MAKE Literary Productions

10/19/2026

Come watch a live performance titled ‘Gravity in Motion / Gravedad en movimiento‘ featuring Mexico-based artist Bárbara Foulkes and Chicago-based artists Mauricio López F. and Camille Casemier as part of the Lit & Luz 2026 Chicago Festival ✨

📍Hyde Park Art Center, Gallery 1
📅 8th November
🕥 2pm - 4pm

From October 15–November 17, 2026, Bárbara will be a resident artist at the Jackman Goldwasser Residency at Hyde Park Art Center. As part of Lit & Luz’s ongoing partnership with the Art Center, Bárbara will have a studio in the Guida Family Creative Wing during her residency.

Across Gallery 1 of the Hyde Park Art Center, the artists will activate the edges of motion and space with three original performances through tension, transformation, and play with objects, machines, sound, and everyday gestures. Questioning the ordinary, these encounters become spaces of possibility, where materials take on new lives and unexpected meanings emerge.

This event is presented in partnership with the Lit & Luz Festival, the Hyde Park Art Center, and the University of Chicago’s Department of Visual Arts.

Register to attend this event by clicking the link in our bio 🔗

Photo information:
HOW, BEING FISH, CAN WE SEE THE WATER
2022-2025

Credits:
Direction & Creation- Bárbara Foulkes
Performers- Bárbara Foulkes, Thelma Ascencio
Cinemotagrapher- Emilio Valdés

ENG: Camille Casemier is a Chicago-based performance artist attending to performances already underway around her and the social indexicalities of objects. Her work is informed by managing a nonprofit resale shop.

ESP: Camille Casemier es una artista de performance radicada en Chicago que centra su atención en los performances que ya están sucediendo a su alrededor y en las relaciones directas de los objetos en el ámbito social. Su trabajo se nutre de su experiencia gestionando una tienda de reventa sin fines de lucro.

Photo by Kat Bawden

ENG: Mauricio López F. is an interdisciplinary Chicago-based Chilean artist working across installation, performance, and sculpture. His practice has been supported by institutions such as the Foundation for Contemporary Arts and Bemis Center, and presented across the Americas,

10/19/2026

Join us at the Logan Center for the Arts for an artist talk with Mexican artist and filmmaker Rubén Gutiérrez, hosted by the Open Practice Committee in the Department of Visual Arts at the University of Chicago 🤩

📍 The University of Chicago
Logan Center for the Arts, Penthouse Room 901
915 E 60th St, Chicago, IL 60637
📆 Monday, November 9, 2026
🕙 6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.

Gutiérrez traces the threads across his practice — from drawings, painting, constructed photography, and film to his work as an academic and promoter of emerging artists through ObjectNotFound.org, a contemporary art distribution and promotion platform based in Monterrey, Mexico.

Gutiérrez will be joined by Héctor García, Professor at Loyola University Chicago and scholar of Mexican literature and film, for a moderated conversation and Q&A.

This event is presented in partnership with the Lit & Luz Festival and the University of Chicago’s Open Practice Committee in the Department of Visual Arts, Loyola University Chicago, UNAM Chicago, and the National Museum of Mexican Art ✨
. . . .

ESP: Acompáñanos al Logan Center for the Arts para una charla con el artista y cineasta mexicano Rubén Gutiérrez, organizada por el Comité de Práctica Abierta del Departamento de Artes Visuales de la Universidad de Chicago 🤩

Gutiérrez trazará las conexiones entre su práctica como artista visual, como cineasta, escritor y educador. Desde sus Dibujos Post Filosóficos, pinturas, fotografía construida y películas, hasta su labor de promoción de artistas emergentes a través de ObjectNotFound.org, un espacio de distribución y promoción de arte contemporáneo con sede en Monterrey, México.

Este evento se presenta en colaboración con el Festival Lit & Luz y el Comité de Práctica Abierta del Departamento de Artes Visuales de la Universidad de Chicago ✨

10/18/2026

ENG: Join Northwestern University’s Department of Spanish and Portuguese for a conversation with Mexico City-based writer, editor, translator, and anthropologist Marina Azahua, Professor and Latin American visual culture researcher, Alejandra Uslenghi, and Assistant Professor and Indigenous studies/Latinx Literatures researcher Mariajosé Rodríguez Pliego 🗣️

📍 Northwestern University
University Hall, Hagstrum Room (201)
1897 Sheridan Road, Evanston IL 60208
📆 Tuesday, November 10
🕙 11:00 a.m. - 12:20 p.m.

Together they will explore the politics and poetics of the archive, the photographic image, and the relationship between writing, representation, and memory.

Azahua is the author of ‘Retrato involuntario: El acto fotográfico como forma de violencia’ (Comisura, 2025) and ‘Archivo agonía’ (Sexto Piso, 2024), and co-founder of Ediciones Antílope.

This event will be in English and Spanish and is presented in partnership with the Lit & Luz Festival and Northwestern University’s Department of Spanish and Portuguese.
. . . .

