The “massager” was lauded by women’s magazines and one of its early retailers, Sears Roebuck, as the quintessential gift for a woman, designed to preserve her youth and keep her neurotic outbursts at bay. 

Perhaps with more symbolism than he intends, Ty Tabing, executive director of the Alliance, says that their goal is to “activate vacant spaces [in order] to bring art to Chicago.” Their tactic is, as I’ve found out, at least a step in the right direction.