Clichycago is a new initiative that aims to weave a strong link between urban peripheries from the South Side of Chicago and the Parisian suburb of Clichy-Montfermeil. Born of a desire to bring these two spaces together and to support the encounter between the people who shape them, Clichycago is a platform for exchange and experimentation. It constitutes a unique space-time, a third place where the voices and ideas of those who live, work and think in working-class neighborhoods and on the outskirts of the city mingle.
This collaborative project is co-produced by the Ateliers Médicis and the cultural services of the French Embassy in Chicago. Centered on the core theme – Communities, endured or chosen –, Clichycago is primarily focused on questions of community and belonging. It facilitates dialogues among artists, researchers, journalists, local groups or organizations based in Chicago’s South Side and Clichy-Montfermeil, around a variety of issues and topics, from social justice to artistic innovation.
Clichycago also supports the work of France and Chicago-based artists in the virtual sphere and in-person at partners venues in both countries.
Clichycago takes the form of cross-residence program, works commissioned from several Chicago artists for the online creation space The Other·Expo, portraits of residents involved in the life of Clichycago, made by Invisible Institute (Jamie Kalven) and La Chaise Pliante (Nawufal Mohamed and Lucas Roxo) and informal exchanges, encounters and public events.
Les Ateliers Médicis seront fermés au public du 21 décembre au soir au 5 janvier inclus.