An Adventure Was Home: Gertrude Stein in Chicago
When Gertrude Stein arrived in Chicago on November 7, 1934—after her first ever airplane trip—it was as a literary celebrity. For the next several days, she would appear in the society pages, forge ties with the city’s cultural set, and deliver talks to packed audiences around town. In the years following, she became central to the literary life of Chicago, and her experimental practice was taken up by a surprisingly broad public.
To coincide with the 2015 centennial of the Renaissance Society and the upcoming centennial of the Arts Club of Chicago in 2016, this program is a reflection on Stein’s visit to the Windy City, where she read at both the Renaissance Society and the Arts Club. Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev, curator of the 14th Instanbul Biennial, plays Stein, reading portions from the three lectures delivered in 1934, and Liesl Olson, director of the Scholl Center for American History and Culture at Chicago’s Newberry Library, offers context for Stein’s visit and moderates a short conversation among the small group of participating poets and readers, including Lyn Hejinian and Patrick Durgin.
Cosponsored with the Renaissance Society and the Arts Club of Chicago
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