Wholesome Roc Grand Opening (1990)

Opened in 1987, Wholesome Roc Gallery and Cafe was an alternative art space that hosted exhibitions and events with and focused on queer Black artists in Chicago. This video documents the grand opening of Wholesome Roc's new space in 1990. It features footage of people performing at their open mic and general footage of the new gallery space.

00:00Copy video clip URL Video opens with footage of a flyer. The flyer reads “The Grand Opening of the New Wholesome Roc” A painted door of a building is shown.

00:43Copy video clip URL Cut to the inside of the new gallery space, the camera pans around the space, showing art on the walls, children are laughing and saying hello to the camera, and people mingle and take in the new space. Several people interact with the person behind the camera, who is presumably one of Wholesome Roc’s founders, Stephanie Coleman. 

03:41Copy video clip URL Two women speak to Coleman about a group called Latino Lesbians. One of the women gifts a poetry book titled “Bajo mi relieve” to Coleman, who holds it up to the camera. They talk about a group called the Women of Color Rep Group 

06:20Copy video clip URL Coleman talks to a woman who’s holding a Planet Roc zine. Another woman sits down and talks with them. Various shots of people entering in the new space, kids playing pool. 

16:29Copy video clip URL Coleman approaches two people and asks them to join the open mic and read their poetry. 

17:13Copy video clip URL Cut to people sitting on the porch area outside the gallery. 

18:13Copy video clip URL Open mic begins and the host announces that there will be events taking place upstairs and downstairs. Footage cuts out, static. 

19:36Copy video clip URL Stephanie Coleman appears in front of the camera and directs another person on how to use the camera. 

19:59Copy video clip URL Cut to open mic downstairs, where a man reads poetry that is political in nature. The lighting is dim.

29:49Copy video clip URL Cut to a new person reading poems in the same downstairs area. 

30:52Copy video clip URL Cut to a musical rock performance of guitar, vocals, and drums. The footage is dim and it is hard to see what’s going on at times but the audio is clear. Camera pans between performers and audience members. A nude figure is seen dancing in moments throughout the set. 

59:39Copy video clip URL Cut to the open mic that is taking place upstairs, a man recites a few poems on the topics of love and society. 

1:04:25Copy video clip URL Cut to another person reciting their poems in the upstairs part of the Wholesome Roc Gallery. 

1:08:00Copy video clip URL Close up still of words written on a notebook read “Grand Opening Saturday”, additional stills of the Wholesome Roc flyer reads “Mega Industrial Dance Party, Open Mike Poetry, Performances, Bar-B-Que, Live Music, Dancing, Food, Art!”, “The Grand Opening of the New Wholesome Roc Gallery, Museum, & Cafe one-four-four-four  N. Greenview Chicago, IL six zero six two two”

1:08:37Copy video clip URL Cut to a man reading from his notebook. It appears to be footage from a different time of day than the previous footage which was taking place during the evening hours. 

1:12:28Copy video clip URL A young girl named Camille is called up to the floor next, she sings the song Tomorrow (A Better You, Better Me). 

1:16:57Copy video clip URL Footage of kids playing pool at a pool table in the basement area of the new Wholesome Roc Gallery space. 

1:19:54Copy video clip URL Cut to footage filmed in the upstairs portion of the gallery, people mingle and look at art on the walls. Music plays in the background. Stephanie Coleman can be heard speaking behind the camera. 

1:21:23Copy video clip URL Camera zooms in on people sitting down in the upstairs of the new Wholesome Roc Gallery space. Harp music plays in the background. Lori Go is introduced and invited to perform a dance titled “American sing a long from the Hiroshima trilogy”. The dance was choreographed by Carol Bobro.

1:23:03Copy video clip URL A sound clip of Ronald Raegan plays in the background before the dance begins. Lori Go dances over a voice memo of a woman talking about the Vietnam war and her family memories; sounds of soldiers marching, interspersed with the voice memo.

1:32:47Copy video clip URL The open mic continues, a new person comes up and reads four poems. 

1:44:28Copy video clip URL A woman comes up to read, saying “I like to to call these writings liquid thoughts. I don’t consider myself a poet, it’s just when I’m frustrated or miserable, I tend to write.” 

1:48:24Copy video clip URL Stephanie Coleman invites more people to participate in the open mic, she explains a band will play in an hour, and then after there will be a dance party. 

1:49:07Copy video clip URL Video cuts out.