we’ve made a ritual outta
returning to lorde’s journals around this time of year
aligning an entry's date with the present
excerpts from a tattered
burst of light
written in 1985
a promise of light lorde gleaned decades ago at Lukas Klinik in Switzerland
isolated from her loved ones to tend to her healing
lorde reflects on loneliness, love and hope
yearning for a happiness that is innate within her
yet kept at bay by the reality of her health
a survivor’s testimony
WANNA READ LORDE'S JOURNAL ENTRY FROM NYE 1985 ?
give me a tap to navigate to
our order of edition
WANT A
QUICK -N- DIRTY
RECAP OF OUR 2022?
our Black-ass-freelance-artist-2022 overflowed with kinship, joy and adventure
but there was no magic
just grit, exhaustion and endless work
to dream of survival is to know the daily ritual of willing one’s self to hope
after reading lorde’s entry this year
we listened to Bob Marley’s
Three Little Birds
tears burning our nose
survival’s seed planted in gon' be’s soil
![[ID: A portrait of a Black woman with an asymmetrical afro, standing in front of an apricot-colored wall. Her eyes are closed and adorned with purple eyeshadow. She appears to be breathing in, mid-inhale. Her fingertips lightly touch her neck, her face glowing, and her lips spreading into a big smile, giving a look of both serenity and joy.]](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/c29e02_75cf8f076ac248d7b2ea91ea15197890~mv2.png/v1/fill/w_76,h_76,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/JennfreemanUnitedStatesArtist.png)
Photo x Greg Inda
Switch the Boi Wonder & Po’Chop looking like somebody’s uncles. Gazing defiantly into the camera. Photo x @greg_inda
Photo x Greg Inda
Photo x Ricardo E Adame at Chicago Dancemakers Forum ELEVATE Chicago Dance 2022
Photo x Ricardo E Adame at Chicago Dancemakers Forum ELEVATE Chicago Dance 2022
January
February
APRIL
april
MAYISH
july
june & oct
September
october
Image at House of the Lorde x Ally Alymore
Image at House of the Lorde x Ally Alymore
February
March
august
november
november
december
through portals
oh my, my, 2022 was A LOT
as we look towards a new calendar year
we ask of ourselves to continue seeking practices that nourish our longevity
we are manifesting our sustainability and survival through House of the Lorde
a physical and spiritual space rooted in slowness, community care and carving intentional space for Black women and femmes to show up as their full selves
this edition flings open the doors of House of the Lorde for a self-guided virtual tour, giving you a sneak peek at who’s been in the space and our future intentions.
now
before we dive in
take a moment to remove your finger/hand from the screen and deepen your breathe
these tender pages are intended to be savored
as always, thank you for being here
don’t forget to explore, click, drag and tap til your heart’s content
Split by a white column ,our altar is part collage, part installation.
Adjacent to our work zone is our wall of erotic led individuals.
Nina Simone
Aerin Pussy Cooper
Shani Crowe
Octavia Butler
Black women and queer folks
who, in our opinion, led by their erotic knowledge
edify their communities. This wall is living. Constantly changing. We speak to this wall often, gazing upon dreams.
On the other side of the column
is our beloved brown bags
that have made appearances in
The People’s Church of the G.H.E.T.T.O & LITANY.
They have come to hold so much energy and bring an abundance of peace.
We find our mind unfolding as our eyes wander from one bag’s edge to the next.
Last edition we shared the process of making our sprung floor alongside carpenter Bryan Saner. Since then we installed brown marbled marley and leveled up with transportable mylar mirrors.
The process of making the floor was a practice in asking for help. sending gratitude to M., MC, Tiff and Bryan for helping get this floor right.
Thank the sprung floor gods for holding my bones and making way for softer landings
Located in Chicago's Pilsen neighborhood, House of the Lorde was created to edify Black women, femmes & queer folks.
As apart of an art hub called Mana Contemporary, a collection of artist studios in a repurposed Commonwealth warehouse tower, House of the Lorde carves out space for folks to reconnect with themselves.
use the below map to go on your virtual tour. simply click each zone image for insight.
From cutting brown paper dresses to repotting plants to sending emails, here over a sprawling work table our hands get busy.
A cork wall featuring clusters of portraits, notes, artwork and our adored denim pocket of tools overlook a red mini fridge that holds snacks, beverages and ice packs.
We continue to find impactful ways to be gentle and care for ourselves while we work with ice packs and affirmation cards
Welcome to our vestibule
where you are encouraged to sit on a pew, remove your shoes and reflect on our monthly quote displayed on our hymn board.
This quote is pulled from the text we share during The Reading Room.
Also found in the vestibule are free copies of our monthly Reading Room text and Po'Chop pins.
It wouldn't be the House of the Lorde without our Thank the Lorde print originally commissioned for our first Audre Lorde inspired service Thank the Lorde.
This print lives in a wooden frame next to the hymn board.
We are slowly starting to call folks into the space for intimate gatherings and classes.
We aim to build a community rooted in care while seeking avenues that lead us to our sustainability.
FORCE! an opera in 3 parts and created by Anna Martine Whitehead and co directed by Ayanna Woods has regularly been rehearsing at HOTL.
As a dancer in FORCE! alongside, Zac Nichols and Rahila Coats the process has birthed some deep kinships. Tho’ the work is still in development, we had our first spattering of work in progress showings in Chicago and NYC. Check out a recording below.
Held in conjunction with The Reading Room, The Dream Chamber was an in person soundscape experience created by NYC based artist Nia Witherspoon featuring collaborator Jillian Walker. The Dream Chamber was an invitation for Black folks to commune with their ancestors and dream. It was a beautiful and intimate experience.
The Dream Chamber is one chamber of a multi chamber project called The Priestess of Twerk. Our collaboration with Nia continued this month with a weekend take over of performances and chambers at Links Hall. The experience left me cracked open with gratitude and growth.
Check out the concert below for a beautiful collection of songs rooted in Black feminism, a peek at the altar ya girl created and even a few dance cameos. Such an honor to commune with these phenomenal artists.
As we come upon HOTL'S one year anniversary we are also celebrating one year of regularly teaching in HOTL.
Our burlesque classes are intended to be on avenue to build financial sustainability for ourself but also for the space.
Our Intro to Burlesque classes are expansive space for folks to grow, play and prioritize themselves.
We confront the limitations of capitalism through reserving 2 scholarship slots for BIPOC folks experiencing financial barriers.
Sharing the life and work of Black Feminist in community continues to feel urgent.
The Reading Room meets every 3rd Thursday of the month to casually read aloud or listen to and discuss Black Feminist texts. We started making our way through Lorde's Sister Outsider, combed through Alexis Pauline Gumb's Undrowned and are closing out the year with Tricia Hersey's Rest is Resistance.
Check out our 2023 schedule and come through to dive into community and Black feminist text.
and just like that this edition comes to an end
thank you for rocking with The Brown Pages
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HOUSE OF THE LORDE
It’s pretty cool here huh? Well stay awhile with this curated list of past editions.
may our 2023 be a year of healing
may we continue to find spaces that feed our sustainability
may we know rest before burnout and
community care that sees and nourishes us
may every lil’ thing be alright-t-t-t
