The Frantic Desire for Almost Real

Chicago Artists Coalition is pleased to present The Frantic Desire for Almost Real, a duo exhibition featuring new works by HATCH residents Bryan LeBeuf and Gericault De La Rose, and curated by Fabiola Tosi. 

The Frantic Desire for Almost Real will be on view from January 29 - March 11, 2021, with an opening day on Friday, January 29, by appointment, from 3-8pm. Please reserve your time here.

Open Hours: Wednesdays, 10am-2pm and Fridays, 3-7pm by appointment only

The exhibition explores connections between identity, collective memory, and authenticity. The Frantic Desire for Almost Real “arises only as a neurotic reaction to the vacuum of memories” (Umberto Eco, Travels In Hyperreality). The displaced body is central to the constant search for cultural memories as a way to affirm one’s identity, the Real. This process however is complicated by the inconsistent relationship between reality, perception and the concept of authenticity. The Real is a fixed identity that exists as an ideal version of the self. Almost Real is a transitional identity, slipping in and out of liminal spaces or in-between fixed designations, as Homi K. Bhabha¹ describes in their meditation on “the authentic”. In a vacuum of memories, the Almost Real is frantically desired by the displaced body.

The works of Bryan A. LeBeuf and Gericault De La Rose stand as a representation of the complexities faced by a displaced body — may this be an individual or a community — whose desire is to affirm their identity. Constantly in flux between longing and belonging, the subject of this neurotic search fails to recognize that the unbalanced, unsteady Almost Real is in fact the expression of one’s identity.

The Frantic Desire for Almost Real is presented in both physical and digital gallery spaces. Curated programming will provide a deeper look into the artists’ practices, in conversation with guest speakers and contributors. The series includes Expedition Through the Authentic: Resist Imprint, a performance by Gericault De La Rose and a public talk with artist Bryan A. LeBeuf. Additional details and programming will be announced at a later date.