Six teams of three artists will gather at Revolution Gallery on Hertel Avenue on November 21, each person drawing a piece of a shared artwork without ever seeing what their teammates sketched before them. It's the eighth year the Buffalo gallery has staged its Exquisite Corpse live drawing event, a collaborative game built entirely on not looking.
According to Buffalo Rising, doors open at 6:30 p.m. with the drawing itself kicking off at 7 p.m. This year's format calls for one round split into six sessions, with each of the six three-person teams getting 30 minutes per session to add their contribution before passing the folded paper along, according to organizers. Artists will draw for 90 minutes total before the hidden sections are finally revealed.
Once unveiled, the finished pieces won't just hang on the wall for admiring glances. The revealed drawings will be auctioned off, with a portion of the proceeds benefiting a local nonprofit, though the identity of that organization has not been specified in the event listing.
What the Game Actually Is
Exquisite Corpse is a parlor game in which participants take turns writing or drawing, concealing their work by folding the paper before passing it to the next player, according to Revolution Gallery. The format traces back to the Surrealists, who invented the game in Paris in the mid-1920s and counted André Breton, Yves Tanguy, and Marcel Duchamp among its early players. The Art Institute of Chicago dates the game's creation more precisely to winter 1925-26, describing how each participant adds to a drawing without seeing the preceding contributions, which stay hidden by the folded paper.
The name itself comes from the Surrealists' first sentence produced while playing a word version of the game: “Le cadavre exquis boira le vin nouveau,” meaning “the exquisite corpse will drink the new wine.” The Art Institute notes the game didn't stay confined to Surrealist circles in Paris. Exquisite Corpse events have since appeared in coffee shops, galleries, and homes around the world, and the Chicago-based Hairy Who artists took their own turn with the game in the late 1960s, producing what the museum describes as more playful results than the Surrealists' originals.
How This Year Compares to Past Events
Revolution Gallery's version has evolved over the years. A prior event at the gallery, held February 7, 2023, used a different structure entirely: two full rounds of drawing, the first running 6:15 to 7:15 p.m. and the second from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m., per the gallery's earlier listing covered by Buffalo Rising. In that edition, each artist got 20 minutes to work on their section while the other two panels stayed folded and hidden from view, with the completed three-panel piece revealed after 60 minutes and displayed for guests to bid on. That night also featured a DJ alongside the live drawing and drinks at the bar.
This year's listing drops the DJ mention in favor of a broader drink menu, with the event offering live drawings, gallery art, cocktails, zero-proof selections, wine, and beer. Admission remains accessible at $5, though the event is restricted to attendees 21 and older, and the gallery says photos of IDs on phones won't be accepted in place of valid identification.
Event Details
Revolution Gallery is located at 1419 Hertel Ave. in Buffalo, NY 14216. The gallery's eighth annual Exquisite Corpse event is set for November 21, with doors at 6:30 p.m. and drawing beginning at 7 p.m., per the event listing. Attendees should bring valid ID and be prepared to watch six teams of three artists build something none of them can fully see coming.
