Trisha Donnelly February 24 – April 6, 2008

The Renaissance Society at The University of The Renaissance Society First Class Mail at The University of Chicago Pre-sorted 5811 South Ellis Avenue PAID Chicago, Illinois 60637 Chicago, IL Phone: (773)702-8670 Permit No. 2336

The Renaissance Trisha Donnelly Society February 24 – April 6, 2008 at The University of Chicago 5811 South Ellis Avenue Opening Reception: Sunday, Feburary 24, 4:00–7:00pm Chicago, IL 60637 Featuring a talk with the artist from 5:00– 6:00pm

Museum Hours Tuesday - Friday: 10am - 5pm Saturday, Sunday: 12- 5pm Closed Mondays www.renaissancesociety.org

As Free As the Squirrels Related Events

No other humanist discipline has undergone as why becomes interchangeable with why not. OPENING RECEPTION CONCERT POETRY READING rigorous a self-examination as the visual arts. Donnelly has developed a form of martial Sunday, February 24, 4:00 to 7:00 pm Saturday, March 15, 8:00 pm Sunday, March 30, 2:00 pm Well above and beyond an investigation into the art and given lectures describing an alternate Ensemble Dal Niente Helen Mirra nature of its being, the field of art has gone so dimension. The latter, entitled THE 11th POETRY READING A Luciano Berio Recital Cloud, the, 3 far as to canonize works of so-called “anti-art.” PRISMATIC, betrays her penchant for the rites Tuesday, March 4, 5:30pm Sequenza I for voice (1966) Poetry remains an important aspect of Mirra’s From the 1917 debut of Duchamp’s infamous and rituals of explanation in a broader sense. Carla Harryman Sequenza IX for (1980) practice. An absolutely stunning publication Fountain, which consisted of simply a urinal While much of the work is performative in One of the preeminent Language poets, (1953) Cloud, the, 3 is an exceptionally adroit follow-up bearing a signature, to the sustained assault on nature, Donnelly avoids any relationship to an Carla Harryman is the author of twelve books Les mots sont alles for (1976-7) to Names and Poems and Alow, Mirra’s first visuality waged by conceptual artists, art by all audience that the designation “performance of poetry, prose plays, and essays. A 2004 Autre Fois (1971) two poetry-based artist books. Mirra will read accounts should have succumbed to its self- artist” might imply. In addition, Donnelly’s art, recipient of the award in poetry from The Musica Leggera (1974) from Cloud, the, 3 which tracks words and willed dismantling quite a while ago. Needless for all its freedom, tends to assume relatively Foundation for Contemporary Performing Arts, Folks Songs for mezzo and 7 instruments (1964) ideas through the index of John Dewey’s to say, this has yet to pass. Through earnest conventional forms. In this respect it is very Harryman is widely acknowledged as an Reconstruction in Philosophy (1920). A former efforts artists have, however, expanded art’s much legible as an art that, once slandered for Dal Niente is quietly building a reputation as one innovator in poetry, prose, and interdisciplinary Chicagoan, Mirra has had numerous solo definition to the point where art is no longer a being cryptic and hermetic, would now cite of the finest chamber ensembles in Chicago. performance. She teaches Women’s Studies, museum exhibitions including a 2001 exhibition discrete class of objects or activities but instead these terms as new-found inalienable rights. Led by Kirsten Broberg, they have been playing Creative Writing, and Literature at Wayne State at the Society. She currently teaches at Harvard a way of looking; art as a process of self- Any charges of obscurity are predicated to packed houses as was the case here last fall. University in Detroit. This event is presented in University. This event was funded in part by reflexive meaning-making, one that need not be on a claim to disclosure that Donnelly never They return this evening with an all Berio bill conjunction with Poem Present, with support Poets & Writers, Inc. through a grant it has mediated by illusionistic representation. A small undersigned. Instead, Donnelly would take with featured performers Alejandro Acierto from Poets & Writers, Inc. through a grant it received from an anonymous donor. This event tin of shit proudly produced and canned by the stock in an artistic legacy whose liberatory (clarinet) and Isabel Castellvi (cello), Amanda has received from an anonymous donor. This will take place in Swift Hall room 310 (3rd floor artist, Piero Manzoni himself, or a piece of potential has become, by her standards, DeBoer (soprano). This event will take place in event will take place in Classics Hall room 110. lecture hall). Swift is the building directly east of candy courtesy of Felix Gonzalez-Torres are but over-burdened with a self-consciousness the gallery and is FREE. (Classic Hall is 1010 E. 59th St.) FREE. Cobb Hall. two beautiful birds in a forest of signs that symptomatic of an excess of meaning; an would render our existence legible. But despite excess she would prefer to convert into beliefs CONCERT STAGED READING exercising its right to remain silent, gregariously ranging from quizzical to outlandish. The result Sunday, March 16, 7:00 pm Friday, March 7, 8:00 pm