June 6–August 16, 2014
INOVA (Institute of Visual Arts)
University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee
2155 North Prospect Avenue
Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53202
Summer hours: Wednesday–Saturday noon–5pm,
Thursdays noon–8pm
T +1 414 229 5070
[email protected]
www.arts.uwm.edu/inova
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Can a house make you who you are? Can its design, materials, and craftsmanship influence the way you see your surroundings? Can the treatment of space within it later inform the way you choose to move through the world? The Uncertainty of Enclosure asks these questions as it explores the impact of an unconventional residence—Bruce Goff’s Ford House in Aurora, Illinois—on the art of Leo Saul Berk. The exhibition debuts a body of work informed by Berk’s childhood experience growing up in the house, his historical research, and his ongoing reflection on the house’s pivotal role in the development of his artistic vision. The resulting sculptures, photographs, and videos reimagine architect Bruce Goff’s (1904–1982) radical choice of materials, unusual volumes, and organic forms; the works resonate at the intersection of craft and expressivity, intuition and measure.
The Ford House is one of Goff’s groundbreaking residential projects and one of the last still standing. Built in 1948, the Ford House is a primary example of Goff’s dramatic use of natural light and his iconoclastic approach to materials and form. In 2011, Berk began to make a series of works that grew out of his memories of the house, his research into the architect’s archives, and conversations with the house’s current owner who is an architectural historian and preservationist. Translating scale, materials, surfaces, structures, and the play of light characteristic to the house, Berk blends tangible forms and intangible qualities into thoughtful reflections on the way creatively designed spaces may captivate and inspire us.
The exhibition will travel to the Frye Art Museum, Seattle, in spring 2015 and will be accompanied by a publication.
Support for this exhibition has been provided in part by grants from the Mary L. Nohl Fund of the Greater Milwaukee Foundation, the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts, and the New Foundation Seattle.
About INOVA
Since 1996, INOVA has established an international reputation as a contemporary art center, widely recognized for the opportunities it offers artists to experiment and to create new work. INOVA makes the rigor and diversity of such artistic production accessible to audiences through a variety of public presentations and publications.
INOVA is located on the street level of the Kenilworth Building, which houses UWM faculty and graduate student studios, rehearsal spaces, and informal exhibition areas. INOVA has 7,000 square feet of exhibition space, including a dedicated black-box screening room. Admission to the gallery is free for all, ensuring a wide and diverse audience outside of UWM. An archive of programs can be found here.
