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KCUR - Kansas City news and NPR •

Excelsior Springs is a wonderland of Christmas and holiday delights. Here's a guide

This story was first published in KCUR's Adventure newsletter. You can sign up to receive stories like this in your inbox every Tuesday.It’s never too soon to begin planning for Christmas. Around Kansas City, you’ll find a wonderland of holiday markets, light shows, and themed activities.For those of you seeking something different, we also crafted a list of cold-weather hidden gems worth exploring in the city.But did you know that 35 minutes northeast of Kansas City lies a Christmas wonderland?...
Chicago Reader •

At the Arts Club, Haegue Yang collapses the 3D world - Chicago Reader

Is 2D inferior to 3D?

A 2021 study found that “3D objects are more readily perceived than 2D images” due to the cognitive understanding that we can interact with “real things.” Similarly, we may find ourselves more attracted to a sculptural object in front of us versus something two-dimensional hanging on a gallery wall.

Seoul-born artist Haegue Yang is known for her large-scale sculptures and site-specific installations. Her exhibitions always incorporate 2D elements, though they are more or...
Chicago Reader •

The grotesquerie of medical mistreatment - Chicago Reader

Each piece in Cheri Lee Charlton’s solo exhibition, “Unseen and Underserved,” is paired with a quote from literature or professional medical publications about women’s reproductive, general physical, and mental health, exposing misdiagnoses during the late 20th century and its devastating, if not deadly, consequences.

In Elliot Valenstein’s psychosurgery chronicle, Great and Desperate Cures, the psychologist writes, “Lobotomies were often administered to women who were considered too outspoken...
Fandom Fanatics •

Tortured Artist Therapy

What would you do if you had only one year left to live?Will you contemplate the unfairness of fate and fade away in misery, or maximize your remaining days to create memories and depart in relative contentment and fulfillment? Will you make yourself a martyr and sacrifice for a higher mission, going out with the loudest bang, or simply make the best of your final moments, free from all cares and concerns?At first glance, Drawing Closer, which premiered exclusively on Netflix on June 27, may be...
KCUR - Kansas City news and NPR •

Kansas City's art scene is full of fascinating exhibits this fall. Here's are 6 to check out

This story was first published in KCUR's Adventure newsletter. You can sign up to receive stories like this in your inbox every Tuesday.Kansas City’s kicking off its autumn in style. When you’ve finished sampling the apple cider at the metro’s many fall festivals and autumn events, consider heading to some great arts galleries and museums.Kansas City’s art scene is filled with intriguing exhibitions this season, besides the annual Halloween-themed shows and markets.Whether you are reminiscing ab...
Sixty Inches From Center •

Lentes Tripartitos: Una historia de ellos, de él, y de nosotros - Sixty Inches From Center

Departing from a 2022 documentary, “Hidden Letters,” that shines light upon an obscure writing system, Nüshu, practiced historically among certain groups of women in China, Xiao savors the complexity of being a Chinese woman in the Midwest and explores bonds that can be formed through the exclusivity of language.

Departing from a 2022 documentary, “Hidden Letters,” that shines light upon an obscure writing system, Nüshu, practiced historically among certain groups of women in China, Xiao savors...
Sixty Inches From Center •

Tripartite Lenses: a History of Them, Him, and Us - Sixty Inches From Center

This article is presented in conjunction with Art Design Chicago, an initiative of the Terra Foundation for American Art that seeks to expand narratives of American art with an emphasis on the city’s diverse and vibrant creative cultures and the stories they tell.


Para leer este artículo en Español, presione aqui.


A street photographer is often compared to Baudelaire’s flâneur: the anonymous wanderer who blends in and out of the crowd, observing and documenting the activities and interacti...
Chicago Reader •

My Eyes, Your Gaze urges the reader to resist objectification - Chicago Reader

“The body is confined. The body is surveilled. The body is torn apart,” writes Darya Foroohar, a fourth-year student at the University of Chicago. Illustrated and written by Foroohar, the graphic novella My Eyes, Your Gaze is many things: an introduction to various queer, anti-colonial, and feminist theories; a journal full of private thoughts and personal contradictions; and a manifesto of a woman who is tired of being treated as an object.


The book begins by describing the awkwardness Foroo...
Chicago Reader •

Shadow bodies dancing under the sun

An ambitious project is unfolding at the South Asia Institute (SAI). As part of this year’s programming for Art Design Chicago, “What Is Seen and Unseen: Mapping South Asian American Art in Chicago” is a journey from the past into the future, unearthing the marks left by South Asian artists in Chicago.

South Asian culture has had an irreplaceable influence on nearly every American art form. “South Asian American poets transfuse a wealth of new images into the bloodstream of U.S. poetry,” wrote
KCUR •

These are the 6 Kansas City art exhibits you need to explore this summer

This story was first published in KCUR's Adventure newsletter. You can sign up to receive stories like this in your inbox every Tuesday.

Kansas City knows how to have fun in the well-cooled indoors, from our growing distillery scene to the metro’s forever-intriguing vintage and thrift stores.

Kansas City’s independent galleries have their own surprises for you this season. Whether you’re looking to escape this year’s bitter summer heat in a meaningful way, or trying to find that perfect date i
KCUR •

Looking for ramen in Kansas City? You should eat at these restaurants

This story was first published in KCUR's Adventure newsletter. You can sign up to receive stories like this in your inbox every Tuesday.