ESP: En el marco del Festival Lit & Luz 2026 de Chicago, el Departamento de Español y Portugués de Northwestern University y Lit & Luz organizan una conversación entre la escritora, editora, traductora y antropóloga radicada en la Ciudad de México, Marina Azahua, la profesora Alejandra Uslenghi, cuya investigación abarca la cultura visual latinoamericana, la historia de la fotografía y la teoría crítica; y la profesora adjunta e investigadora en Estudios Indígenas y Literaturas Latinx, María José Rodríguez Pliego.

Juntas explorarán las políticas y poéticas del archivo, la imagen fotográfica y la relación entre escritura, representación y memoria.

Azahua es autora de ‘Retrato involuntario: El acto fotográfico como forma de violencia’ (Comisura, 2025) y ‘Archivo agonía’ (Sexto Piso, 2024), además de cofundadora de Ediciones Antílope.

Este evento se desarrollará en inglés y español, y se presenta en colaboración con el Festival Lit & Luz y el Departamento de Español y Portugués de la Universidad Northwestern.

10/18/2026

The Lit & Luz 2026 Chicago Festival is proud to announce that vocalist and storyteller Ana Everling will be performing in the Live Magazine Show on Friday 13th November at 7pm at the MCA Chicago! 🎉

ENG: Ana Everling crafts a sonic bridge between ancestral tradition and the reclamation of a Romanian cultural heritage within the Republic of Moldova once targeted for systemic erasure. An official artist at So Alive, Folk Alliance International and SXSW, she has performed on prestigious stages including Lincoln Center in New York and the Chicago Symphony Center.

ESP: La cantante y narradora Ana Everling trabaja con puentes sonoros entre la tradición ancestral y la reivindicación del patrimonio cultural rumano en la República de Moldavia, el cual fue objeto de intentos de eliminación sistemática en el pasado. Como artista oficial en So Alive, Folk Alliance International y SXSW, ha actuado en escenarios de prestigio, como el Lincoln Center de Nueva York y el Chicago Symphony Center.

Purchase your tickets TODAY to see Ana Everling perform at the Live Magazine Show! Click on the link in our bio to get your tickets 🎟️

10/16/2026

Join us at Haymarket House for the Lit & Luz Festival’s 2026 Keynote Address on this year’s festival theme “Edge/Borde” by internationally recognized author and poet, Karen Villeda 🤩

On this special occasion, Villeda will give an address titled, “Something and Someone, Her and Her Rope” and will read from her recently translated poetry collection ‘String Theory / Teoría de cuerdas’ translated by NAFTA (Cardboard House Press, 2025).

📍 Haymarket House
800 W Buena Ave, Chicago, IL 60613
📆 Thursday, November 12
🕙 7:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.
Doors open at 6:30 p.m.

After the address, Villeda will be joined by scholar Andrea Reed-Leal for an intimate conversation on her writing, followed by a book signing and reception to celebrate the festival week.

This address will be in Spanish with simultaneous English interpretation.

This event is presented in partnership with the Lit & Luz Festival, UIC’s Center for Latinx Literature of the Americas and Haymarket House.
. . . .

ESP: Acompáñanos a la conferencia magistral del festival Lit & Luz 2026 en el Haymarket House, a cargo de la poeta Karen Villeda, abordando el tema central del festival: “Edge/Borde” 🤩

En esta ocasión especial, Villeda presentará una conferencia titulada “Algo y alguien, ella y su cuerda” y leerá fragmentos de su colección de poesía recientemente traducida ‘String Theory / Teoría de cuerdas’ traducido por NAFTA (Cardboard House Press, 2025).

Después de la conferencia, Villeda será acompañada por la académica Andrea Reed-Leal en una conversación íntima sobre su proceso de escritura, seguida de una firma de libros y una recepción para celebrar el inicio de la semana del festival.

La conferencia se impartirá en español y contará con traducción simultánea al inglés.

Este evento se presenta en colaboración con el Festival Lit & Luz, el Center for Latinx Literature of the Americas de la UIC y Haymarket House.

10/16/2026

ENG: The Lit & Luz Festival returns to The Whistler for its annual golden hour — an intimate evening of original poetry and storytelling by artists from Mexico and Chicago, hosted by Joel Craig & &rew Pérez 🤩

Artists include: Rubén Gutiérrez (Monterrey/CDMX), Marina Azahua (CDMX), Ricardo Gamboa (Chicago), Jennifer Scappettone (Chicago), Sara Wainscott (Chicago), and Jacob Saenz (Chicago).

📍 The Whistler
2421 N Milwaukee Ave, Chicago, IL 60647
📆 Tuesday, November 10 2026
🕙 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.

This event is presented in partnership with the Lit & Luz Festival and the Whistler.
. . . .

ESP: El Festival Lit & Luz vuelve a Chicago y con él nuestro encuentro anual en The Whistler con una hora dorada muy íntima, de poesía inédita y narración de cuentos de artistas de México y Chicago, presentado este año por Joel Craig y &rew Pérez 🤩

Entre lxs artistas se encuentran: Rubén Gutiérrez (Monterrey/CDMX), Marina Azahua (CDMX), Ricardo Gamboa (Chicago), Jennifer Scappettone (Chicago), Sara Wainscott (Chicago), y Jacob Saenz (Chicago).

