On April 8, FUGUE STATE brings the second of two new programs to Elastic Arts Foundation, featuring radical cinema, new premieres, expanded cinema performances, and interactive installations!

Placing together queer history and queer presence in Cinema, we ask you to enter and expand the annals of Queer Film. With this series we showcase queer erotica past and present, centralizing queer desire to remind us of our histories. From vintage arthouse pornos, 80s-90s backroom home movies, 00s web boom, and into the tech fueled world of the 2010s to present we contextualize queer desire through multiple lenses. As we fight for physical queer spaces today and find ourselves equipped with cameras/computers in our pockets and generations of under-seen queer history at our disposal, where do we go?

This is our proposal to you, but let us warn you… it’s FILTHY!

This event is 18+

Chicago percussionist and composer Tim Daisy has prepared a new set of scores for two percussionists and piano, which he will present every Monday in April as part of the Homeroom Residency series at Elastic Arts.

At our April Elastro series we’re excited to welcome Philadelphia artist apologist to town as they tour the midwest. We’ll first experience performances from Chicago artists Itsï Ramirez and erψn temp3st.

Dark Matter Residency + Series presents BLK Noise, a night featuring experimental immersive soundscapes, noisy circuits and sonic rituals. Sets from artists Kwami Winfield (NY), D. Jean-Baptiste, Femi Shonuga-Fleming (NY), and Naturalblkinvention, and ilovecomputergirl djing throughout the night at Elastic Arts. Join us on Saturday April 4th at 8:30pm.  More info TBA!

Join us for the visual gallery exhibition opening of Too Tender Headed , a petition for reclaiming our divine sensitivities and memorializing tenderness. Curated by Harlem West

Packed night of Chicago veterans including a trio of Keefe Jackson, Jim Baker, and Julian Kirshner and a solo set by the one and only Carol Genetti is punctuated by powerhouse duo Whisker making a rare duo appearance.

On April 1, FUGUE STATE brings the first of two new programs to Elastic Arts Foundation, featuring radical cinema, new premieres, expanded cinema performances, and interactive installations!

Join us for an evening of trans poetics.

Even as our lives are under siege by a violent and racist empire, trans people continue to live extraordinary lives and make art that reflects those lives. On Trans Day of Visibility, a small collection drawn from Chicago’s thriving collective of trans poets will perform their work for and with their community.

Join us for an historic collaboration between two Chicago powerhouses born on opposite ends of the city: the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians and Ensemble Dal Niente. Members of each group will combine into a single super-ensemble, performing new work by Elastic Arts 2026 honoree Renee Baker and more.

AIRMW Arts Initiatives Presents: Takashi Shallow: Recent Projects

Shallow will present an array of recent works stemming from his varied sonic practice including teaching video game music at The University of Chicago, soundtracking a documentary about the ghosts of Portuguese steelworkers in Paris for a Villa Albertine-Fiminco residency, and writing a forthcoming book about DJing in collaboration with Evoke Gallery. 

An evening of rhythmic technologies - drums, drones, dance from three unique solo artists: percussionist Bill Harris capping off his solo tour at home, synthesist Brian McFarlane visiting from Detroit, and a new project by sound/performance artist Becky Grajeda.

Pianist and a Partner (Perhaps) is back for their first event of 2026!

This special night of song will feature an incredible lineup of songwriters performing their work. The night will include a collective improvisation, bringing all performers together in a set that explores how the art and form of song shapes spontaneous collaboration.  

We welcome experimental sound artist Leo Chang from NYC!!!

Will Greene and Ro Lunberg unveil their new electro-acoustic duo project entitled Original Time Demonstrations.

Tone Glow is excited to present "Life's Collapsed Stanzas" a two-program event featuring 12 films by the pioneering filmmaker Bruce Baillie (1931-2020).

This month the CLEAT Series welcomes three solo performances from hypergrace, Matt Test, and Daniel Petry.

Space and exploration are the priorities of tonight’s performers - small ensembles making the most of their textures using long-form structure and song structures paying homage to the outer edges of 70s jazz.

At this month’s Elastro series we present a solo set from producer/DJ Hameedullah and a new duo from Janna Lee and Norman Long called Desiring Machines.

Joe Rauen makes musical instruments from household items. He uses things such as kitchen utensils, plumbing, canes, hockey sticks, pool noodles, tennis racquets, and salad bowls to make playable musical sculptures. Joe will present improvised music based on audience suggestions.

Christopher Dammann (bass), Avreeayl Ra (percussion), Edward Wilkerson, Jr. (reeds), and Josh Berman (cornet) are internationally recognized artists with Chicago as a home base.

8:30 pm: Joe Rauen
9:30 pm: Dammann / Berman / Ra / Wilkerson

$15 / $10 w/ Student ID - Tickets Available at the Door

At this month’s Dark Matter Series we welcome two bands, Rizing Deity and Naydja Bruton’s Rhythm Ninjas.

Join us for a FREE puppet community meeting for you! Join us to see cool puppets-in-process of creation; all stages of development are invited to share a community space for experimentation. Everyone is welcome! Bring a project, prototype, sketch, or idea, no matter how rough, or just come for the conversation! Stick around for a brief introduction to Elastic Arts & our first Chicago Black puppeteer symposium!

An opening reception for Ricardo Adame’s ‘Without Hesitation’ exhibition, featuring a performance by Lia Kohl, Rin Peisert, Irene Hsiao, Scott Rubin, and Skyler Rowe.

Emily Rach Beisel presents a visceral solo performance blending extended vocal and instrumental techniques with analogue electronics. Beisel will be followed by the longstanding duo project of performance artist Rin Peisert and bass clarinetist Jason Stein.

8:30 pm: Emily Rach Beisel
9:30 pm: Rin Peisert/Jason Stein Duo

$15 / $10 w/ Student ID - Tickets Available at the Door

At our February Pleiades Series Nu A.M. opens the night with cassette-based sound collage built from tape loops, field recordings, and found media. Delilah Smith follows with an electroacoustic solo set for guitar and live audio mosaicing, reshaping sound in real time through improvisation and transformation.

Shake Shook Shaken is a dream of what a safe space could allow. A vision of a place for everybody to gather, look at each other, play and create in a non judgmental, trauma-informed way. It’s an invitation, a journey within and out, a surprise. Each workshop is unique. This month we’ll have David Seeber and Julie leading on the topic of PLAY.

Jeff Goulet and Mickey Farès conjure electric guitar and voice into haunting new-age soundscapes, drifting from serene calm to jagged chaos. Sultry, commanding, and dangerously seductive, their performances lure you through a hypnotic journey of tension and desire.

Lorazepam is an experimental, improvised group prescribed to be taken aurally to enhance the activity of certain neurotransmitters in the brain. The chemical structure consists of Erik Sowa on drums and percussion, Erica Miller on cello and electronics, and Dan Hansen on effected vocals. Common side effects maybe include unusual feedback, severe syncopation, and sudden harmonic shifts. Lorazepam may be habit-forming.

8:30 pm: Fares + Goulet duo
9:30 pm: Lorazepam

$15 / $10 w/ Student ID - Tickets Available at the Door