High Concept Labs Benefit Performance
Join High Concept Labs on June 3rd for a summer celebration of sound, movement, and light!
Come support High Concept Labs for an evening of fundraising with experimental, multi-disciplinary, and lovely genre-defying artistic projects, rounded out with delicious food and a silent auction. Artists include many HCL alumni as well as special guest Spectralina, the audio-visual performance project of Dan Bitney and Selina Trepp.
In recognition of HCL’s long-running Open Lab series, a platform for artists to gain perspective on work-in-development through community exchange, Esther Grimm, an artist and arts leadership coach and the founding Executive Director of 3Arts, will moderate a conversation with Andy Slater following his autobiographical performance.
Hosted at the beloved Links Hall, the evening is designed to delight, inspire, and ignite new ideas with performances that incorporate improvisation, audience engagement, puppetry, augmented reality, and more.
Proceeds will support the 2025 Residency, our Strategic Plan, and our Cash Reserve Challenge. Ticket sales and all donations will be matched dollar-for-dollar, with donations from first-time donors matched 3-to-1.
Check out the Silent Auction here.
Bidding ends Tuesday, June 3 @ 9pm.
SCHEDULE
6:00 to 7:00 pm: Pre-Show Reception
AI Photobooth by Christopher Knowlton
Video screenings by Carissa Lee, Alexander Stewart & Tirtza Even
Costa Rican fare from Irazu
7:00 to 9:30 pm: Benefit Performances
Event Co-Chairs: Ayako Kato & Rachel Much
TICKETS
$25 - General Admission
$50 - General Admission Plus (includes HCL tote)
$100 - VIP (includes open bar, HCL tote + pint glass)
$250 - HCL Hero (VIP ticket + fall 2025 artist brunch)
Additional Options
$25 - Buy a ticket for an artist
$25 - Can’t attend, but will support from afar
$10 - Pitch in $10 to our cash reserve (will be matched 3-to-1)
ABOUT HIGH CONCEPT LABS
Our Vision
The vision of High Concept Labs (HCL) is a vibrant, artist-driven ecosystem that is equitable, inclusive, wide-reaching, and allows for experimentation. We work towards this vision by providing artists crucial support to develop and present new work. Since our inception in 2009, we have enabled artistic development, career advancement, and audience engagement for over 300 artists.
Our Story
HCL began by providing short-term project-based support to artists in a warehouse space in an industrial corridor on Chicago’s north side. In 2014, we moved to our current home at Mana Contemporary, situated between the Pilsen, Bridgeport, and Chinatown neighborhoods, bringing us closer to artists and communities systemically underrepresented in Chicago’s art spaces. This studio is now secured through a joint residency with Monira Foundation through a partnership that enables both organizations to meet artists where they are, promote visibility for the creative process, and respond to the evolving needs of our communities.
Our programs have evolved as we recognized the need for expanded resources and equitable access. In 2019, HCL transitioned to a co-director leadership model and defined initiatives to decentralize where work is made and shared in Chicago, increase visibility for the creative process, and prioritize ongoing anti-racist efforts at every level of the organization.
Shortly thereafter, HCL’s programs were overhauled to expand the depth of support for artists. Our flagship four-month residency was reinvented as a 12-month opportunity, with the option to return for an additional year of support as a Fellow Artist in Residence. This expanded duration dramatically stabilizes artistic practices and can enable pivotal career growth. We also developed two new residency formats: Partner Artist in Residencies provide opportunities to select grantees of program partners, such as Chicago Dancemakers Forum and 3Arts; The LabX Residency brings international artists to Chicago. Across all four residency variations, we continue to tailor support to artists’ diverse needs with resources including no-cost studio access, curatorial and research support, professional documentation, production assistance, and marketing support.
In 2020, HCL again expanded its impact by establishing our Active Hope and Reparations Accelerant (AHORA) initiative in order to fund the development and premieres of new community-attuned work by BIPOC and disabled artists within HCL’s residency programs. Among other accomplishments, this initiative funded Ayako’s LUCA/Res Communis: ETHOS Episode III and supported the launch of LabE, an initiative to address the specific needs and interests of disabled artists.
Most recently, as we strive to broaden access to the performing arts on the South and South West Side of Chicago, we established an ongoing partnership with Experimental Station in Chicago’s Woodlawn neighborhood. Experimental Station is the current home of LabE, and is expected to host a variety of free public performances and gatherings in 2023 and beyond.