1431 W. Hubbard St., Ste. 201, Chicago, IL 60642
By advance appointment only. Please email contact@chicagoartistscoalition.org
07.27
free-drumming
Friday, June 16, 2023 from 5-8pm
Sal Moreno
Sal Moreno’s free-drumming combines emerging technologies with improvisational vocalized and percussive rhythm, and invites viewers into a multidimensional exploration of sound, visuals, and cultural symbolism. Moreno integrates motion-capture, AI-image generation, digital fabrication, and extended reality, as a means to challenge the regimented culture of marching bands, unlocking new possibilities for creative expression and dismantling biases ingrained within the field. Drawing from his Mexican-American heritage and his own experience in drumline, this exhibition delves into cosmic realms, futuristic landscapes, and post-human rituals, blurring the boundaries between the physical and the digital realms.
About Artists
Sal Moreno (he/him) is a Chicago-based creative technologist, artist, and performer whose work spans creative computation, sound, performance, and new media. Through free-drumming and emerging technology, Sal deconstructs the regimented traditions of marching band, challenging its origins in Western military and music ideologies while exploring his own Chicano heritage. With a strong fluency in game engines, motion capture, and coding languages, he crafts animations, visual effects, and generative sounds that supports this experimentation. Sal’s work has been featured at Ars Electronica, EXPO Chicago, Mana Contemporary, and on virtual platforms. Sal currently teaches at UI Chicago, UC Irvine, UC Santa Cruz, and SAIC. He currently serves on the board of directors for the New Media Caucus.
Image: Free-drumming: Portal, 2023
(updated 2025)
