of a cadaver who wakes up to tell his wife a final goodbye only to discover a truth about death he did not know in life. A mix of child-like storytelling with more mature themes, Cadaver is a testament to the power of the grand narrative in creating works of fiction. The film plays April 23 at the Edlis Neeson Theater at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago.

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The secret art collections of the South Side

By: Britt Julious | Apr. 12, 2013

Apr. 12, 2013

One of the greatest local collections of African Diaspora art is located in a beautiful graystone on a recovering block in the Bronzeville area. The block itself, like many found throughout the neighborhood, masks the hidden treasures of many of its residents.

Owned by local artist and former teacher Felicia Grant Preston, the collection is a refreshing representation of underrated black artists on a local, national – and even international scale. The collection, like the South Side itself, is a surprise for outsiders unfamiliar with the rich history of black art, especially locally.

It may take a while to view the entire collection. On a recent Sunday afternoon, I spent a few hours in Preston’s home taking in the impressive collection and also inquiring about the state of art making and collecting on the South Side of Chicago. Preston was eager to share her thoughts. It doesn’t hurt that she is an artist, too.

Her artistic eye helped fuel her collection featuring the likes of Elizabeth Catlett, Lois Mailou Jones, Mary Reed Daniel, Faith Ringgold, AfriCOBRA, and Richard Hunt.

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The simplicity of Danny's

By: Britt Julious | Apr. 11, 2013

Apr. 11, 2013
Close to where I rest every night, I did not realize that a little house would instead feel more like a home. Chicago is a unique environment in that some of the most interesting venues for traditional nightlife culture – the dance floor, the dive bar, the music venue – are located on desolate streets and residential blocks. In the case of Danny’s (1951 W Dickens Ave.), a still-thriving bar that turns into something of a club on the weekends, the nondescript storefront is located right off of Damen and on a block full of family homes. 
 
I first went to Danny’s for a friend’s birthday a couple of years ago. She had been especially excited to go to the venue as it was her first time in the space. However, after only an hour or two, she left underwhelmed. But my experiences were markedly different. Despite the fact that it was a cloudy, rainy evening, a line formed outside. Since then, I’ve noticed that this is one of the greatest signifiers of the space. And inside, the bar was beyond packed. 
 
I can never really recall what music is being played at Danny’s. Danny’s is not a venue for national and international touring DJs and performers.

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Why American audiences love British teen shows

By: Britt Julious | Apr. 5, 2013

Apr. 5, 2013
 
It wasn’t just that Skins was good or even great. It was that Skins was real. And even when it didn’t seem as real as actual life, it was smart, funny, and respectful of its teenage characters. That is what drew me into the British digital e4 television network (home of Skins) and what drew many others to the network as well.
 
Marketed toward the 15-35 age group, e4 programming also includes US imports such as How I Met Your Mother, The Big Bang Theory, and Revenge.  Although e4 produced a handful of shows before the groundbreaking Skins, it was that show that gave the network visibility in the United States. For many, it also nurtured a love for British television in general.

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Let's end the politicization of black women's hair

By: Britt Julious | Apr. 3, 2013

Apr. 3, 2013

It was surprisingly humid for the middle of March. 

“This weather is not good for my hair,” I said to a young man I had just met at my friend Katie’s celebration for quitting her job. It was a one-off comment, not meant to elicit anything other than a nod of the head. If anything, I was more talking to myself than him. 
 
“Oh yeah, I saw that Chris Rock film? Good Hair?” he said, with that inflection that turns a statement into a question.
 
“Oh,” I replied. That was all I could say. Although the discussion surrounding the film’s release was somewhat welcome at the time, since then, the discussion about black women’s hair has been reduced to the politics of that particular film.

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I am [enter neighborhood here]

By: Britt Julious | Mar. 29, 2013

Mar. 29, 2013

We embrace stereotypes of neighborhoods because they sometimes prove to be true. I live near Wicker Park, a neighborhood known for its nightlife and youth culture. Although this identity is not as strong as it once was (gentrification has a way of changing the identity of a neighborhood multiple times), it is still prevalent in the clothing stores, boutiques, high-end coffee shops, and club-like bars that line Milwaukee Avenue. Once we’ve seen our stereotypes to be true, we hold on to them. It is easier to rely on what we know than what we don’t. Seeing once is believing.

But we often stereotype these neighborhoods because our identities are tied into these environments. I had a friend and coworker who moved to Logan Square not because he wanted to, but because he felt it was the thing he was supposed to do.

“I mean, all of my friends are moving there. Everyone my age, like me, has moved or is moving there,” he said while we chatted at a party.

Chicago as a city of neighborhoods can mean a number of different things. This cultural identity can be comforting. People of similar races, ethnicities and classes move to neighborhoods where they can be among their own.

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'The Perch' project

By: Britt Julious | Mar. 22, 2013

Mar. 22, 2013

Chicago turns something out of nothing. It is not the city itself that does this, but the people within it, homegrown or recently transplanted. Chicago gives artists and other creatives the opportunity to build from the ground up, allowing them to not only visualize their dreams but to actualize them. Although these artists are often lacking in the traditional market forces (as in a print and money-driven economy influencing who gets the media attention and higher-valued work), the size of the city and the abundant and underutilized spaces allow creatives to build projects with their own visions, usually with little to no financing involved.

This makes Chicago a fertile ground for creative projects such as Matt Austin’s The Perch. Part underground dinner party, part printing press, and part collaborative artistic social experiment, The Perch could only be born in a city like Chicago. Austin’s funds are considerably low. The project takes place in his own home.

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