Este evento se presenta en colaboración con The Whistler.

10/15/2026

Want to help us produce a week of unique and free programs?

The Lit & Luz Festival of Literature, Language, and Art is looking for volunteers to help at events during Nov 8 - November 14, 2026 🤩

The Lit & Luz Festival is a one-of-a-kind series of events featuring renowned authors, visual artists, and musicians from Chicago and Mexico in cultural exchange and conversation.

This week long series of readings, conversations, artist talks, and performances, including our signature event, at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, the Live Magazine Show: cross-cultural experimentations between artists and writers on stage, highlights new translations and artistic collaborations—showcasing some of the most innovative contemporary artists from both countries.

Whether you’d like to support from your laptop or onsite at an event, your help is greatly appreciated!

Roles include:
– Greeter/ wayfinding
– Production support / stagehands
– Photography/ documentation
– Accessibility services support
– Merch table
– Translation and/or interpretation
– Event surveys / collecting audience information
– Artist escorting
– Hang posters & drop off postcards/ programs

Please fill out the form in our link in bio if you are interested in collaborating with us and someone from our team will be in touch with you 🫶

10/10/2026

10/05/2026

For our final Lit & Luz Book Club session, we will be reading ‘Corazón de hojalata / Tin Heart’ by Margarita Saona (Pandora Lobo Estepario Productions, 2017) 📚

We’re going to be meeting at the Chicago Public Library (6 S Hoyne Ave, Chicago, IL 60612) on Saturday, October 24th at 11:00 am CT 📆

Learn more about the book:
‘Tin Heart’ brings together a series of poems born out of the experience of cardiac failure, surgery, the proximity of death, a heart transplant, and other extreme situations. Margarita Saona confronts the pain, alienation, love, and otherness imposed by an infirm body with a language in which intensity, imagery, and rhythm do not detract from the simplicity of everyday words.

Corazón de hojalata recoge poemas escritos desde la experiencia del fallo cardiaco, la cirugía, la cercanía de la muerte, un transplante de corazón y otras situaciones extremas. Margarita Saona confronta el dolor, la alienación, el amor y la otredad impuestas por el cuerpo enfermo desde un lenguaje en el que la intensidad, las imágenes y el ritmo no toman distancia de la cotidianidad de las palabras.

About the Author:
Margarita Saona has taught Latin American literature at the University of Illinois at Chicago for more than two decades. Both her creative and academic work revolve around memory, the body, phenomenology and the senses. Her short fiction texts are collected in ‘La ciudad en que no estás’ (Cocodrilo Ediciones 2020) and translated into English under the title ‘The Ghost of You’ (Laberinto Press 2023). She has also published a collection of poems, ‘Corazón de hojalata/ Tin heart’ (Pandora Lobo Estepario Productions 2017), an essay on surgical interventions, ‘De monstruos y cyborgs’ (Pandora Lobo Estepario Productions 2023), and a memoir, ‘Corazón en trance: Bitácora de una sobreviviente’ (Peisa Peru 2024).

Margarita Saona will be present at the book club, so get your copy of ‘Corazón de hojalata / Tin Heart’ at our book club partner Pilsen Community Books so that you can read her collection! Let’s talk about it during book club & get your copy signed 🤩 See you at book club!

10/03/2026

We’re so excited to start announcing our schedule of events for this year’s Lit & Luz Chicago Festival! One of our incredible events will be Gravity in Motion / Gravedad en movimiento happening 8th November from 2pm - 4pm at the Hyde Park Art Center, Gallery 1 📆

ENG: An afternoon of live performance with Mexico-based artist Bárbara Foulkes and Chicago-based artists Mauricio López F. and Camille Casemier. Across Gallery 1 of the Hyde Park Art Center, the artists will activate the edges of motion and space with three original performances through tension, transformation, and play with objects, machines, sound, and everyday gestures. Questioning the ordinary, these encounters become spaces of possibility, where materials take on new lives and unexpected meanings emerge.

This event is presented in partnership with the Lit & Luz Festival, the Hyde Park Art Center, and the University of Chicago’s Department of Visual Arts.

ESP: Una tarde de performances en vivo con la artista radicada en México Bárbara Foulkes y los artistas radicados en Chicago Mauricio López F. y Camille Casemier. En la Galería 1 del Hyde Park Art Center, los artistas activarán las fronteras entre movimiento y espacio con tres performances inéditos, explorando la tensión, la transformación y el juego con objetos, máquinas, sonido y gestos cotidianos. Al cuestionar lo ordinario, estos encuentros se transforman en espacios de posibilidad donde los materiales adquieren nuevas vidas y surgen significados inesperados.

Este evento se presenta en colaboración con el Festival Lit & Luz, el Hyde Park Art Center y el Comité de Práctica Abierta (Open Practice Committee) del Departamento de Artes Visuales de la Universidad de Chicago.

From October 15–November 17, 2026, Bárbara will be a resident artist at the Jackman Goldwasser Residency at Hyde Park Art Center. As part of Lit & Luz’s ongoing partnership with the Art Center, Bárbara will have a studio in the Guida Family Creative Wing during her residency ✨