Newcity: Play and Acceptance: A Review of “With a Little Help From My Friends” at Circle Contemporary

“Upon reading this you must choose whether or not to become part of the play” is just one of the eight directives from curators, Megan Foy, institutional relations and strategic partnerships coordinator at Expo Chicago, and Julian Van Der Moere, co-founder of Apparatus Projects, at the Arts of Life headquarters and exhibition setting for Circle Contemporary’s “With a Little Help From My Friends.”

Under the counsel of guest curators Foy and Van Der Moere, artists Frances Roberts, Renata Berdes, Jean Wilson, Aki Goto, Vincent Trasov, Michael E. Smith, Stefan Harhaj, Marcelo Anon, Eugene Von Bruenchenhein and Noah Wieder invite the public to engage in play and engage with their works. A safe haven for artists with intellectual disabilities, Arts of Life is a community-driven organization committed to workspace equality that encourages artists to deep dive into their artistry and build upon their creative skills.

“With a Little Help From My Friends” showcases twelve interdisciplinary pieces ranging from sculpture and photography to works on paper and video. Milwaukee artist Bruenchenhein and his works—two compelling black-and-white gelatin silver prints—draw the viewer into the exhibition. Known for photographing his wife—Eveline “Marie” Kalke—with afflatus, Bruenchenhein gained recognition posthumously as a self-made painter, sculptor, poet and photographer.

In “With a Little Help From My Friends” there are two images of Marie. She is perched in similar poses smiling. “Untitled (Marie squatting on a stool)” and “Untitled (Marie crouched, chenille bedspread background and shadow),” share a contrast, however. In “Untitled (Marie crouched, chenille bedspread background and shadow),” Marie is topless, crouched in high heels and with a bit of fabric draped over her pelvic region. She looks away from the camera, vulnerable and looks a little unsure or uncomfortable but plays it up like she’s happy. In “Untitled (Marie squatting on a stool)” Marie has her hair done, make-up on, clothes on, and she’s coyly looking away from the camera. Here, she still looks a smidge apprehensive, but it comes off as youthful innocence. Her zest and spirit shine through the lavish floral fabric backdrop. Marie often played characters like the regal and majestic queen to the alluring siren. The couple collaborated on the sets and roles Marie would play. According to the National Gallery of Art, there are thousands of slide images, emphasizing the couple’s use of their marriage to create, perform and amuse one another, giving another perspective to the concept of role-playing within an intimate relationship.

Michael E. Smith, an artist from Rhode Island, incorporates yet another element of play, that of gameplay and farce with his weathered-sports-ball piece “Untitled.” The coarse, hardened ball is accompanied by fossilized whale ear bones giving the impression of a mask. The time and age reflected in the materials beg the questions “Who used them?” and “Who do they represent?” They also offer contemplation of the present, and how we interact with the decay of everyday objects.