This week, we'll conclude our inaugural Artist-in-Residency Program with a performance by Chicago-based artist Allen Moore.

Moore, our regional Artist-in-Residence, has been working in partnership with pt.fwd and the McLean County Museum of History to create a new concert-length performance that draws upon materials from the Museum’s Black History Project. This project will be presented in a streaming concert on Saturday, April 24th, broadcast live from the McLean County Museum of History.

Prior to his performance, Moore led a "DIY Music Making Workshop" for local youth. More than twenty of us met on Zoom to learn about free music tools, create sonic experiments, and build our own record players out of household materials.

Allen Moore is a Black American Interdisciplinary Painter, Experimental Sound Artist, Educator, Youth Mentor and Curator born and raised in the Historic Village of Robbins, IL. Moore holds a Bachelors of Arts from Chicago State University, a Masters in Arts from Governors State University and a Masters of Fine Arts from Northern Illinois University in 2016. His work examines both visual and experimental music, emphasizing the importance of nurturing the Black Imagination with social representation. His educational and curatorial practices focus on building spaces for advocacy, creative representation and healing. His work converses with the signifiers of African American and popular culture, bringing to view the underlying themes of racial, emotional and socio-economic conditions. Moore has exhibited and performed across Chicago and the greater midwest, including exhibitions at Heaven Gallery, Compound Yellow, Experimental Sound Studio, Elastic Arts, Threewalls, The Museum of Contemporary Art, The School of the Art Institute of Chicago , Roots & Culture Gallery, Lula Cafe, The Star Media Group, Union Street Gallery, The Museum of Science and Industry Chicago, etc. He is a volunteer staff member for A.C.R.E. Artist Residency and Comfort Station. His recent curatorial projects include GATHER and the P.O.W.E.R. Project. His work has been featured in publications including Sixty Inches From the Center, (Gather), Movement Matters, Bad at Sports Contemporary Art Talk (ANX 2015 Roots and Culture) and featured work in the Netflix Original Series “Easy” Seasons 1 and 2.

The pt.fwd Artist-in-Residency Program is is supported by the Mirza Arts & Culture Grant and the Illinois Prairie Community Foundation.

Event details can be found on our Facebook event page. The concert will be streamed via our Twitch channel.