Industry of the Ordinary opened their mid-career survey, Sic Transit Gloria Mundi, at the Chicago Cultural Center on August 17, 2012.

Match of the Day II, (Industry of the Ordinary, as Old God and Young God, play table football, first to 100 goals, on the promontory point by North Avenue beach) 2005, documentation of performance, photo credit: Greg Stimac

Formed in 2003, Industry of the Ordinary is made up of Adam Brooks, an artist, curator and educator and Matthew Wilson, an artist and educator. Brooks and Wilson were raised in England but have been living and working in Chicago for many years.

While their work takes many forms, it is largely performative, seeking to engage the viewer as an inclusive display. Sic Transit Gloria Mundi showcases work drawn from more than 80 different Industry of the Ordinary projects, including objects, photos and video documentation.

Secure (Industry of the Ordinary invite the security personnel of the Chicago Cultural Center to participate in a group portrait), 2007, photograph, photo credit: Jay Wolke

Brooks and Wilson will be sharing some of the exhibit with local artists, including the platform stage, which opens with Jim Zimpel: Angle and runs through September 25, 2012. They have solicited a number of Chicago-based artists to be included in their show, creating their portrait in a wide variety of media. They will also produce Everyone 2012, an animated scroll listing of all of the artists in Chicago.

Through sculpture, text, photography, video, sound and performance, Industry of the Ordinary are dedicated to an exploration and celebration of the customary, the everyday and the usual. Their emphasis is on challenging pejorative notions of the ordinary and, in doing so, moving beyond the quotidian.

Prayer for Chicago (Industry of the Ordinary spread the good word), 2012, inkjet prints on vinyl

Industry of the Ordinary presents Sic Transit Gloria Mundi in the main exhibition hall on the 4th floor of the Chicago Cultural Center, 78 East Washington Street. The exhibition is on view from August 17, 2012 until February 17, 2013.

For more information, visit their website.

Emmaline Niendorf is a Content Manager with Otherwise Incorporated.