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I have a piece in a show opening this Sunday at devening projects + editions. There will be roughly 50 artists in the show. It’s all works on paper and runs for most of the rest of the summer. Should be pretty cool.

UPDATE: The Tribune ran an article last week on devening projects + editions which briefly mentions the show. Also, my photos from the opening along with some installation shots.

UPDATE UPDATE: TimeOut Chicago offers this mixed review of the show. I don’t get a mention but three of my friends do.

I first heard about Dr. Evermor and the Forevertron a few years ago when my friend Mike visited on his way to Minneapolis. He pretty much said it was the coolest thing he’d ever seen and regretted not having a camera with him.

This past weekend I convinced/conned a couple friends to drive up to Baraboo, WI from Chicago to check it out. I made sure to take pictures (see above, the rest are here). I’m not sure it was worth spending an entire day in the car to see it, but it was pretty awesome and I’m glad I did. The whole place is like some kind of Jules Verne/Dr. Seuss fantasy land that’s just off the highway behind a scrapyard.

More information and a general explanation here.

The rest of my photos on flickr.

I’m helping a friend out with a project, the nature of which I’m not sure I can publicly disclose at the moment. But, it does require me to acquire a few records I’ve been meaning to get for years and been putting off for no reason in particular. Given that I am gainfully employed for the summer in the e-commerce department of a major brick and mortar retailer, I have some extra cash with which to buy records.

After a stop at the Wicker Park Reckless Records where I struck out not once or twice, but six times looking for stuff on my list (none of which was particularly rare or hard to find which made my first stop in here especially disappointing) I headed over to Dusty Groove. They had the mediocre James Brown record I was looking for, but only a re-issue. I opted to pass in the hopes I could find an original pressing. Instead I got these:

• Booker T and the MGs: McLemore Avenue - This is a cool later period record they cut of covers of most of Abbey Road. It’s basically “Something” and the medleys. In some ways I prefer it to The Beatles original, mainly because I don’t have to hear “Octopus’s Garden” and because Booker T and the MGs are generally pretty awesome. It also has a geographically accurate version of the much parodied Abbey Road cover, McLemore Avenue being the street in Memphis where Stax Records was/is located.
• Merl Saunders: You Can Keep Your Hat On - Mid-70s release from Jerry Garcia’s main man on the organ back then and even though he doesn’t appear on it, this does feature a couple songs they played together in the Legion of Mary.

A couple co-workers and I stepped out for lunch and we heard the commotion over in Daley Plaza and decided to investigate. There was kind of civic gland-handing going on about Chicago officially becoming a candidate for the 2016 Olympics and next thing we know we’re hearing an impromptu speech from the apparent Democratic presidential nominee. I tried to get a picture, but it was too crowded and he was finished about 2 minutes after we realized what was going on.

UPDATE: Details from the Tribune’s politics blog.