Comfort Station Logan Square

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Comfort Station Logan Square

Historic building with public, community-driven programs Only two are still standing, the second located along Austin Avenue in Columbus Park.
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Since 2010, Comfort Station has been operated by an all volunteer staff as a multidisciplinary art space. As of 2016, the programming team has obtained 501c3 status as a non-profit organization, which works in conjunction with Logan Square Preservation, the current lease holder of the Comfort Station building. In the early 1920s, the West Chicago Parks Commission—one of the forerunners of the mode

rn-day Chicago Park District—formed an advisory council. The first recommendation that council made was for a series of comfort stations through the Park Boulevard System. The stations were originally envisioned as a series of warming buildings/public restrooms and were located along transit lines. Each of the original park agencies (West, South and North) had designs for prototypical buildings -- police shelters, gardening sheds, field houses and comfort stations. The Logan Square Comfort Station was one of nine identical Tudor-style West Parks Public Comfort Stations constructed in 1926 and 1927. In Logan Square there were two other stations, one at Kedzie Boulevard and Fullerton Avenue and the other at Armitage Avenue and Humboldt Boulevard, each located on the southwest parkway at the intersection. Three more were located in Humboldt Park and the last at the intersection of Independence Boulevard and Roosevelt Road. No records have yet surfaced noting when the stations were demolished, but there are indications that their utility was short-lived. The Logan Square Comfort Station is identified as "vacant" as early as 1940 and was shortly there after converted for use as a "Tool Shop." An exterior canopy (see below) was added to the front of the building in the 1940s to allow commuters to continue using it as shelter even though the interior was closed to the public. It escaped demolition multiple times in spite of various plans for re-use and re-design of Logan Square that were floated over the decades. When the Chicago Park District transferred the Boulevard System to the City of Chicago, the Comfort Station continued its use as as shed. Through the early 2000’s the Chicago Department of Transportation continued to store landscaping equipment in the building used to maintain the square and boulevards. In 2005, Logan Square Preservation began an active campaign to restore the Comfort Station. Through a partnership with the City of Chicago and 35th Ward Alderman Rey Colon, TIF funds were used to clean and restore the building to its original 1926 appearance including complete cleaning and tuckpointing of brick, a new clay tile roof, stucco, tudoring, copper gutters, and restored windows.

09/11/2024

Upcoming Viewing Hours for VAMP –

Sunday, November 10th
11 a – 2 p

Swing by the gallery this weekend to see D Rosen’s latest works!

VAMP features works from the series Q***r Deity IV. Crucial to this work was Joan Roughgarden’s research in Evolution’s Rainbow, which describes q***r kinship behaviors within Vampire Bats, including feeding, grooming, and same-sex pair bonding. According to Bat biologist Dr. Merlin Tuttle, human fear is the most significant conservation issue facing Bats. Q***r and trans people also struggle with the harms of being feared and misunderstood.

Using this research and more, Rosen created a body of work focused on Vampire Bats as a part of their ongoing Q***r Deity series, which celebrates q***r and trans life in more-than-human worlds. The show includes glass Bats, a Bat house for local communities, and iron paintings. BiG SiSSY, a Tiohtià:ke/Montréal-based drag musician, will perform at night on November 15th. VAMP sheds light on the ubiquity of q***rness within natural worlds and celebrates the beauty of kinship in q***r and trans communities.

photograhed by Levi Shand

31/10/2024

Join us Saturday, November 2nd from 4 – 7 P, in celebration of VAMP with work by D Rosen!

VAMP features works from the series “Q***r Deity IV”. Crucial to this work was Joan Roughgarden’s research in “Evolution’s Rainbow”, which describes q***r kinship behaviors within Vampire Bats, including feeding, grooming, and same-sex pair bonding. According to Bat biologist Dr. Merlin Tuttle, human fear is the most significant conservation issue facing Bats. Q***r and trans people also struggle with the harms of being feared and misunderstood.
Using this research and more, Rosen created a body of work focused on Vampire Bats as a part of their ongoing “Q***r Deity” series, which celebrates q***r and trans life in more-than-human worlds. The show includes glass Bats, a Bat house for local communities, and iron paintings. BiG SiSSY, a Tiohtià:ke/Montréal-based drag musician, will perform at night on November 15th. VAMP sheds light on the ubiquity of q***rness within natural worlds and celebrates the beauty of kinship in q***r and trans communities.

D ROSEN is a sculptor and writer. They operate from the position that questions of animality are not binary but rather a tangle of ecologies and richly complicated identities framed by culture.

***r

25/10/2024

Our latest limited-edition T-shirt is here, and it's a very special one.

