Chicago Association of Specialized Museums

12/22/2020

Love it or hate it, the Elf is a thing.... Join Museum of Broadcast Communications for a fun Holiday at Home broadcast!

Coming Soon...

A message from the elf OFF the shelf! You've heard of her, right? ;) #MBCStayHomefortheHolidays

12/01/2020

Free!

Tomorrow night "at" the Museum of Contemporary Photography – register today!

We are so excited for the next installment in our Lectures in Photography series, featuring Mimi Plumb. Described as a dreamlike vision of American dystopia encapsulating the anxieties of a world spinning out of balance, Plumb’s work defies categorization. Mark your calendars and be sure to register for this free virtual event.

The lecture will take place Wednesday, December 2, 6 p.m. CST

Register on Zoom for this free event here: bit.ly/LIPPlumb

11/16/2020

Looking for something to get you through this next period of stay-at-home? What about starting a podcast? Join Museum of Broadcast Communications this Wednesday!

Come on, we know you have thought to yourself at least once, “I should start a podcast...” hasn’t everyone? Join us and Third Coast Senior Producer, Isabel Vázquez, next Wednesday and learn how to get that big idea off the ground! Grab your co-host and and your zoom account! Registration is open now: https://museum.doubleknot.com/facility/want-to-start-a-podcast/2756421

11/02/2020

Let's be honest, we all need a moment to smile right now. Museum of Broadcast Communications is hosting what looks like will be a delightful event this evening. Take a break from your cable news coverage and doom scrolling to join them!

We are so stoked for tonight! Join us at 6pm for a LIVE discussion with Al Gini and Abraham Singer, moderated by our executive director Susy Schultz! Bring your questions about satire, politics,and what the heck happens after tomorrow! 🗳

10/19/2020

American Writers Museum

Join the AWM as they visit the Haunted Mansion, and be sure to check out the archives of other locations they've visited recently!

This week with AWM Destinations we're headed to The Haunted Mansion.

We hope you can join us...if you dare! 👻 😱 👻

https://americanwritersmuseum.org/awm-destinations-the-haunted-mansion/

10/15/2020

Intuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art

We can't agree more with Intuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art being included on this list!

Intuit is thrilled to be named in The Guardian's latest article, "Weird, wacky and utterly wonderful: the world's greatest unsung museums," where writer and cultural critic Olivia Laing describes the Henry Darger Room Collection as "a monument to indomitable creativity."

Among the many great institutions listed is Collection de l'Art Brut, Lausanne, where Intuit's hit exhibition Chicago Calling: Art Against the Flow is currently on view until November 1, 2020.

10/13/2020

American Writers Museum

Have you checked out the American Writers Museum's Author Talks podcasts yet? If not, this one is a great one to start on!

In honor of Indigenous Peoples Day, check out our latest AWM Author Talks podcast with Tanaya J. Winder and Frank Waln. The two discuss their work, their heritage, and the power of writing to heal. They also play some songs!

Originally recorded live at the American Writers Museum in May of 2019.

https://americanwritersmuseum.org/podcast/episode-20-frank-waln-tanaya-winder/

10/12/2020

International Museum of Surgical Science

A perfect event for October!

PREORDER SIGNED COPIES OF DARK ARCHIVES & THE BUTCHERING ART NOW!

There are books out there, some shelved unwittingly next to ordinary texts, that are bound in human skin. Would you know one if you held it in your hand? In Dark Archives, Megan Rosenbloom, a librarian and a cofounder of the Death Salon, seeks out the historic and scientific truths behind anthropodermic bibliopegy. Dozens of these books still sit on the shelves of the world’s most famous libraries and museums. What are their stories?

On October 25th, 2020, at 2pm CST, the International Museum of Surgical Science is hosting a FREE, VIRTUAL author reading with Megan Rosenbloom in conversation with medical historian, author, and TV host Dr Lindsey Fitzharris. These two friends will discuss medical history, explore the English alleged human skin books, and reveal their adventures that were cut out of Dark Archives.

Signed copies of both books are available to preorder NOW in our online store! Click below 👇

10/09/2020

Poetry Foundation & Poetry Magazine

Love poetry? Poetry Foundation & Poetry Magazine is hiring!

At the Poetry Foundation, we exist to celebrate the best poetry and to place it before the largest possible audience. POETRY, an independent literary magazine published by the Poetry Foundation, is committed to a vigorous presence for poetry in our culture.

We believe it is our duty to better serve the poets who entrust us with their work, creative or otherwise, and serve audiences who find solace, joy, insight, catalysts for change, and more in poetry.

Our job search seeks to develop a broad and diverse applicant pool of candidates who share a deep commitment to diversity, equity, and building a culture of inclusion, as well as a passion for poetry and supporting poets.

