Artist Talk: Turn Your Pain Into Honey
On Monday, January 20, Sweet Water Foundation gathered an intimate group for the inaugural Artist Talk at the Gallery at [Re]Construction House, featuring Janelle Dunlap. Janelle, a SWF Human-in-Residence, delivered the first of a series of talks that SWF will host to bridge artistic practices with communal and personal healing. Her presentation explored how her own ancestral reflection led to a practice of creative beekeeping that connects her work as a socially engaged visual artist and curator. Read on to learn more about the inaugural Artist Talk at the Gallery at [Re]Construction House.
Cottage Constructions at the Smart
On Saturday, January 11, SWF Human-in-Residence, Tanya Scruggs Ford, led Family Day: Cottage Constructions at the Smart Museum of Art. Children and their families gathered in the threshold of the Smart to create their own worker cottage house and dream about the future of their communities. The concept built upon SWF’s participation in the 2019 Chicago Architecture Biennial and continued the conversation about the Chicago Worker Cottages.
October 2019 | Happenings at The Commons
Fall 2019 has been a busy season at The Commons. Despite cooler weather and shorter days, groups of people from all walks of life have continued to visit Sweet Water Foundation for tours, events, and workshops. From hands-on field lessons-to-”disorientation” tours-to-staff retreats, the SWF team has welcomed visitors from across the globe throughout September and October to learn about and engage in Regenerative Neighborhood Development.
Humans-in-Residence: The Black School Residency at The Commons
In early August 2019, Sweet Water Foundation welcomed Shani Peters and Joseph Cullier III, Co-Directors of The Black School, to The Commons for a 10-day Humans-in-Residence immersion. The Black School is “an experimental art school teaching Black/PoC students and allies to become agents of change through art workshops on radical Black politics and public projects that address local community needs.” The Black School was first introduced to SWF in late spring through Chicago Architecture Biennial Curator, Sepake Angiama, who identified synergies and potential future collaborations between the two organizations.
Yogurt Making at The Commons
On October 3, 2019, the SWF core team gathered in the kitchen of the Think Do House to learn how to make yogurt from Human-In-Residence, Jen Rae. Jen transported the yogurt culture from her home in Australia to Chicago for Then a Cunning Voice - Food to Be Experienced, an overnight performance event at Calumet Park on September 28, and then brought it to The Commons during her residency to share the practice of yogurt making with SWF.
Sweet Water Foundation Featured At 2019 Chicago Architecture Biennial
Re-Root + Redux borrows from the architectural language of Sweet Water Foundation’s main site, known as the Perry Ave Commons. Designed in collaboration with Trillium Dell Timber Frame Construction, the structure is inspired by the framing and construction method of Chicago’s worker cottages -- once the dominant housing typology and the first standardized affordable housing in the city.
Humans of Sweet Water...Meet David Snowdy and Jordan Graham
Meet David Snowdy and Jordan Graham. David and Jordan… Humans of Sweet Water...Meet Dave Snowdy and Jordan Graham. Dave (Mentor) and Jordan (Apprentice and Peer Mentor) have both been part of the SWF core team for years. Their relationship as Mentor and Apprentice demonstrates the unique model that Sweet Water Foundation uses to teach and engage lifelong learners in the practice of Regenerative Neighborhood Development.
2019 Annual Harvest Celebration at The Commons
On Saturday, September 27, Sweet Water Foundation hosted the 2019 Annual Harvest Celebration at The Commons, welcoming more than 200 guests from near and far. Harvest Celebration activities centered around the R-N-D Park, a new community park SWF activated this summer on 5-contiguous parcels of vacant land at The Commons.
Canning at The Commons
On August 29, the SWF team spent the day learning, sharing, and practicing the wisdom of pickling and canning: two commonly used food preservation techniques. The morning kicked off with a group harvest of fresh produce from the Community Farm, which was followed by an afternoon of preserving. Although food preservation practices have been used for hundreds of years, this was the first time the SWF team began to collectively practice preservation of the abundance of food growing on the farm.
Sweet Water Academy’s 2019 Summer Cohort
In June 2019, SWF welcomed its first Academy Cohort from across the City of Chicago and beyond. The Summer 2019 Academy Cohort worked together to build, create, grow, learn, and share Sweet Water Foundation’s practice of Regenerative Neighborhood Development.
