Beyond Bauhaus

Organized By Jamilee Lacy, PC–G Director & Chief Curator 

Beyond Bauhaus is a more than yearlong series of exhibitions, publications and commissioned installations featuring contemporary artists whose practices are inspired by or respondent to the history of Bauhaus (1919-1933), the German art school so influential on modern art, architecture, craft, design and education. Slated for April 1, 2019–August 1, 2020, the series coincides with the centennial of the founding of the Bauhaus, which left a legacy based on radical experimentation in all the arts.

The intention of Beyond Bauhaus is to encourage critical reassessment of Bauhaus ideas, especially as they relate to art histories of geographic, ethnic and gender diversity. In this artist-driven evaluation of the enduring legacy of this beacon of the Modernist movement, cutting-edge artists working today will create new forms, borrowing from old models and hybridizing more recent materials and technologies to build new visual scholarship. Series components include:

A New(er) Unity: an online primer for Beyond Bauhaus
Launches April 1, 2019 with new iterations monthly for one year.
A series of research prompts and experimental syllabi-like presentations by curator Jamilee Lacy and guest artists and scholars, complete with accompanying digital and Net artworks exploring new notions of Bauhaus concepts of graphic harmony and discord, open-sourcing and mass-production.

On the Wall: Elizabeth Corkery
May 1–July 26, 2019
An indoor mural composed of wallpaper and large-scale tapestries by Sacramento artist Elizabeth Corkery, whose patterned textile and screenprinted works celebrate historical women’s work and reinvigorate the Bauhaus debate on the synthesis of fine art and craft.

From the seafoam and clouds to the here and now
September 11–November 17, 2019
A group exhibition featuring artists David Adika, Ronny Carny, Yael Efrati, Hilla Toony Navok, and Shay Zilberman, all whose work springs from research into the violent and politically motivated Bauhaus architectural experiments in Tel Aviv’s White City. 

Katarina Burin
December 4, 2019–March 1, 2020
A solo exhibition by artist Cambridge artist Katarina Burin, whose projects often center around historically fictitious artists/characters, all in an effort to demonstrate how women, especially Slavic women, contributed to Modernist innovation.

Construction House: Heather Rowe & Ad Minoliti
December 4, 2019–March 1, 2020
A two-person show featuring Providence artist Heather Rowe, whose large-scale steel and glass sculptures undermine the projected masculinity of Bauhaus architecture; and Buenos Aires artist Ad Minoliti, whose collage-based installations situate domestic design in a radical feminist context.

On the Wall: LUFTWERK
April 29–July 26, 2020
A large-scale light interior and exterior light installation by the artist/architectural group Luftwerk of Chicago, whose project is inspired by the color studies and illusionistic compositions of multiple Bauhaus figures.

Beyond Bauhaus – The Book
Release date: September 2020
A three-book publication series, including catalogues, artist books and a print-on-demand title, all designed by James Goggin in collaboration with participating artists, curators and scholars.

Major support provided by The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and Department of Art & Art History at Providence College. Funding also provided in part by an exhibitions grant from Artis and an Arts Acess grant from the Rhode Island State Council on the Arts, through an appropriation by the Rhode Island General Assembly, a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts and private funders.

About PC–G
Providence College Galleries (PC–G) presents exhibitions and public programs focusing on contemporary art, innovative artistic practice and interdisciplinary cultural activity. Operating within two gallery spaces and across Providence College’s campus, PC–G supports the educational, service and community-oriented mission of the College with dynamic visual arts productions, including those that foster audience participation, cross-departmental collaboration at the College, and cultural exchange at local, national and international levels. PC–G ultimately strives to produce projects by artists and intellectuals who demonstrate how and why creative practitioners are vital forces in promoting diversity and shaping contemporary global culture.