As part of this commitment, we are inviting Guest Editors to edit several issues of POETRY. Guest Editors would be responsible for:
• Bringing new perspectives to the magazine and providing support as we select our next President
• Working with the editorial team in reading submissions and editing the magazine
• Audience outreach and strengthening relationships with poets
• Helping to deepen the magazine’s commitment to antiracism

We're also looking for a POETRY Editorial Assistant who will be responsible for a variety of administrative and editorial tasks to keep the magazine’s production on track.
• Administrative: Keep various magazine files and databases organized and up-to-date while ensuring all necessary paperwork and correspondence is completed and filed correctly to meet internal deadlines.
• Editorial: Assist the magazine team in typesetting and proofreading each issue of the magazine and confirm accuracy of digital versions in advance of publication.

We are also currently on the search for a Product Manager, responsible for:
• Driving the success, efficiency, and continued improvement of poetryfoundation.org and our various digital projects
• Product management of all digital platforms
• Project management across teams and tools
• Digital development

10/08/2020

Come! Share! Knowledge is power!

This Thursday, October 8, 6 p.m. CDT, we are thrilled to be hosting a panel discussion that will focus on the barriers that eligible voters face in trying to exercise their most fundamental constitutional right. Exhibition co-curator Sharon Bloyd-Peshkin, Associate Professor of Journalism, will moderate the panel. Panelists include Ami Gandhi, Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights; Rose Colacino, Indivisible Illinois; Brian Simmons, Chicago Votes; José Morales, Jr., Fair Fight Action.

Register for this free zoom event here: bit.ly/votingMoCP

Image: Hyers + Mebane, Voting Booth 3719, from the EMPIRE portfolio, 2006

10/07/2020

Join the Museum of Broadcast Communications for a post-VP debate discussion tonight!

Can you talk about politics and be nonpartisan? Join us tomorrow after the vice presidential debate to see. We will discuss the debates, the candidates, the content and how to use them as an educational opportunity with high school and middle school students. Our panelists are Deborah Douglas of DePauw University, Dennis Cremin of Lewis University and Carol Summerfield. We expect to begin at 9:30 p.m. Wednesday but if the debate runs long, we'll start immediately after it ends.

10/07/2020

International Museum of Surgical Science

On view through January 17, 2021!

Introducing Selva Aparicio: 𝑯𝒀𝑺𝑻𝑬𝑹𝑰𝑨.

𝑯𝒀𝑺𝑻𝑬𝑹𝑰𝑨 is an installation by Spring 2020 Artist-in-Residence Selva Aparicio (@selvaaparicio) designed in conversation with the collections and exhibitions at the International Museum of Surgical Science. With a focus on the fragility of life and the implications of gender, race, and power dynamics in medicine, Aparicio draws on her own experiences to explore the innate power of liminal objects like the gynecological exam table and an assortment of forceps and specula at the heart of her exhibition. 𝑯𝒀𝑺𝑻𝑬𝑹𝑰𝑨 centers both the memories imbued within and the imprints of past patients upon these enduring pieces to explore the nature of womanhood as a condition defined by conflict, pain, and transition, constantly positioned at the very precipice of life and death.

𝑯𝒀𝑺𝑻𝑬𝑹𝑰𝑨 invites viewers to consider the effects of the institutionalization of medicine and subsequent imposition of strict boundaries in relation to gender, race, and authority in its most basic practice. The professionalization of gynecology in particular is a central theme in Aparicio’s work as it saw women removed from centuries-old positions of authority in favor of their textbook-educated male counterparts and the exploitation of marginalized women in the name of advancement and innovation.

Like curtains in an examination room, Aparicio juxtaposes historical artifacts and natural materials to manifest these boundaries in the reflective process and represent the limitations of medical practice and long-standing social conventions. Utilizing thorn stems and ligature, the ephemerality of nature is contrasted with the rigidity of western medical practice and the unyielding conventions that inform consent, agency, and bodily autonomy.

𝑯𝒀𝑺𝑻𝑬𝑹𝑰𝑨 will be on view from October 16, 2020 – January 17, 2021.

09/22/2020

Museum of Broadcast Communications

Museum of Broadcast Communications

TONIGHT at 5:30: MBC Executive Director Susy Schultz sits down with Anita Banerji, director of Forefront’s Democracy Initiative. They discuss the importance of filling out the census (deadline is next week!!) and the new option of submitting online.

Have you responded to the census? if not, follow the link below!

ALSO! Make sure you tune in right here on Thursday! we will be sharing an episode of "Fibber McGee and Molly" performed with a twist by local Chicago actors! You won't want to miss it!

09/08/2020

Contemporary art at a surgical science museum? Yep!

Have you seen our new contemporary art exhibit yet?

Ever since the 19th century, people have been collecting scientific data from the human body and cataloguing emotions. Today, technology is used to turn our emotions into financial assets. Smart devices try to gain our trust in order to compile information that turns our feelings into capital. In Emotions Go to Work, New York based artist Zoe Beloff explores where this evolution is taking us. Can these technological systems understand our feelings? Will emojis determine our emotional life? As technology takes on more and more emotional characteristics, how will they change the nature of our desires?

