School of the Art Institute of Chicago turns art auction into whimsical 'Happening'
Video courtesy: Carol Fox and Associates
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The School of the Art Institute of Chicago held a "Happening Auction Party" Friday night to celebrate its online art auction with festivity and whimsy.
The event was held in the school's flagship public gallery at 33 E. Washington St., across the street from Macy's. The event was inspired by Allan Kaprow's "Happenings" in the art world of the 1950s and 60s which are considered key to the development of performance art.
The SAIC said in the midcentury "Happenings," Kaprow and his contemporaries would "perform small tasks that encompassed art, performance, and spontaneity."
There were two Happenings at the auction Friday night, both involving 8- to 10-minute performances with audiences dispersed throughout the gallery space, the SAIC said. The first happening, "Significant form," featured 12 performers, who choreographed audience members into different actions based on the colors of their clothes – while putting masks by artist Oli Watt over their eyes and making noises, the SAIC said. The second happening, "The Banquet," had audience members arranged into "an absurd and surreal tableau," that was documented with Polaroid cameras, the SAIC said.
The evening also included a live auction with works by Suellen Rocca, Karl Wirsum, Roger Brown, Betsy Rupprecht, and Ellen Lanyon.
All attendees also had the opportunity to enter a drawing to win one of 10 limited-edition prints by artist and SAIC alum Chris Ware.