Chicago’s West Loop is the place to be this weekend for 29Rooms Chicago, a “fun house-style celebration of creativity” featuring 29 artists’ and visionaries’ curated “rooms.” The event’s theme, “Turn It Into Art,” “celebrates the transformative power of creativity, and explores how art can alter mindsets, shift perception, and create powerful change,” according to the event’s official announcement.
For the event’s opening night, celebs Taraji P. Henson (“Empire”), Emily Ratajkowski (“Gone Girl”), singer Kelly Rowland, “Orange Is the New Black” stars Taylor Schilling, Dascha Polanco and Kate Mulgrew, Chance the Rapper and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, stopped by to check out the tony celebration.
Here’s a look at 29Rooms Chicago:
Taraji P. Henson attends Refinery29s 29Rooms: Turn it Into Art in Chicago | Robin Marchant/Getty Images for Refinery29
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Janelle Monae’s “What’s Your Frequency?” — an installation that takes a look at mass surveillance. | Erin Brown/Sun-Times
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The “Orange is the New Black” installation celebrates individual identity. | Erin Brown/Sun-Times
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Dascha Polanco attends 29Rooms: Turn it Into Art, on July 25, 2018 in Chicago. | Robin Marchant/Getty Images for Refinery29
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Emily Ratajkowski attends Refinery29s 29Rooms: Turn it Into Art, on July 25, 2018. | Robin Marchant/Getty Images
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Artist Max Sansing’s mural, painted for 29Rooms Chicago. | Erin Brown/Sun-Times
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Artist Max Sansing painted a mural for 29Rooms. | Erin Brown/Sun-Times
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Mayor Rahm Emanuel attends Refinery29s 29Rooms: Turn it Into Art. | Daniel Boczarski/Getty Images for Refinery29
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Kelly Rowland and Dascha Polanco at 29Rooms Chicago. | Robin Marchant/Getty Images
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Yee Seon Chae, left, and Kathryn Jankowski, both from WIUX student radio, play in Clinique’s bounce house at the Refinery29 pop-up 29Rooms. | Erin Brown/Sun-Times
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Taylor Schilling and Kate Mulgrew attend 29Rooms Chicago. | Robin Marchant/Getty Images for Refinery29
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Artist Maisie Cousins created a piece called “Erotica in Bloom.” | Erin Brown/Sun-Times
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CEO and Founder. Rockit Ranch Productions Bily Dec attends 29Rooms Chicago. Robin Marchant/Getty Images for Refinery29
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People take turns hitting the punching bags at Madame Gandhi and Jen Massari’s 29Rooms installation “The Future is Female.” | Erin Brown/Sun-Times
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Taraji P. Henson attends Refinery29s 29Room Chicago. | Robin Marchant/Getty Images
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The Refinery29 pop-up 29Rooms brings 29 art installations to Chicago for a limited time. 1522 W Hubbard St. | Erin Brown/Sun-Times
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Emma Sarran Webster gets her photo taken by Andrea Zimmerman at the “Windy City Feels.” | Erin Brown/Sun-Times
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Planned Parenthood installation for Refinery29’s pop-up 29Rooms. | Erin Brown/Sun-Times
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“ChicagoScape” is an immersive experience, including video and spoken word. | Erin Brown/Sun-Times
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Singer Darby Walker turns people’s dreams into songs in the “Dreamer’s Den” in collaboration with artist Juno Calypso. | Erin Brown/Sun-Times
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Artist Juco created a room called “Seen & Unseen” for 29Rooms. | Erin Brown/Sun-Times
“I think we’ve come a very long way in the right direction,” Cook County Supervising Judge Charles Beach said in an interview. “Things are working well.”