Search Party Magazine Brings St. Louis to Chicago this Sunday
This weekend, local journalist Tara Mahadevan is bringing her newly formed Search Party Magazine from St. Louis to Chicago to celebrate the debut issue. The magazine, of which Mahadevan is editor-in-chief, strives to uplift St. Louis Black and Brown creatives through long-form stories and profiles, and serves as a hub for other forms of artistic expression such as poetry and fashion photography. The free event will take place at YCA, at 1180 N. Milwaukee Ave, on December 12 from 7-11 p.m. and will feature live DJ sets from Police State, K.Tea, and Big Esco, who also serves as Search Party’s creative director. Magazines will be available for purchase for $20 and are also available on Cashdrop.
After stints in New York City and Chicago at the start of her adult life, Mahadevan spent the COVID-19 induced lockdown period in her parents’ house in St. Louis, where she grew up. She used this time in her hometown to reconnect with local creatives. A common theme came up in their conversations; STL lacked the creative infrastructure and resources present in larger metropolitan areas like Los Angeles and NYC.
This frustration with all of the unrecognized talent in St. Louis, and the lack of ownership of the narratives, inspired Mahadevan to start an annual print magazine that provided insight into her city’s music and art scenes in a way she felt was missing. Specifically, she emphasizes artists being able to tell their own stories. She applied, and received, a grant from the Luminary’s Future’s Fund, a St. Louis organization that repurposes money from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Arts to support local creative projects. After six months of work, with crucial contributions from Esco and art director & designer Stephon White a.k.a. FORTHEWHEN, the debut issue is ready to go.
The Chicago showcase will be Search Party’s second, with the first taking place in St. Louis. Mahadevan saw it as a natural second location to display the mag, as many others who worked on the magazine either live in or have ties to Chicago, including Esco and herself. She also observed that the cities share a “Midwest spirit” of hustling.
“As a writer and even as a visual artist, seeing your work and holding it in your hand, having it be tangible rather than digital, is really gratifying”
Tara Mahadevan
The first issue of Search Party includes features on St. Louis musicians and visual artists, poetry, personal essays, fashion models and even a DJ mix linked with a QR code. The magazine pushes back on the nonstop manner in which we consume news, often through cell phone alerts and social media, instead urging readers to spend more time with their articles and genuinely get to know local creatives. Mahadevan encourages people to purchase the physical copies as opposed to the PDFs.
“As a writer and even as a visual artist, seeing your work and holding it in your hand, having it be tangible rather than digital, is really gratifying,” said Mahadevan.