College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences > Centers & Institutes > DePaul Humanities Center > Events > Sickness and Solitude

Sickness and Solitude

An Artistic Multi-Dimensional Inquiry

Experience a DePaul Humanities Center event . . . through the U.S. mail! Events in the “Sickness and Solitude” series look at the state of the world today, especially as filtered through the lens of COVID and calls for social justice, and offer an artistic response. Each event features multiple artist “panelists” as well as interdisciplinary approaches to a shared theme.


Sickness and Solitude I

The DHC invites you to enjoy one of our signature events in a brand new way. While pandemic safety concerns keep us from seeing one another in person, we are still committed to bringing talented minds and voices to you. We have teamed up with a group of amazing musical and visual artists to produce the DHC’s first album, Sickness and Solitude, also including interview tracks with each artist. CDs will be mailed free of charge but supplies are limited to the first 100 registrants. 

Learn MoreSign Up Here


Sickness and Solitude II

We are excited to continue this series by offering you a free custom retro 3-D viewer and a reel with seven new images by internationally renowned artists. These images will not be available anywhere else for several months, with the resulting visual adventure being a DHC exclusive. 

Learn MoreSign Up Here

Each event in the “Sickness & Solitude” series will unfold according to the audience member’s engagement with the material. Both events are an attempt to look at the state of the world today, especially as filtered through the lenses of COVID and calls for social justice, offering an artistic response to our states of sickness and solitude. 

The events in this series are meant to recreate the experience of being at a live DHC event, but using the technology of the U.S. mail, CDs, and View-Masters. As we search for ways to be together during these challenging times when forces threaten to tear us apart, we are pleased to be able to offer you the chance to experience the work of world-renowned visual and musical artists as we continue to think together about how the arts and humanities can point us toward a future in which our mutual flourishing—and thus the well-being of our friends, neighbors, and various communities—is the top priority.

Both events in this series will begin with something mailed (or in the case of the second event, also by means of contact-free pick-up). Once you receive your special envelope or kit, the rest is completely up to you.

For the first “Sickness & Solitude” event, musical artists will be asked to contribute an original piece of music to a CD produced by the DePaul Humanities Center and mailed out to the 250 (maximum) audience members who sign up to “attend” the event. Your musical experience will be a DHC exclusive, as the music featured will not be available anywhere else for several months.

For the second event, visual artists will each contribute images of their work. Those images will be turned into a custom-made, three-dimensional, View-Master-style reel. This reel, along with a View-Master-style viewer and accompanying notes, will comprise your “DHC Sickness and Solitude Kit.” The first 80 people to sign up who are local and capable of traveling to the DHC during the assigned pick-up week will stop by the DHC offices for a no-contact pick-up of their kit; the first 20 people who either have mobility restrictions or are too far from Chicago to make the trip will have their kit mailed to them, free of charge.

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