The poets, musicians and visual artist of the Breathe collective have been converging monthly for almost two years creating fresh and spontaneous multi-media experiences. While serving as a sounding board for works in progress by individuals who participate, the artists also strive to nurture and cultivate spontaneous group creativity.
Elizandro Carrington received Masters of Fine arts degrees from the university of Illinois-Chicago in 1982 and the University of Wisconsin in 1993. His work has recently been featured at Around the Coyote and the Mexican Fine Arts Museum Elizandro is a volunteer designer with the Guild Complex, contributing images to our mailings and calendars. Currently he is devoting his time to Street-level Youth Media.

The New York Times recently raved about Hamid Drake?s ability to incorporate pattern-based drumming into free jazz. Drake has been a regular musical companion to a wide-ranging group of musicians including saxophonists Fred Anderson, Peter Brotzmann and Pharoah Sanders. He is also the drummer for the Vandermark Quartet and serves as the wisdom of 84124 a new spoken word/musical project.

Daniel Ferri teaches middle school by day and is a performance poet whenever time allows. He is the author of Spray the Front Roe: life in Spite of School, poems. He is an award-winning veterran of local and national poetry slams. Dan was also featured in the widely successful motin picture ?Slam Nation?. His writing can be heard regularly on WBEZ-FM
A Windy City native with Louisiana roots, Renee K. Moor has read in open mics and prticipated in readings at the DuSable Museum, Gerry?s Palm Tavern with Women of the World, the Duncan YMCA for a Writer?s Voice workshop program, Jimmy?s Woodlawn Tap as part of The Clothesline School, and with her Cace Canem family at the Moonstone Writers Conferaence in Philly. Callalloo will publish one of her poems in an upcoming issue.

Dwight Okita is currently finishing Serotonin City, a memoir of three years of mood swings. His screenplay My last week on earth was a finalist in the sundance Screewriters lab competition. His work can be found in three published books: his poetry collecition Crossing with the Light(Tia Chucha Press), Asian American Drama (applause Theater books), and the collaborative play The Hiroshima Project( Collaborative Publishing).

The Harper Rap and Theater Team program was started in 1989 by counselor and mentor John Ziegler, as a ?hook? to help a group of high-risk students who had been referred by teachers and school security for ant-Social behaviors. The Rap Team serves as a conduit between students and their peer and families. The Rap Team performs for audiences in Englewood and across Chicago. The students write and perform the productions.