Our October/November artist is CHema Skandal! CHema's design is an homage to what has become a local icon in the collection of the The Art Institute of Chicago, despite its small size.

All year, we’ve been asking different Chicago-based artists to donate a design, giving them free rein to create a T-shirt that helps us continue to provide a free public space for creative community.

Head to comfortstationlogansquare.org/merch to order your own LIMITED EDITION CHema Skandal shirt!

p.s. Here's a link to the inspo: tinyurl.com/ysb5mn7f

24/10/2024

Final Vieiwing Hours for “Fear of Losing, Love of Having” are this Sunday, October 27th.

Join us in the gallery, 11 a - 2 p, for one last chance to see these stunning works by Ray Madrigal!

24/10/2024

Join us for a multifaceted familial celebration of Día de Mu***os with a shadow puppet performance by Los Logansitos and drag performances by Cindy Nero, Mari Nero, Boo Boo Kitty Amijeet, and Cléo La Muñeca.

Día de Mu***os
Saturday, October 26, 2024
5:30 PM — 8:00 PM

This program is funded by the National Endowment for the Arts () and the Terra Foundation for American Art, () and are part of Art Design Chicago, () a citywide collaboration initiated by the Terra Foundation that highlights the city’s artistic heritage and creative communities.

Visit comfortstationlogansquare.org for more information.

20/10/2024

On November 19th, Jason Hammel of Lula Cafe will host the 11th annual Logan Square Chef's Dinner to benefit Comfort Station, a nonprofit multidisciplinary arts space that provides free cultural programming for the surrounding Logan Square community.

Since 2011, Comfort Station has held monthly art exhibitions, weekly films and concerts, potlucks, workshops, lectures, and more. Much of Comfort Station's operating and programming expenses are supported through donations, grants, sponsorships, and special events such as this annual Chef’s Dinner, which has become a beloved tradition for neighbors and newcomers alike.

Joining Hammel this year are some of the community’s most exciting chefs: Diana Davila (Mi Tocaya), Joe Frillman (Daisies), Ethan Pikas (Cellar Door Provisions), Matthias Merges (Billy Sunday) and Zeeshan Shah & Yoshi Yamada (Superkhana). This dream team of local epicurean talent will collaborate on a six-course feast for all guests.

Head to the link on our profile to purchase tickets!

18/10/2024

“An unpredictable, yet insistent, flow… not the ostensibly eternal stability of a house in your name, but a safety conjured up moment to moment, spell-like.”

– Fear of Losing, Love of Having

In conjunction with October’s featured exhibition, five music makers will spend an evening creating an unscripted soundscape. We invite you to step inside this softened space, one produced out of mutual intention and a possibility for trust – a living meditation on collaborative and intangible safety.

Madeleine Aguilar
Ray Madrigal
Hannah Marcus
Natasha Tseng
Zhuyan Ye

As the audience you’re welcome to sit, stand, lie down, and rest as the music is made.

***r

03/10/2024

Join us in celebrating the work of Ray Madrigal at the opening of Fear of Losing Love of Having, this Saturday, October 5th from 4 - 7 p!

There exists, alongside the kind of safety-making that decays social bonds, a softer method of survival that reinforces them. A sense – in certain q***r and nonwhite and broke groups – of mutually generated security. An unpredictable, yet insistent, flow of crowdsourced rent relief; shared meals; clumsy good intentions; homemade air purifiers; the same $20 venmoed back and forth; herbal remedies; moving assistance; living room acupuncture; tenant unions; shared passwords; skin to skin contact… on and on.

Not the ostensibly eternal stability of a house in your name, but a safety conjured up moment to moment, spell-like. A space you might step inside and learn to recreate.

Fear of Losing, Love of Having probes our daily attempts at safety-making, dysfunctional and humane alike. It is a material hypothesis of noticing as resistance, of slowness and widened eyes as crucial tools in the creation of gentler futures.

Ray Madrigal (b.1999) is a chicanx le***an and maker in many mediums. They currently live, work, and play in Chicago, IL.

***r

01/10/2024

ASSEMBLYWOMXN is a site-specific translation of the worst, poopiest, most feminist, most communist play by the ancient greek comedian Aristophanes, currently in development by the theatre making duo YOUNG KRONES.

ASSEMBLYWOMXN is a work-in-progress. We invite our Comfort Station audience to join us as co-laborers! You will have a chance to warm up with our ensemble, to help us set our stage, and to share your observations about the work.

ASSEMBLYWOMXN Episodes III and IV
Friday, October 4, 2024
7:00 PM–8:00 PM

ASSEMBLYWOMXN Episodes III and IV
Sunday, October 6, 2024
7:00 PM–8:00 PM

ASSEMBLYWOMXN Episodes III and IV
Monday, October 7, 2024
7:00 PM –8:00 PM

For more information, visit comfortstationlogansquare.org

26/09/2024

2025 Exhibitions Call for Artists - CLOSING SOON!

All submissions due October 1, 2024 by 11:59 PM.