Trisha Donnelly has been made possible with generous support flirting with the irrational, and reveling in is an art that can be whatever. Accordingly, Millenium Chamber Players, from the Zell Family Foundation. Memory Play illegibility, art is still plagued with making sense what she may do when invited to exhibit is often guest soloist Victoria Bass (cello) by Carla Harryman Additional funding has been received from Alphawood in what is less a forest of signs and more a anyone’s guess. The choice of attire (cocktail, Foundation; the CityArts Program of The Chicago Department György Ligeti, Cello Concerto, 1966 semiotic jungle as any and all things may festive, proper, black tie) for attendance at the Harryman is widely acknowledged as an of Cultural Affairs, a municipal agency; Christie’s; The Gene Gutchë, Cantilena for Horn and Strings, 1950 Danielson Foundation; the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency; assume a meaning no longer reserved for the opening reception, per T.D., is yours. innovator in poetry, prose, and interdisciplinary Carmel Raz, Breathing for Ensemble, 2008 LaSalle Bank; The MacArthur Fund for Arts and Culture at more traditional work of art. performance and nothing exemplifies this more Prince; The Peter Norton Family Foundation; the Provost’s Sarah Ritch, Collage, 2008 Tell me why the ivy twines? As if Trisha than Memory Play where “the audience,”writes Discretionary Fund at The University of Chicago; The Pritzker Luciano Berio, Sequenza XIV, 2002 Traubert Family Foundation; The Siragusa Foundation; the Donnelly’s art needs a reason. Like ivy, Sara Schulman, “is invited into a whirlwind Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts; and our Ayaka Nishina, Membrane, 2004 Donnelly’s work is as it does. Now that art is no exploration of hierarchies through the mouths membership. Henri Dutilleux, Trois Strophes (1976-1982) longer a privileged site of meaning, Donnelly is of Bosch-like talking animals.” The hierarchies as free as the squirrels to produce art whose mentioned being social, political, economic, Led by Maestro Robert Katkov-Trevino, the justification would be its mere existence. Given biological and evolutionary. This event is Millennium Chamber Players are Chicago’s Exclusive Airline of The Renaissance Society’s 2007-2008 Season that meaning may be produced with or without supported by a UChicagoArts grant from the newest critically-acclaimed chamber ensemble. it, Donnelly is the first to admit that no one Arts Planning Council. This event will take place This two part bill will feature chamber works— needs her art. In exchange, she has carte at University Theater located in The Reynolds Ligeti’s seminal Cello Concerto and two newly blanche to roam the highways, byways and Club, 5706 S. University Avenue. FREE. commissioned works by young composers interstellar lo-ways of thought with nary a care (Raz, Ritch)—and works for solo cello. This as to what makes sense save to her. CONCERT event will take place in the gallery and is FREE. Calling hers a ‘body’ of work is almost Thursday, March 13, 8:00 pm claiming too much coherence for a highly Jack String Quartet CONCERT heterogeneous output that includes drawings, Georg Haas, In iij. Noct., Tuesday, March 18, 8:00 pm photographs, audio works, sculptures, events String Quartet No. 3, 2001 Ossatura w/ Ensemble No Amnesia (Donnelly is very wary of the term performance), John Pickford Richards, Elio Martusciello (electronics) and videos. Although it is tempting to cast her Ari Streisfeld, Fabrizio Spera (percussion and electronics) as the consummate post-medium artist, in her Christopher Otto, violin Luca Venitucci (accordion and electronics) case that is already an over-determined Kevin McFarland, cello Lisa Goethe () category, for Donnelly genuinely has no Mike Hartman (electronics) medium. If anything she is a pre-medium artist, This concert marks the return of the Jack String Marina Peterson (cello) where “medium” could just as soon refer to a Quartet. With ringing endorsements from the Gene Coleman (bass clarinet) psychic. Not overly concerned with form, her art likes of Helmut Lachenmann and Matthias is the precipitate of a belief system fashioned Pintscher, the JACK Quartet has emerged as Improvisation represents the backbone of the within a web of signification where logic and one of the country’s premier string ensembles. music played by Ossatura (Martusciello, superstition are virtually indistinguishable. When This evening they will perform Georg Friedrich Spera and Venitucci). Their music is marked by posed before any of her work, the question of Haas’ Third String Quartet, a roughly 45-minute a sequence of sound blocks and diversified work of mind-numbing beauty in which no two interlocking timbres and shapes, where detailed performances could ever be the same. This textural work alternates with rhythmic event will take place in the gallery and is FREE. accelerations and highly dense sound events. Take all of that and multiply it by two as they will be joined by the well seasoned members Ensemble Noamnesia. This event will take place

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