Fall 2023 Open House and Opening of “Crip Paint Power” by Genevieve Ramos

Open House schedule:

12-1 p.m. (in person): Mingling and self-guided tours.
1:15-2 p.m. (in person and on Zoom): Welcome, introducing “Crip Paint Power,” DCC announcements and ways to get involved.

Join us! We’re hosting an Open House, and we’d love to connect with you. Meet our staff and learn what we’re up to this semester.

We’re also excited for the opening of a powerful portrait series and homage to four Chicago-area disabled women of color, “Crip Paint Power” by Genevieve Ramos. The exhibition explores the love, care and interdependency in disability communities through the lens of disability justice and feminism.

For the first bit, we’ll be mingling with some food and drink on the second floor outdoor patio of the Behavioral Sciences Building– you’re also welcome to venture inside and check out the exhibition and our Lounge space!

As we wrap up, we’ll welcome folks in via Zoom to hear from Genevieve, share highlights for the coming semester, and learn about ways to get involved with some of the great organizations we’re connected to.

COVID-19 safety: UIC does not require masking, but we are still masking indoors as an accessibility measure for chronically ill/immunocompromised folks and those living interdependently with them. Please wear a mask in our spaces! We’ll have extras on hand. Zoom is another COVID-cautious option.

Access info: Our center is on the second floor and physically accessible via elevator. The patio can be access via lift and has ramps connecting its various levels. For the hybrid portion, we will have CART captions projected into the space with the Zoom. Please get in touch with any access requests or questions at dcc@uic.edu or 312-355-7050.

About “Crip Paint Power”

The UIC Disability Cultural Center is so honored to be the home for Genevieve Ramos: “Crip Paint Power.” Ramos began work on this portrait series during her 3Arts / Bodies of Work Residency Fellowship at UIC in 2022, and the exhibition was first showcased at Curb Appeal gallery in June to July 2023. (Learn more about Curb Appeal, an apartment gallery located in the Heart of Chicago neighborhood, run by Todd Garon and UIC alum Sandy Guttman.)

This exhibition presents work created as part of Ramos’s Feminist Crip Paint Power, a multiyear project exploring the love, care and interdependency in disability communities through the lens of disability justice and feminism. Stemming from relationships with disabled BIPOC femmes and through a series of curated interviews and photo shoots in partnership with the photographer Colectivo Multipolar, Crip Paint Power features four portraits of leaders in Chicago’s rich disability network, including community organizers Candace Coleman and Michelle Garcia, artist and educator Sandie (Chun-Shan) Yi, and the artist activist Reveca Torres. The exhibition includes a documentary film and zine created in collaboration with the Disability Culture Activism Lab at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Genevieve Ramos (b. 1990, she/her/ella) is an American visual artist and disability advocate. Specializing in acrylic painting, Ramos employs vibrant colors to achieve a pop art aesthetic while exploring the themes of feminism, disability, empowerment and political awareness. Ramos wields her art as a tool of activism and resistance, challenging audiences to explore their preconceived notions about what and who women with disabilities should be. As an artist, she is inspired by the beauty, positivity, and love of the world, which manifest in works like her portrait series Feminist Crip Paint Power (2022-2023). She is a member of the Pinturas Mexicana’s collective and was a 2021 Artist in Residence with the Disability Culture Activism Lab at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and a 2022 fellow with 3Arts/Bodies of Work. Ramos holds degrees in art and women, gender and sexuality studies from Northeastern Illinois University and is working toward a certificate in painting from the School of the Art Institute.