Theaster Gates: Breathing

Now through May 16, PAMM is presenting Theaster Gates‘s film Breathing (2010). The six-minute film was inspired by the Chicago-based artist’s interest in Eastern Buddhism and passion for gospel music. The singers of the experimental choir the Black Monks, directed by Gates since 2008, are captured from the shoulders up, mixing monastic chants with Southern gospel and blues melodies. Gates is known for using a variety of methods in his artistic practice to revitalize his neighborhood on Chicago’s South Side. His nonprofit organization, the Rebuild Foundation, is part affordable housing, art studio, work space, and community resource.