Emotions Go to Work presents itself as a cacophony of faces (human and nonhuman) which are either animated, illustrated or performed, alongside a series of symbols of old and new technological advancement. The multi-media installation comprising films, charts and figures that explore the interwoven history of human and machine through re-workings and pastiches of existing cultural material from our collective consciousness– from samples of early black and white cartoons to emojis, and from early kinetic experiments in film to slick advertorials.

From a laughing typewriter to the Internet of things (IoT), Emotions Go to Work asks what balance must be struck between creating helpful technologies and entrusting machines with the freedom to reshape us in their image.

Learn more here: https://imss.org/zoe-beloff-emotions-go-to-work/

09/01/2020

Tickets and Hours — McCormick Bridgehouse & Chicago River Museum

CASM member McCormick Bridgehouse & Chicago River Museum reopens this Thursday! If you're venturing out, be sure to put this one of a kind experience on your fall to-do list.

http://www.bridgehousemuseum.org/plan-a-visit

Visit the McCormick Bridgehouse & Chicago River Museum. Hours of operation, general admission ticket prices and group visit information.

08/20/2020

Need some ideas for at home learning? Check out this set from CASM member International Museum of Surgical Science!

Download IMSS Diagnostic Detectives, a packet of five at-home STEM activities from the International Museum of Surgical Science! We are proud to serve our community and join Association of Science and Technology Centers and Voya in maintaining STEM learning while schools may be closed.⁠

The second activity in our packet is all about patent medicines, a term used to describe pre-packaged medications sold over the counter in the 1800s with no doctor’s prescription. Patent medicine often used dangerous ingredients to offer what people needed most: pain relief. Many of these medical concoctions contained substances to take away the feeling of pain such as alcohol, morphine, opium and cocaine. While these ingredients could mask the pain, they had terrible side effects including overdose and death. Prior to the 1900s, there was no requirement to list ingredients on food products or medication, so it was very difficult for patients to make informed decisions. Consumers relied on advertisements, which were usually misleading, to gain information.

In this activity, you’ll be concocting your own patent medicine and creating an advertisement! Experiment and get creative, then send us your pictures when you’re done. Tag us on social media and use the hashtag #IMSSDiagnosticDetectives. Find the packet on our website here:https://imssusa.files.wordpress.com/2020/07/imss-stem-activity-packet-final-1.pdf

Art by Emily Baughman.

08/17/2020

Join the Museum of Broadcast Communications and American Writers Museum directors Susy Schultz and Carey Cranston for a lively discussion tomorrow and a flashback to the early 200s with a Flavor of Love Season 1 binge recap on Friday!

MBC ONLINE! Join us this Tuesday and Friday for our online programming! Both events begin at 5:30 pm. Consider this your personal invite, we'd love to see you there!

08/12/2020

Virtual Hub | The American Writers Museum

Check out all things virtual at the American Writers Museum !

Bringing the American Writers Museum online! Use this hub to explore online exhibits, podcast epidsodes, program videos, and more.

08/07/2020

Plan Your Visit - Intuit

We're pleased to share that CASM member Intuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art is now open to the public! Visit their site for more information about guest expectations and ticketing procedures.

Intuit reopens Friday, August 7 We are excited to welcome you back! The health and safety of our community of guests, volunteers, staff members and collaborators continue to be a top priority as we reopen the museum. Learn about all…

07/27/2020

Museum of Broadcast Communications is officially welcoming back visitors!

THE MBC REOPENS FRIDAY, JULY 24th with FREE ADMISSION!( (through Sunday August 2nd). e look forward to seeing you!

'Stay Tuned: Rock on TV', curated by the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, features archival footage, original artifacts and new interviews, telling the stories of how TV launched rock’s iconic stars, brought them into our homes, kept them in the spotlight and connected them to us with music and visual imagery. Among artifacts displayed are original stage designs from the Beatles’ appearance on “The Ed Sullivan Show,” outfits worn by Sonny and Cher on their TV series, CeeLo Green’s jacket worn on “The Voice,” and original animation cels from A-ha’s “Take on Me” music video. Narrators include Mike Myers, Martha Quinn, Kelly Clarkson, Micky Dolenz, Kevin Eubanks, Cyndi Lauper, Paul Shaffer and Darlene Love. We will be open Fridays through Sundays.

The 'Chicago School of Television' featuring classic exhibits: 'Bozo's Circus', "Svengoolie', Bill Jackson's 'Cartoontown', as well as the Radio Hall of Fame gallery will also reopen.

Our top priority is to create a safe environment for all of our visitors and staff, while letting you reconnect with the exhibits you know and love. We are following CDC recommendations as well as museum guidelines from the State of Illinois to create our reopening policies and procedures. This includes the requirement of face masks for all staff and visitors, hand sanitizing stations and regular cleaning procedures. We are also limiting the number of visitors each day to 25% of our museum’s capacity.

07/17/2020

Operation Updates | The American Writers Museum

The American Writers Museum is officially reopened! Looking for some socially distanced inspiration? Here are their guest guidelines and FAQs for visits during Phase 4.

Updated June 24, 2020. The AWM will be reopening in Phase 4. Visit site for the latest updates on online and in-person offerings during the COVID-19 crisis.