• Workshop
• Adults

Material Poems

Tue. February 25 • 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

A drop-in art-making workshop at the Smart Museum that connects material art and poetry.

• Workshop
• Adults

Material Poems

Thu. February 27 • 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

A drop-in creative writing and art-making workshop at the Poetry Foundation that connects material art and poetry.

• Performance
• Adults

Traceless Stele: A Response

Sun. March 1 • 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM

Conghao Tian demonstrates the traditional art of Chinese calligraphy as a durational performance on Song Dong's Traceless Stele on view in The Allure of Matter.

Practice Makes: Lori Waxman in Conversation with Rachel Cohen

Wed. March 4 • 6:00 PM

Join Lori Waxman and Rachel Cohen for a discussion about practices—from art criticism as a practice of writing about art to art history as an attention to artistic practices.

• Art Making
• Adults

Workshop: Tobacco Leaf Bookmaking

Thu. March 5 • 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

Master bookbinder and artist Jamie Lou Thome leads this bookmaking workshop inspired by artist Xu Bing's "Tobacco Project." 

• Talk
• Adults

Smart Talk: Borders & Human Rights

Thu. March 5 • 9:00 PM - 11:59 PM

In collaboration with the Pozen Center, Tom Ginsburg and Claudia Flores discuss the rights of refugees and migrants.

• Art Making
• Families

Family Day: Wigtastic Weaving

Sat. March 7 • 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM

Drop by and learn how to weave using wild wigs and colorful fake hair as yarn.

• Social
• UChicago Students

Study at the Smart

Thu. March 12 • 9:00 PM - 11:59 PM

UChicago students—prepare for finals next to the monumental works in the special exhibition The Allure of Matter.

• Talk
• Adults

Reading: Silk Poems

Sat. March 21 • 4:30 PM

A live reading of the book Silk Poems by artist and poet Jen Bervin. Presented at Wrightwood 659 in collaboration with the Poetry Foundation.

• Workshop
• Adults

Drawing with Fire and Ash

Thu. March 26 • 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

This hands-on workshop delves into the mysteries of one of Earth’s most elemental material: fire.

• Art Making
• Families

Family Day: Coke Boats & Floats

Sat. April 4 • 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM

Turn recycled plastic soda bottles into floatable toy boats during this drop-in family day inspired by The Allure of Matter

• Workshop
• Adults

Workshop: Porcelain Papers

Thu. April 16 • 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

A hands-on workshop that looks at the history and contemporary practices of making paper and porcelain, both in China and the United States.

• Talk
• Adults

Material Stories: Tobacco

Sat. April 18 • 2:00 PM

Join Peter Benson (Washington University in St. Louis) and Stanley Abe (Duke University) for a cross-disciplinary discussion of tobacco's intertwined social, economic, and material histories.

• Workshop
• Adults

Workshop: Ornamental Rocks

Thu. April 30 • 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

This hands-on workshop explores multiple sculpture-making techniques using stone and metal.

• Art Making
• Families

Family Day: Art Rocks!

Sat. May 2 • 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM

Rock out your Saturday by constructing cool shiny rocks out of aluminum sheets and doing other fun family activities!