Honoring Aerin’s Life @ The Commons
On a beautiful September afternoon, Sweet Water Foundation hosted a memorial service for, Aerin Nefertiti Jackson Cooper, a beloved member of the SWF Family. Aerin began visiting SWF in early 2018 with Mama Sunshine, a longtime member of the SWF Family and respected member in the community. Aerin’s spiritual godmother, Mama Sunshine, visited The Commons regularly, and, during the harvest season, visited every week to harvest fresh produce from farm. The SWF community was shocked to find out that Aerin passed away unexpectedly on Saturday, July 27, 2019. Given Aerin’s love for The Commons, Mama Sunshine organized a memorial service at The Commons in Aerin’s honor on Saturday, September 7.
Raising the RND House at The Commons
On Saturday, July 13, the Sweet Water community once-again partnered with Trillium Dell, masters of timber craft and frame construction, to hand raise a timber frame pavilion at The Commons. The new structure, known as the RND House, was commissioned as part of the 2019 Chicago Architecture Biennial (Biennial). Sweet Water Foundation is a Contributor to the Biennial, which opens September 19, 2019 at the Chicago Cultural Center.
Summer Volunteers at The Commons
This summer, SWF welcomed 300 volunteers from PPM America to The Commons for weekly volunteer days in partnership with Chicago Cares. Throughout June and July, more than 25 volunteers visited The Commons each week for a 2-hour intensive volunteer experience. The Sweet Water and PPM America teams developed a consistent relationship and an emerging partnership over the summer and successfully worked on new and old projects at The Commons.
Humans of Sweet Water...Meet Tanya Scruggs Ford
Humans of Sweet Water...Meet Tanya Scruggs Ford. Tanya has been a part of the Sweet Water community since 2018 and recently joined the SWF team as a Human-In-Residence to support Sweet Water Academy’s Summer Urban Ecology Apprenticeship Program. She is a local artist who makes unique and beautiful pieces of jewelry out of reclaimed wood. Tanya is also an educator and a mentor who brings her creativity, imagination, and sense of wonder to The Commons.
Reconnecting to the Patient Experience at The Commons
On Friday, July 12, a group of 7 nursing students from Malcolm X College visited The Commons with their instructor, Dr. Dawn Wilson, for a tour and to get their hands in the soil at the Sweet Water Community Farm. This is the second group of nursing students that Dr. Wilson has brought to The Commons to introduce concepts of growing healthy food and expose them to community health resources, such as Sweet Water Foundation, that they may not know exist.
Humans of Sweet Water...Meet Angela Ford
Meet Angela Ford...Angela has been in the SWF family since July of 2018. She grew up on the South side of Chicago and has a deep passion for family, tradition, and honoring her ancestors. Angela has spent time at The Commons documenting and sharing the story of the surrounding community and families by archiving pictures and documents found in the area. SWF is excited to feature Angela this month because her relationships with SWF demonstrates another dimension of Sweet Water Foundation that is not always talked about.
Inaugural Sweet Water Academy Immersion with MIT CREATE
In partnership with MIT CREATE, the inaugural Sweet Water Academy Immersion took place over a 2-week period in June (June 9-22) and culminated with SWF’s Second Annual Juneteenth Celebration at The Commons. The MIT CREATE team, led by CREATE co-founders and MIT faculty John Kennedy and Kate Mytty, included 3 MIT graduate students in Architecture and Urban Planning and 1 graduate student of Public Health-Epidemiology at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center.
Second Annual Juneteenth Celebration @ The Commons
Sweet Water Foundation’s Second Annual Juneteenth at The Commons took place on Saturday, June 22, 2019, welcoming hundreds of people on a beautiful summer day to create, build, and celebrate freedom and community. The Commons was transformed into a vibrant festival atmosphere with live music, food, dance, public art exhibits, vendors, basketball, arts + crafts, and more.
Yoga in the Lightbox Theater + Gallery
On Sunday, June 16 the Lightbox Theater + Gallery was transformed into a yoga studio for an hour of Vinyasa Flow yoga. Ten people gathered in the Thought Barn to relax their minds, activate their muscles, and stretch their bodies during the session led by yoga instructor, Clif Hurt. Clif’s family has been visiting Sweet Water Foundation to harvest produce and enjoy The Commons for over a year. SWF was excited to welcome a member of the SWF Family to lead the first yoga session at The Commons.
Building Critical Connections with Dr. Abdullah Pratt
Dr. Abdullah Pratt, an Emergency Medicine physician at the University of Chicago Medical Center, first visited Sweet Water Foundation via friend and SWF team member, Taryn Randle. Dr. Pratt is a native of Chicago’s South Side, Emergency Medicine Attending, and Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine at the University of Chicago. He is committed to serving his community not only through his work at UChicago’s Trauma Center, but also by sharing his knowledge with both community members and his professional peers. Read on to learn about the critical connections developing at The Commons.