OUT at CHM | Art, AIDS, and Activism

How was art used to speak out about the AIDS pandemic, advocate for its victims, and critique public response to this health crisis? Drawing on two exhibitions on view in Chicago—Art AIDS America Chicago at the Alphawood Gallery and One day this kid will get larger at the DePaul Art Museum—this presentation examines artists who participated as activists during the AIDS crisis of the 1980s and 90s and contemporary artists responding to that time and ongoing HIV health issues. Moderated by Joseph Varisco, Alphawood Foundation program coordinator and founder of QUEER, ILL + OKAY, panelists include: John Neff – Main presenter and panelist, artist and lecturer at SAIC Mary Patten – SAIC professor, artist, activist, and a founder of ACT-UP/Chicago Oli Rodriguez – artist and founder of the Papi Project Alisa Swindell – Gallery 400 curatorial assistant, activist, and PhD candidate in art history at University of Illinois at Chicago