Community Outreach Program
Our 2024 Programming
The Elastic Arts Community Outreach Program shares the fellowship we generate within our venue by exploring and creating new space(s) across the city.
Through outreach, Elastic expands its focus beyond our four walls, providing free programming by working with peer organizations in our own neighborhood and with organizations rooted in neighborhoods on the South and West Sides. By building strong partnerships, we strive to bring new sounds and experiences, special events, workshops, and mentorship to the artists, communities, and organizations we aim to uplift and inspire.
In 2024, we are working with Night Out in the Parks to expand our Outreach program and share The Power of the Word Initiative, focused on the power of the arts to amplify the voices of community members and artists in the fight against injustice and healing from trauma.
We’ll host four events taking place in Austin, Avondale, Bronzeville, and North Lawndale.
Our first event will be at the Columbus Park Refectory, featuring Camíla and special guest Marvin Tate. Our second event will be at Unity Park on Kimball Ave., just around the corner from our venue, featuring Bomberxs D’Cora of La Escuelita Bombera De Corazón with special guest Logan Lu. Next up, we’ll have Alysha Monique & Bobby Wonderful, with DJ sets by Duane Powell at Armstrong (Lillian Hardin) Park, and we’ll close out the series with Sam Thousand featuring special guest Zahra Glenda Baker at the Douglass Park Ballroom.
up next:
OFFSITE AT Douglass Park Cultural and Community Center - 1401 S Sacramento Dr
We close out our season of Power of The Word events at Douglass Park on October 3, from 5-6:30 PM. And what a great way to end our series, featuring trumpeter and vocalist Sam Thousand! Sam will melt away your troubles with beautiful musical arrangements and his thoughtful and sultry vocals. We will start the evening, featuring Vocalist, Storyteller, & Multidisciplinary Teaching Artist Zahra Glenda Baker.
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Elastic Arts presents four free, outdoor performances that focus on the power of the arts to amplify the voices of community members and artists in the fight against injustice and healing from trauma. The series presents performances of song, rap, poetry, spoken word, and storytelling that center civic action and healing. It also includes an open mic, where community members share stories, jokes, poems and songs, and also presentations by youth writing workshop participants.
Rather than parachuting into south- and west- side neighborhoods, assuming we know what people there need and want, we partner closely with organizations rooted in those neighborhoods to find spaces to present our programming, and to construct events that resonate with their communities.
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In partnership with Kuumba Renaissance, Elastic Arts presents music and performance on a mobile stage called the Culture Coach, which enables us to present free, outdoor programming in areas of Chicago that lack arts infrastructure.
Culture Coach presents between 30 and 40 free events each year at the Argyle Night Market in Uptown, the Maxwell Street Market downtown, at Gallery Guichard in Bronzeville, and many other locations from Roseland to Rogers Park to North Lawndale.
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Participants in Elastic’s Dark Matter residency for emerging BIPOC artists are encouraged and supported to take part in Elastic’s existing Outreach programming, or structure their own events that take place beyond Elastic’s walls.
In summer 2023, each artist had the opportunity to work directly with community as apart of our program this summer, taking part in performing their works, hosting workshops, and writing and composing for community projects.
Events included performances at Stone Temple Community Garden with Resident Sharon Udoh opening for Justin Dillard and the Aggregation, dj PANTY at Fourtune House's "Coming Home" Festival in Bronzeville, performances by Camila and Carissa Pinckney at Front Porch Arts Center's Austin Art Walk, and more.
2024 Residents are currently crafting their outreach engagements.
