AP Feature Story
Chicago, IL August 28 -- What do abstract photographic images, "The Pajama Game," a ritual amulet from Iran, Latin American electronic music and a modern dance performance have in common? They are all part of the wealth of public programming presented by Columbia College Chicago at venues in the South Loop and other locations in central Chicago.
Why does Columbia College offer so many public events? Aren't they busy enough delivering classroom lectures and giving tests?
"Because we are an arts and communications college, this is part of the 'bigger picture' of our teaching mission," explains Provost Steve Kapelke. "One of the advantages of being located in the heart of Chicago is that our students get to participate in the cultural offerings of a major city. We, in turn, are part of that cultural fabric; this is a way for us to give something back to the community."
Of Columbia's seven gallery and museum spaces, two -- the Hokin Gallery and Annex at 623 S. Wabash -- are dedicated to the exhibition of student work. The Glass Curtain Gallery and the Center for Book and Paper Arts, both at 1104 S. Wabash, have full exhibition calendars that include student, faulty, alumni and national and international professional exhibitions. The Museum of Contemporary Photography, at 600 S. Michigan, is one of only two accredited photography museums in the county.
At the Getz, New Studio and Classic Theaters on East 11th Street, students and faculty present a full season of drama, comedy, classic and musical theater. The Dance Center at 13th and Michigan offers some of the finest in professional contemporary dance. Columbia's Chicago Jazz Ensemble, presents the best in classic and contemporary jazz in concerts in and around Chicago.
Free music concerts by students and faculty are presented at the Concert Hall at 1014 S. Michigan and free poetry readings by award winning contemporary poets occur monthly at several campus locations.
Braniacs can take a stroll down to the Chicago Cultural Center on the first Thursday of each month for free "Intersections" lectures by Columbia Cultural Studies faculty -- where everything from Nigerian Rap Music to Polka and Cultural Resistance is discussed and dissected.
Columbia, always proud of the diversity in its student body, goes out of its way to celebrate diversity. The school's popular DanceAfrica Chicago series will explore the theme of "Freedom!" this year with performances at the Chicago Theater. And the school will present its first-ever Hispanic Heritage Month celebration with a month-long, multi-arts festival, FOCO: The Cutting Edge of Latino Pop, beginning October 1. The festival will showcase the experimental in Latin and Latin American visual arts, music and cinema.
"We are having a great time making art, celebrating life and culture and creativity here at Columbia," says Mark Lloyd, assistant vice president for marketing and communications. "What a great way to live. We hope that our neighbors, as well as visitors to Chicago, take advantage of all this bounty and join us for some exhibitions, performances and special events."
Visit www.colum.edu to explore Columbia College Chicago.
Media Contact: Micki Leventhal, 312-344-7383; mleventhal@colum.edu
Contact:
Priscilla Hunter, Columbia College Chicago, 312-344-7805, (cell) 312-286-6624
Robin Florzak, DePaul University, 312-362-8592, (cell) 312-305-8592
Tom Karow, Roosevelt University, 312-341-3512
Major construction of University Center of Chicago, which will soon be the largest joint college student residence hall in the nation, will be completed with the ceremonial hoisting of the final steel beam atop the 18-story structure at 10 a.m. Monday, Aug. 18, at the construction site entrance at State and Harrison streets in Chicago's South Loop.
Officials from Columbia College Chicago, DePaul University and Roosevelt University will mark the completion of University Center's concrete super-structure with a topping out ceremony, in which a 40-foot-long white, steel beam bearing an evergreen tree, flags of all three universities as well as the signatures of university dignitaries will be hoisted by tower crane more than 200 feet into the air, coming to rest on the building's 19th floor penthouse.
A major milestone in the construction process, the topping out ceremony marks the end of fourteen and a half months of construction on the structure of the building and clears the way for work on the exterior envelope and interior of University Center. Installation of the building's facade and windows is scheduled for completion by December. Already begun, the building's interior work will be finished in June 2004.
Slated to open in the summer of 2004, the $150 million facility at State Street and Congress Parkway in Chicago's South Loop will house 1,680 students and 43 staff members. The new student-housing center will help fill an enormous need for student housing in downtown Chicago. Located on a site bounded by State Street, Congress Parkway, Harrison Street and Holden Court, the project also is expected to be a major anchor providing economic benefits for continued growth and revitalization of Chicago's South Loop.
