This was Team Gregula’s first time at the Oddities & Curiosities Expo in Chicago and what an experience! We didn’t know what to expect but we had heard about this show through the years and saw the fliers. The Oddities & Curiosities Expo is hosted in most major cities throughout the U.S. during the entire year. For the Chicago show, this is usually held at the McCormick Place in downtown Chicago in the summer.
The Oddities & Curiosities Expo is a horror-themed event with the emphasis on vendors and handmade. There is a large focus on the taxidermy of ethically sourced animal species and also the mummification of various other species. There were a ton of real skeletons of animals and skeletal structures. There were also a ton of human and animal anatomical structures at the show. The event was held in a climate-controlled (very cold, possibly to preserve all of the taxidermy!) convention area with amazing sound speakers for music above the entire show that would make sense at an event like this. While at the show, Team Gregula heard music from The Cure, Echo & the Bunnymen, Rob Zombie, and Siouxsie & the Banshees, all in nice quality sound. Of course, it would not make sense to play Maroon 5 at such an event like the Oddities show!
Many of the vendors hailed from the South of the U.S., with a prominent stuffed animal vendor coming from Oklahoma and other vendors here from Georgia, Louisiana, and Kentucky, all here to offer their strange curiosities to the Chicago crowd with Southern charm. To be found at the show was a large preserved giraffe head complete with its long neck!
The show had a strong Halloween-ish theme combined with the feeling of being at a midnight circus. The attendee half expected to see a bearded woman or bump into a merman and it would not have seemed odd at all. The attendees were always polite and courteous, as most horror fans are, and tattoos were incredibly popular.
There was a museum on site which required a ticket to tour. Inside the museum you could see a purple velvet coffin, an alien, multi headed calves, and a “man eating chicken.” The latter is a surprise which has to be seen in person.
One of the most fascinating pieces offered by a vendor at this show were framed cobwebs. Each spider web created is unique and of its only kind in the world. The cobwebs were framed in tasteful black gothic frames and were also made into jewelry such as earrings and pendants.
Since the show was about the vendors and had no celebrities and actors there was much more of a camaraderie and focus on being a part of the horror fan community. No one at this show missed the celebs and actors. People were quite happy to be there and had a healthy and crowded attendance, especially on Saturday. There were people dressed “normally,” people wearing all sorts of unusual clothing, and many variations between. Old friends met up and toured together the show. It was a welcoming and safe space for all people who feel at times out of place, unusual, or not of the mainstream. Here at this show you could be your authentic self entirely and not have to worry about what others think. At the Oddities & Curiosities Expo, probably the best thing that this show was about was being accepted just for who you are and not who you feel you have to act as or who you feel you have to be just to make it in the outer world.
There were many horror costumes, some rather elaborate and detailed. You’d see Michael Meyers wandering the aisles in addition to the other favorites, Freddy, Jason, and Ghostface. If you’ve ever wanted to experience Halloween in summer, this show is the closest to that experience.
All sorts of creators were present, including the horror-themed artistic erotic photos of Eric Richardson, authors of the spooky, and artists who work in digital paints after drawing from hand traditionally. For any horror fandom, something was there to be found, prized, and owned.
A great show that celebrated the horror fan community and the remarkable things that make wonder. This show is likely in a city near you and we highly recommend attending and enjoying all the extraordinary things that could only be seen at this Expo.
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