Select, Lumpen, and Public Media Institute produce this annual festival, now in its fourth year, focusing on art, media, technology, and politics, with an emphasis on work generated by underground and activist communities. This year’s festival runs from Friday, April 22, through Sunday, May 1, and includes neighborhood walks, workshops on urban gardening and exterior decoration, and numerous public art installations, film/video screenings, music, lectures, and performances. The events are mostly scattered throughout the Wicker Park and Bridgeport neighborhoods. Some participating venues include Heaven Gallery (1550 N. Milwaukee), Buddy and Highschool (1542 N. Milwaukee), Open End Gallery (2000 W. Fulton), Rodan (1530 N. Milwaukee), Skylark (2149 S. Halsted), Spare Room (2416 W. North), Empty Bottle (1035 N. Western), Zhou B. Center (1029 W. 35th St.), McKinley Park (3700 S. Hoyne), and Texas Ballroom (3012 S. Archer). Events are free, unless otherwise noted. A Version pass ($25) allows admission to all screenings and events, except Animal Collective (see Wed 4/27). The festival also includes the NFO Expo (April 30-May 1), a series of talks, workshops, and exhibits intended as a “trade show for experimental artists, info agitators, and organizers of cultural interference” and a “radical alternative” to other art fairs. Below is a schedule of selected festival events. For updates and additional information, visit www.versionfest.org or call 773-837-0145.
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SATURDAY 23
Small Bathroom Fire, Chandeliers, and Carpet of Sexy
The William Young, Ultimate Machine Warriors, Jitney, and Occasional Detroit
Public art collaborative Anti Gravity Surprise invites participants to bring in their own creative work that answers the question “What have you made to create change?” They promise to provide “munchies, blank walls, and good conversation.” Spare Room. a 9 PM.
Sweden’s Rafilm Collective assembled this program of short animations and documentaries. 45 min. Heaven Gallery. a 7:30 PM.