PLUS - catch our Grant Writing Workshop with CS Grant Writer, Marielle Mervau. This VIRTUAL event rounds out our Artist Workshop Series that was developed to accompany our Open Call this year. Link available via website.

This hands-on workshop is designed to help artists, curators, and creative workers navigate the world of grant applications.

Participants will learn how to identify appropriate funding sources, craft compelling proposals, and develop clear budgets. With practical tips and real-world examples, this workshop aims to equip creatives with the tools they need to secure financial support for their projects.

Whether you’re new to grantwriting or looking to refine your skills, check out this workshop for valuable insights into how to secure funding for your artistic and cultural endeavors.

19/09/2024

Join September Exhibitions artist, Maddie May, for a casual artist talk and book release event surrounding their latest project, “Memorial.”

The event will take place within the Comfort Station gallery during open hours for their solo exhibition “still, still.” Visitors can expect to learn about the project’s origins and hear more about the exhibition, and a limited number of books will be available to purchase on-site.

14/09/2024

Join us tomorrow for Pleneros y Poetas, an event curated by Segundo Ruiz Belvis Cultural Center () combining poetry and music into a celebration of stories.

Pleneros y Poetas
Sunday, September 15, 2024
1:00 PM – 2:30 PM

Poets from various Chicago neighborhoods harness the power of plena, a traditional Puerto Rican musical form, as a historical tool of protest. Poetry Curated by Logan Lu (), Plena by Los Pleneros de Don Segundo (), a project of Segundo Ruiz Belvis Cultural Center.

Plena is known as the “sung newspaper” because of the way it recounts history and the everyday life of the common people. “Of Plena and Poetry” combines poets reciting lyrics about the struggles of their distinct identities with plena music from Puerto Rico. The Pleneros de Don Segundo trade verses with Wesly Frazier-Keys, Chris Aldana, Aysha Affaneh, and Logan Lu as they join poetry and plena to tell the story of their people.

This program is funded by the National Endowment for the Arts () and the Terra Foundation for American Art, () and are part of Art Design Chicago, () a citywide collaboration initiated by the Terra Foundation that highlights the city’s artistic heritage and creative communities.

Visit comfortstationlogansquare.org for more information.

09/09/2024

DEADLINE EXTENDED
Submit all proposals by October 1st, before midnight.

This application is FREE and only open to Chicago artists!

Through our selection process, we aim to curate a cycle of exhibitions that reflects a diverse range of practices, exhibiting work that utilizes the space and context of our public building. Comfort Station operates with core values of diversity, equity, and inclusion, therefore we are committed to providing a platform for BIPOC artists, women, LGBTQ+, trans/gender non-conforming, and disabled artists. We also strive to put these values into action by ensuring that this public call for exhibitions reaches as wide an audience as possible through targeted outreach and communications.

Artwork by Ryan Duggan

06/09/2024

Join us on Saturday, September 7th from 4 - 7p for the opening of “still, still” featuring work by Maddie May.

“still, still” is an exhibition amplifying the residues of life and the permanence of loss through multimedia works by Chicago-based artist Maddie May. Delving into intimate narratives embedded in everyday Midwestern household items, May explores themes of death, touch, time, and the quiet persistence of grief.

Central to the exhibition is May’s “Grief Towels” series, featuring hand-woven textiles that depict worn hand and dish towels that evoke touch, privacy, and intimacy, speaking of tenderness and the traces of life left behind after death. Also featured is May’s newest project, “Memorial,” an ongoing documentary publication cataloging items from Chicago-based community members related to those they have lost.

In “still, still”, works explore grieving processes, memory, legacy, and love through everyday objects.

Works in this exhibition were funded by the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) Individual Artists Program.

Maddie May is a Chicago-based interdisciplinary artist. Their multi-sensory artworks investigate Midwestern class and turbulent histories, spanning textiles, sculpture, print, scent, and sound processes. May holds an MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and a BFA from Kendall College of Art and Design.

01/09/2024

Final viewing of “Bibliographical, nonsense #3: Paratextual Messages of the (UF)Os” is TOMORROW, September 1, 11 a - 2 p.

olivier (b. British-Hong Kong) is a research-based artist+writer and archives worker whose practice is rooted in the ephemerality and the anarchival in q***r and trans theory, and ufology. They live in a time-machine, toy with poetics and semiotics, caressing languaging and linguistics.

