# What Is Olalekan Jeyifous’s SHIKAAKWA at 150 Media Stream? By Marius Pașculea | 2026-11-03 HTML version: https://antre.art/blog/olalekan-jeyifous-shikaakwa-150-media-stream-what-to-know/ > Olalekan Jeyifous's SHIKAAKWA: Allium Otherworld plays at 150 Media Stream through March 31: a free, retro-futurist cross-section beneath a Chicago tower. Reception November 4, hours. ## Short answer *SHIKAAKWA: Allium Otherworld*, a new digital installation by Brooklyn-based artist Olalekan Jeyifous, plays at 150 Media Stream, in the lobby of 150 North Riverside Plaza, through March 31, 2027. There is an evening reception with the artist on Wednesday, November 4, from 6 to 8:30 PM, and public viewing is free. ## Key facts - **Who:** Olalekan Jeyifous, the Brooklyn-based artist known for large-scale, architecturally trained visions of speculative cities. - **What:** *SHIKAAKWA: Allium Otherworld* — a commissioned moving-image work that reimagines Chicago's submerged ecological past as a retro-futurist cross-section. - **Where:** 150 Media Stream, lobby of 150 North Riverside Plaza, Chicago — 89 LED blades stretching 150 feet long and 22 feet high, the largest structure of its kind in the city. - **When:** October 5, 2026 – March 31, 2027; reception with the artist Wednesday, November 4, 6–8:30 PM. - **Hours:** public viewing Monday to Friday, 4–7 PM, and Saturday, 11 AM–2 PM (hours subject to change). Free. ## What will you see? A continuous architectural cross-section through a Louis Sullivan-inspired office tower, descending from ornate corporate interiors through mechanical systems and geological strata into a mythical landscape far below. Floor slabs dissolve into sewers, soil and root systems, then give way to an alliaceous dreamworld: bioluminescent fields, mycelial transit networks and cathedral-like chambers of wild grasses and luminous wetland flora. The work is rendered in a saturated, retro-futurist palette — deep greens and blues, luminous corals, ochres and lavender — with the graphic quality of psychedelic architectural illustration, designed specifically for the extreme horizontal format of the media wall. ## What does the title mean? Chicago takes its name from Shikaakwa, an Algonquin word commonly translated as "wild onion," "garlic" or "striped skunk," after the pungent ramps that once flourished in the local marshlands. Before its river was reversed and its land engineered, the region was a mosaic of peat bog, prairie and shallow wetland. Jeyifous's animation digs back down to that landscape and lets it bloom underneath the modern tower. ## Why see it? 150 Media Stream has commissioned more than fifty works by local and international media artists since 2017, and this one, co-presented with MAS Context, is built for the wall's scale rather than adapted to it. A free artwork in a public lobby that retells a city's origin story is [cultural mediation](https://antre.art/blog/what-is-cultural-mediation/) at street level; because the piece rewards staying for a full loop, our guide on [how to look closely at a single work](https://antre.art/blog/how-to-look-at-manuel-alvarez-bravo-photograph/) is worth bringing along. ## How do you visit? 150 Media Stream is in the public lobby of 150 North Riverside Plaza, on the river at Randolph Street. Public viewing hours are Monday to Friday, 4 to 7 PM, and Saturday, 11 AM to 2 PM; hours are subject to change, so check before a special trip. The reception with Olalekan Jeyifous on Wednesday, November 4, from 6 to 8:30 PM, is free. ## FAQ ### How long is SHIKAAKWA: Allium Otherworld on view? Through March 31, 2027, at 150 Media Stream, 150 North Riverside Plaza, Chicago. ### Does it cost anything? No. Viewing in the public lobby is free, and so is the November 4 reception with the artist. ### What are the public viewing hours? Monday to Friday, 4 to 7 PM, and Saturday, 11 AM to 2 PM; hours are subject to change. ### What is 150 Media Stream? A public digital art installation in the lobby of 150 North Riverside Plaza: 89 LED blades stretching 150 feet long and 22 feet high, the largest structure of its kind in Chicago, commissioning new media artworks since 2017. ## About Antre Antre is building an app that gives artworks their context, starting with New York, Los Angeles and Chicago. Join the waiting list at antre.art. ## Sources - MAS Context, event page for *SHIKAAKWA: Allium Otherworld*: dates, reception, viewing hours and work description. - Newcity Art, November Top 5: artist base and installation concept. More context: our guides to [Rashid Johnson at the MCA](https://antre.art/blog/rashid-johnson-mca-chicago-what-to-see/) and [Miller & Shellabarger's Always Now at Western Exhibitions, opening November 6](https://antre.art/blog/miller-shellabarger-always-now-western-exhibitions-what-to-know/). ## Be first when Antre opens. Join the waiting list for Antre, the adaptive cultural mediation app for Art Explorers, with hyper-personalized cultural context for every artwork, and Antre Art Voice, for galleries, artist-run spaces, artists and curators. One email at launch. Email addressJoin the waiting listCompanyI agree to receive an Antre launch email. I can withdraw anytime. [Privacy Policy](/privacy-policy/).