Real Places, Imaginary Cities and Utopias

Real Places, Imaginary
Cities and Utopias

a multidisciplinary arts workshop called SHoP Camp,
at BOOK SHOP -- a new project space dedicated to radical pedagogy,
participatory art installations and experimental performance
in the heart of Hyde Park, Chicago

BOOK SHOP
1448 E. 57th St.
Chicago, IL  60637

April 7-9, 2015 (9 a.m.-5 p.m.)

Contact Laura Shaeffer
at (773) 710-5464 for more info.

Dates & Teaching Artists
Tuesday, April 7: Amy Sinclair and Laura Shaeffer
Wednesday, April 8: Dan Godston and Laura Shaeffer
Thursday, April 9: Hoyun Son and Laura Shaeffer

This program is for children and teens, and the fee is $50 for the full day, $30 for a half day (9 a.m.-1 p.m.).

You're invited to attend "Real Places, Imaginary Cities and Utopias," a multidisciplinary arts workshop that involves creative writing, visual art, puppetry, and fort building. During this workshop, we will:

• Talk about examples of real places and imaginary cities that we find interesting and exciting, as well as some aspects of cities such as Chicago that could be improved; 
• Look at and talk about maps of imaginary places (e.g. the Wonderful Land of Oz and J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth), and then work in groups to create maps of imaginary places; 
• Look at and talk about real and fictitious objects and buildings that inspire the imagination (e.g. sculptures, furniture and buildings designed / illustrated by Antoni Gaudí, Niki de Saint Phalle, Jean Tinguely, Sam Maloof and Dr. Seuss);
  
• Read and discuss several passages from Invisible Cities by Italo Calvino;
  
• Design and make forts, and then create stories that activate those forts to make created spaces performative. 

Links:

• Fantasy Maps (The Stranger's Bookshelf)
• Interactive Map of J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth (LOTR Project)
• Map of the Wonderful Land of Oz
• Mapping Yoknapatawpha