Images via

***rtheory

30/08/2024

Join us at Comfort Station on 9/8, 9/16 & 9/22 for Art for the Living and The Dead, a 3-part series facilitated by , and featuring .

When artists make work about death, we are affirming our relationships to the living world. Doing this well requires that our studio practice be focused on asking questions, seeking connection, and inviting collaboration – with the living and the dead, with the past and the future, with the human and non-human.

These three stand-alone workshops will look at many different ways to engage with death, mortality, and grief through art and community. Artists will find new ways to work with these topics in their own personal studio practice, and do so with the utmost respect and care for themselves, their subjects, and their audience.

We will read and discuss short pieces of writing, look at artworks, and experiment with creative writing as critical tools for the visual artist. You need not be an artist to join us! Readings are available for free in advance here: https://www.burialblankets.net/art-for-the-living-and-the-dead

This program is funded by the National Endowment for the Arts () and the Terra Foundation for American Art, () and are part of Art Design Chicago, () a citywide collaboration initiated by the Terra Foundation that highlights the city’s artistic heritage and creative communities.

Visit comfortstationlogansquare.org for more information.

30/08/2024

We're on the brink of September, and our 2024 Comfort Station Artist Series merch continues with Jess Bass! 🌸

All year, we’ve been asking different Chicago-based artists to donate a design, giving them free rein to create a T-shirt that helps us continue to provide a free public space for creative community.

Our September artist is Jess Bass (Instagram: ). She uses play as both a process and aesthetic to create mimetic installations and performances, which is so beautifully evident in this design she made for us.

Head to comfortstationlogansquare.org/merch to order your own LIMITED EDITION Jess Bass shirt! This design is only available through September, so get on it.

28/08/2024

Join us at Comfort Station for a special edition of Freedom From and Freedom To! The series , curated by , lives at and will be visiting 'a La Casa de Todos!

Freedom From and Freedom To
Friday, September 6, 2024
7:00 PM – 10:00 PM

Freedom From and Freedom To events are improvisational performance environments which interrogate movement and sound. We use an ensemble of movers and sound-makers that are remarkably diverse in their crafts and backgrounds. Freedom From and Freedom To integrates relationality by engaging audience participation. The audience is invited to randomly draw a combination of artists who will perform together. Some of the participants have never engaged with each other before, which creates a challenging and often rewarding opportunity for world-making.

Dancers:
Aaliyah Christina, Ed Clemons, Irene Hsiao, Shalaka Kulkarni, Amanda Maraist, Chrissy Martin, Wannapa P. Eubanks , Rin Peisert, Cristal Sabbagh, Sara Zalek

Musicians:
Angel Bat Dawid, Johanna Brock, Paige Brown, Caitlin Edwards, Bill Harris, Ben LaMar Gay, Julian Otis, Sam Scranton, Daniel Wyche, Sharon Udoh

Curated by Cristal Sabbagh

This program is funded by the National Endowment for the Arts () and the Terra Foundation for American Art, () and are part of Art Design Chicago, () a citywide collaboration initiated by the Terra Foundation that highlights the city’s artistic heritage and creative communities.

Visit comfortstationlogansquare.org for more information.

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TODAY 4-8 PM Join Comfort Station and the Logan Square Neighborhood Association for a Dia De Muertos celebration on the Comfort Station Lawn. The event will feature food vendors, live music, storytelling, as well as an opportunity to see the memorial flags produced by community members during our series of public workshops with artists Carina Yepez and Erica Littlejohn. The flags will adorn the outdoor installation designed by Via Architects + Diseñadores. In addition to the flags, there will also be ofrendas designed by local artists and community members, as well as an altar community members are invited to contribute to. Our oferenda altar artists include: Divine Collective Naomi "Monstrochika" Martinez Natalia Sustantia Barry "Flash" Allen Lily Be AnySquared Projects Lydia Saaravia DePaul students, in collaboration with Lydia Saravia …with live Jarocho music, DJ’ing by Buenviaje Radio, storytelling by DIVINE collective, dance film by Silvia Diaz Brown, free tamales and pan de muerto, and more! The event is free and open to the public. This project is supported by a City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events 2021 Project Grant Special thanks to: Via Architects + Diseñadores Navillus Woodworks Guero Pallets

Call for artists 2022 is live! Deadline is Nov 10th. Link in bio for more info New this year, we will also be offering ten 30 minute portfolio review sessions on a first come, first served basis. If you are new to submitting exhibition proposals/applications, our hope is that these review sessions will provide concrete feedback that will help you submit a strong application based on your artistic practice. If you are experienced with exhibition proposals, we ask that you refrain from signing up for Portfolio Review sessions. https://comfortstationlogansquare.org/call-for-artists-page