About Us
A forum for experimental collaboration between artists and scholars
The Richard and Mary L. Gray Center for Arts and Inquiry is dedicated to removing barriers that separate intellectual and artistic exploration. Through support, programming, publications, and other outlets, we provide a space for reimagining the relationship between these two modes of creativity, investigation, and expression.
Events
From our ongoing programs to special happenings, the Gray Center offers a panoply of virtual and in-person discussions, performances, screenings, get-togethers, and more throughout the year.
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NEWS
Portable Gray Critical Art Soirée | February 19th
On the occasion of the 2026 College Art Association’s annual conference held in Chicago, The University of Chicago’s Richard and Mary L. Gray Center for Arts and Inquiry invite you, Thursday, February 19th, 6pm, to join us for our Portable Gray Critical Art Soirée, at 929 E 60th Street; featuring a roundtable on the state of criticism with Adrienne Brown, Romi Crawford, Tina Post, and Dieter Roelstraete; moderated by Zachary Cahill, a screening of Cauleen Smith’s film Three Songs About Liberation, and a performance by
Ian F. Svenonius and Sandi D.
Copies of the journal will be available along with the book by Romi Crawford, Breaking Cinema: Cauleen Smith, Experimental Film 2010-2023.
*The event is free and open to the public.
Food and drinks will be served.
6:00-6:30pm reception to be followed immediately by film screening, panel discussion, and performance.
Fellowships
Designed to foster intensive and experimental collaborations between artists and scholars, fellowships at the Gray Center are open to individuals at any stage of professional development in their fields, from emerging leaders to recognized figures.
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Portable Gray
An interdisciplinary journal dedicated to the weirdness found at the intersection of the arts and scholarship, Portable Gray features essays, interviews, poetry, musical compositions, and non-traditional academic research.
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Programs
Sidebar
The Gray Center welcomes the public for an ongoing conversation series with invited artists and scholars featuring food, drink, and meaningful engagement in a workshop setting.
Gray Sound
Artists and the community engage in performance and discussion to explore the boundaries of sound.