The Neubauer Collegium Culture and Society is located on the corner of Woodlawn and 57th Street, a short walk from the UChicago Main Quadrangles. It’s hard to miss the imposing stone building, especially with the interesting sculptures often displayed on the front terrace, but it’s just as easy to pass by without realizing what more lies inside.
Inside its doors until June 11, visitors can view The Chicago Cli-Fi Library, the gallery’s newest exhibition.
(Photo by Jessica Guo)
The exhibition is named after the emerging literary genre of “climate fiction,” which explores anthropogenic climate change and aims to make sense of the complexity and enormity of the issue through art on the hyperlocal level, and exclusively features the work of Chicago-based artists Beate Geissler, Oliver Sann, Jenny Kendler, Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle and Dan Peterman.
Immediately after entering the gallery through a set of large, heavy wooden doors, one’s attention is drawn to the centerpiece of the seemingly spacious room: a brown leather sofa, on which lies a booklet titled “How Does the World End (for Others)?” by Geissler & Sann. This collection of literary fragments from classic works of the climate fiction genre is strung together as the score for a performative reading, which was featured at the opening reception of the exhibition.
In the south-facing window, one can find several glass bells of different sizes hanging on thick black ropes. “Whale Bells” by Jenny Kendler in collaboration with Andrew Bearnot consists of a set of hand-blown glass chimes that incorporate the fossilized ear bones of an extinct whale species; this work also consists of a musical performance on the sculpture, which was performed at the event “Quartet for the End of Time: Earth Day at the Neubauer Collegium” on April 22.
Other pieces in the room include: “Underground Library” by Jenny Kendler, a collection of burnt books placed on a fireplace mantel; “How Does the World End (for Others)?, Horseshoe Crab,” by Geissler & Sann, photographs of the horseshoe crab, the longest living arthropod on Earth; and “8 West 11th Street, March 6, 1970” by Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle, the very first installation in the exhibit.
The Chicago Cli-Fi Library also exists beyond the boundaries of the gallery room. On the terrace, one can find an installation by Dan Peterman called “Archive for 57 People,” a library of books built from recycled plastic that visualizes the annual average plastic consumption for 57 people. These “books” can also be found in various corners, shelves, and fireplaces throughout the building as the work “Archive (One Ton),” effectively tying together the bookish theme and conception of both The Chicago Cli-Fi Library and the Neubauer Collegium.
The Neubauer Collegium is a relatively new space. Established in 2012 with the mission of cultivating communities of inquiry in the humanities at the University of Chicago, it focuses on funding and presenting faculty-led research projects, supporting collaboration programs between scholars across the world, and hosting public events in the context of academic research.
“Archive for 57 People" by Dan Peterman
(Photo by Jessica Guo)
Over the past decade, the Neubauer Collegium has supported a total of 117 research projects to advance public knowledge and help people and communities deepen their understanding of themselves and their social worlds. These projects allow UChicago professors and students to collaborate with other scholars and practitioners across the school and world, fostering partnerships to tackle complex human challenges and encourage new fields of inquiry.
While the core goal of the Neubauer Collegium is to promote research in the humanities, research projects are not limited to any particular field. Many projects explore the intersections of a range of disciplines, covering anything from visual arts to data visualization, medicine to music, sociology to theater and performance studies. A comprehensive list of all Neubauer Collegium research projects, ongoing and completed, can be found here.
Dieter Roelstraete, the Collegium’s curator, said his goal is to create art programming that closely aligns with the research culture of the University.
As a result, increasingly more researchers are applying for funding for projects that include a curatorial component. Attendance of events has also grown over the years, as the Neubauer Collegium regularly opens its inquiries and conversations to the public to encourage intellectual collaboration through the sharing of ideas among people of different backgrounds and perspectives.
Part of the mandate of the Collegium is to foster an environment where scholarly and artistic communities can understand each other better. Bringing economists, historians, sociologists and other academics in discussion with artists, Roelstraete said, helps prove that artistic practice is a form of knowledge.
“Every time there is a show, we program at least one event in conjunction with the exhibition that is very UChicago-driven,” said Roelstraete. “It’s a very unique thing we’re doing here in the Collegium, there’s really no other place like it right now.”
