Arts + Literature Laboratory

06/05/2026

Members of Lab^4 Team 3 will be outside our gallery this Saturday, June 6, from noon to 2:30 PM asking people what they do "when things break." In exchange for answering, the first 50 people will receive a token for a FREE Chocolate Shoppe ice cream.

Team 3's "...when things break" programming is nearing its close, and this is also a chance to check out the art exhibition inside Art Lit Lab's gallery before it ends June 20.

Team 3’s theme "...when things break" plays with the idea that when things are broken and are out of our control, one way to respond — and ultimately heal — is through art, whether by viewing art or creating it ourselves.

Learn more about Lab^4 and view programming on our website. Lab^4 was made possible with funding from the Ruth Foundation for the Arts.

06/05/2026

We love our neighborhood and all the locally owned businesses nearby. With that in mind, we planned a perfect Saturday filled with good food, relaxation, and beautiful art.

06/01/2026

Our galleries will be closed on Tuesday, June 2 and Wednesday, June 3 for a private event.

Stop by and see our current exhibits, featuring the work of Aiden Caes, Nkechi Chibueze, Leslie Iwai, India Johnson, Tinuade Oyelowo, and Heidi Parkes this Thursday or Friday, 10am - 5pm or Saturday 12 - 5pm. Free and open to the public!

06/01/2026

MARK YOUR CALENDARS — the final events of LAB^4 Team 3’s exhibition + community series are here. Join us for one last round of conversation, creativity, storytelling, and celebration as “…when things break” comes to a close.

June 19 5:30 - 6:30 PM | Screen Printing + Artist Talk with Tinuade Oyelowo
Explore process, practice, and printmaking in this special artist-led event.

June 7:30 PM | Madison Premiere of the Makin' Cake documentary, featuring Dasha Kelly

June 20 at 7 PM | LAB^4 June Watershed Reading
An evening of powerful readings centered on grief, healing, resilience, and transformation featuring Aurora Shimshak, Kory Shrum, and Kate Vieira.

June 20 | Closing Reception for LAB^4 Team 3
Stick around after the Watershed Reading to celebrate the artists, curators, and community who made this series possible before the exhibition closes.

05/28/2026

Lovely article about Marisa Anderson tonight at ALL. We have a small amount of tickets left. Ticket link in the comments.

The US guitarist excavates the outer reaches of the famed collector’s work, pointedly – and beautifully – reinterpreting songs from nations touched by major US conflicts

05/21/2026

showing us how it's done during his top 16 round!

Battle @ Da Badgers 3 : Spring Showcase
May 15-16th, 2026 held at
Top 16 of the Open-Styles Dance Tournament

👨‍⚖️ : .rlo21
🎤 :
🎧 :
📸 :
🎥 :

05/18/2026

Something new is happening at our Watershed Reading this Saturday. For the first time, LAB^4 Team 3 is expanding the series to include speculative fiction — and three remarkable writers will be here to usher it in. From the outreaches of space to imaginary worlds, speculative fiction speaks to the challenges humanity faces and dreams of futures with reshaped systems and ideologies.

Join us and writers Alex Jennings, LP Kindred, and B. Pladek on Saturday, May 23 at 7 pm.

Admission is free, but donations make our programming sustainable. Lab^4 was made possible by funding from The Ruth Foundation for the Arts.

05/13/2026

Something sweet and special this week at Art Lit Lab, come hear and taste the stories of beloved 🎂🍰🧁

05/11/2026

Tomorrow evening, please join us for the next concert in our Auricle series! Free and open to the public, RSVP here:

Auricle New Music Series welcomes the Matt Blair Trio opening for Emily Rach Beisel on Tuesday, May 12, 2026 at 7:00pm. Admission is free. Emily Rach Beisel's spring tour features music from the upcoming solo record, Sumptuous Branching, to be released April 10, 2026. The performance blends bass cla...

05/08/2026

Flour. Sugar. Butter. And everything America forgot to share.

Makin' Cake is a solo performance written and performed by Dasha Kelly — poet laureate, author, and creative change agent — that uses the history of baking as a lens to explore race, class, and equity in America.

From scarce ingredients to abundance that wasn't shared equally, Kelly reveals how something as everyday as cake carries centuries of story. Come hungry for something real.

📅 May 14 | 7pm | Arts + Literature Laboratory
🔗 artlitlab.org/events/makin-cake
Free and open to the public