Among features of the new Center will be: 31,000 square feet of retail space on the first floor; a 30,000-square-foot food service facility, student lounges, music practice rooms, a fitness center, art rooms, offices, multi-media rooms, game rooms, laundries and conference rooms on the second floor; a 20,000-square-foot landscaped roof garden accessible from the third floor; student residences on floors three and above.
There will be five styles of student suites and apartments, ranging in price from an estimated $703 to $1,108 per month. According to a collaborative agreement among the three universities, students from Columbia and DePaul each will have 40 percent of available beds, while Roosevelt students will occupy 20 percent of bed space.
Traditional in the construction industry, ironworkers historically have performed the topping out ceremony, installing a final beam to which a flag and evergreen tree are attached. The ritual is thought to have originated in ancient times to drive out evil spirits that may occupy a new structure. The evergreen tradition is traced to Scandinavians who affixed a tree to the top of a building to honor the forest god, thanking him for his wood and blessing.
Carrying on a tradition but taking a more modern approach, University Center of Chicago's topping out ceremony will be conducted by Turner Construction Company, the general contractor, who has kept the project both on schedule and on budget.
Media contact: Priscilla L. Hunter, 312.344.7805, phunter@colum.edu or Micki Leventhal, 312.344.7383, mleventhal@colum.edu
Chicago, June 2003 -- The last weekend of Columbia College Chicago's month-long Michiana Festival of the Art concludes with the Film Roadshow, a two-day film showcase. The showcase begins on Friday, August 8th at 7 p.m., CST at the Vickers Theatre, 6 N. Elm Street, Three Oaks, Michigan. The cost is $25 and includes a post-show reception immediately following the screening at 8:30 p.m. in the Vickers Theatre Lobby. For tickets call 269.756.3522.
Friday's program will feature award-winning narrative, experimental and documentary work by women filmmakers, including recent graduates Samantha Sanders and Sue-Yeon Jung and faculty members Paula Froehle and Wen Hwa Ts'ao.
On Saturday, August 9th at 1 p.m., CST at the Vickers Theatre, the film showcase continues with a Film & Video Roadshow and Conversation featuring films by men. Andrew Hodges, an invitee to the Emerging Filmmakers section of this year's Cannes Film Festival, will present his animated short Hue. Columbia alum Keith Ransfer will show his narrative, The Brother We Keep and faculty member Dan Dinello will also be featured. There will be a special screening of Paula, a student film by George Tillman Jr., and Bob Teitel, the creative team responsible for hits films such as Soul Food, Men of Honor and Barbershop.
The screening will conclude with a 45-minute question and answer session hosted by Bruce Sheridan, Chair of Columbia's Film & Video Department.
The Michiana Festival of the Arts is a celebration of performance and communication arts presented by Columbia College, in collaboration with the Acorn Theater, Dunes Summer Theatre and Vickers Theatre. Sited on the southeastern shores of beautiful Lake Michigan, in the heart of the Michigan and Indiana lakeshore community, the Festival showcases work by emerging artists, as well as appearances by established writers, literary figures, film critics and filmmakers.
In addition to the Film Showcase, the Festival will present theatrical performances at the Dunes and the Acorn. Ten local residences will open their doors for an Art of Home Tour on August 9, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. To volunteer as a home tour guide for the Art of Home Tour and receive two free tickets for the Tour, call the volunteer tour hotline at 312.344.7002.
The college's Adult Education Division, Columbia 2, is back with "Summer Workshops at the Shore," a series of workshops in the arts and communications at the Tall Oaks Inn in New Buffalo, Michigan. Classes begin in early July. To register or for more information call 312.344.8190 or print out a copy of the registration form at www.columbia2.colum.edu and fax it to 312.344.8086.
On Saturday, August 9 at 4 p.m., activities will wind-down with a hoe-down, "Festival Finale at the Farm: Columbia College Goes Country," hosted by Columbia Trustee, Allen Turner at his Stanley Tigerman designed country home. Tickets to this dinner and barn dance, complete with a caller and western band, are $150 per person and can be purchased by calling, 312.663.1124 Ext. 2
For a complete Festival schedule, updates and further information visit http://michiana.colum.edu.
Proceeds from events and activities of the Festival will support local arts programming such as the Dunes Arts Foundation, as well as scholarship funds at Columbia College.
Columbia College is the nation's largest visual, performing and media arts college. Located in the heart of Chicago's South Loop, Columbia blends the best of theory and practice in a dynamic and diverse urban environment.