For us, at least, ramen is always desirable regardless of the season. A hot bowl brings us back to life during the freezing days, but it can also kick away the mugginess (and provide some re-hydration) of hot summer months.

Fortunately, Kansas City is no short of brilliant Japanese restaurants, many of which offer ramen as one of many options.

But if you’re
KCUR •

The best artist-run spaces in Kansas City

This story was first published in KCUR's Adventure newsletter. You can sign up to receive stories like this in your inbox every Tuesday.

While the Crossroads remains the central art hub of Kansas City, artists across the metro have established their own spaces to create, collaborate and showcase their work.

With spots in the West Bottoms, North Hyde Park, and Kansas City, Kansas, among others, these artist-run spaces allow an affordable and accessible alternative to traditional galleries or mu
Chicago Artist Writers •

The Paglees: Between Reason and Madness at South Asia Institute – Chicago Artist Writers

History associates women with madness too casually, especially those whose voices were uncommon in the public sphere. Different, disturbing, difficult — such are the mad women in men’s eyes. Such are the mad women in women’s eyes. Lower-income women, women of color, and immigrant women are habitually marginalized even within the feminist world as “the dominance of a white, middle-class positionality within feminism that often failed to acknowledge the existence of intersectional oppressions” (Pa
Medium •

A Revitalized Classic and Painfully Relevant Performance

The Glass Menagerie is a “memory play,” and one that propelled Tennessee William into fame. The plot was simple: young, ambitious Tom (R.H. Wilhoit) and his burning adventurer’s spirit cannot stand withering away in the warehouse and returning to a suffocating apartment to his overly-energetic mother (Manon Halliburton) and malfunctioning sister (Erdin Schultz-Bever). In exchange, or in compensation for his decision to pursue the supposed freedom, Tom agreed to his mother’s demand to help his si
Bridge •

REVIEW: The Perspective of Nothingness; Chicago Works: Maryam Taghavi مریم تقوی at the MCA Chicago

Where one stands determines what/how one sees. What was considered sacrosanct and rigid gains fluidity under a different light. Taghavi refers to her cultural heritage and comfortably removes it from its original context to assign them refreshed meanings and functionalities. “I do have this thread to this language, to this culture, but it’s really hard to preserve it . . . with the distance that I have from it [and] with the time that we are living in,” Taghavi said in her interview with the MCA
Sixty Inches From Center •

Empowering Dancers with Accessible Information: An Interview with Mariah Eastman on the Chicago Dancer Pay Transparency Project

An interview with Mariah Eastman, founder of the Chicago Dancer Pay Transparency Project, on the burgeoning movement for equitable pay and fair treatment within Chicago’s dance community.

In the last few years, dancers from New York City Ballet to The School of America Ballet have spoken up to fight for livable wages and fair compensation. Similar voices can now be heard in Chicago’s dance community echoing calls for equitable treatment.

In 2023, Chicago dance company Darvin Dances started a s
Chicago Reader •

Review: Indus Blues

Imagine sitting in your hometown’s square. You’re playing a traditional musical instrument you’ve spent your whole life learning.

Officials far younger than you show up and tell you to stop and leave.

And when you try to tell them you’re playing the music that’s an essential part of your country’s culture, they scoff and say: “This is not even a part of our culture.”

This is the opening scene of the 2019 documentary Indus Blues, the first film scheduled for the South Asia Institute’s new bimo
Time Out •

The best theaters in Chicago

This 1,325-seat proscenium theater was designed by Chicago architects Marshall & Fox in 1910. Under its original name, the Blackstone Theatre, it served as a home for the Federal Theatre Project in the 1930s and hosted the premiere of Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun in 1959, in addition to scads of touring shows. In 1988, it was sold to DePaul University, which renamed the theater in honor of donor Reskin in 1992. The Theatre School at DePaul now uses the Reskin for its kid-oriented Chi
Block Club Chicago •

National Public Housing Museum Confronts Housing Crisis in New Exhibit, 'Evicted'

RIVER NORTH — “Home” is a vital concept for everyone — a place where people feel safe and secure, where they can always return to and be surrounded by belongings and perhaps family, friends and pets.

“Evicted” at the National Public Housing Museum, 625 N. Kingsbury St., explores the trauma that occurs when people are ejected from their homes.

Produced by Brooklyn-based firms MATTER, MGMT and Unfurl Productions, the exhibit was held at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., and has t
Fandom Fanatics •

Another Failed Male Attempt to Dipict Intricate Female Psychology

I recently read an essay on The Atlantics about how the small towns in America’s rural areas are slowly killing girls’ futures before their lives ever begin. When Eileen came to the theaters, I was much anticipating the film to explore this suffocating despair when the movie synopsis revealed that the story was about a young woman in a small Massachusetts town. And, of course, I was not about to miss the golden opportunity to see my goddess Anne Hathaway on the big screen.

I had high hopes befo
Time Out •

The best gaming lounges, cafes and shops in Chicago

Located steps from Logan Square, Midlane is an easy ride down the Blue Line. Healthy gamers also have the option to take their bikes since there is a bike rack right across the street, and the nearest 606 trail exit is only eleven minutes away.

Midlane Esports offers a sweet first-timer discount, granting you an hour of free play. The standard rates are $8 for one hour and $21 for three hours, but the best deal is the $22 Wombo Combo, which includes two hours of play, one specialty cocktail (or
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