Farnsworth, a historic site of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, located in Plano, Illinois (Mies van der Rohe, 1951), and United States Artists (USA), the national Chicago-based organization dedicated to supporting accomplished and innovative American artists with significant financial awards, have joined together to create a public program for the Chicago Architecture Biennial. For the program, "Architecture + Art: Inspiration Amplified" two USA Fellows are creating new works that are inspired by the Farnsworth House and its landscape.
The project demonstrates how the Farnsworth House, an exemplary representation of the International Style of architecture built in 1951, continues to inspire contemporary artists today. Simultaneously, the project showcases opportunities and impacts of new and innovative arts programming at historic architectural sites.
Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle has a varied and complex practice that encompasses mostly sculpture and video. Inigo often collaborates on projects that make abstractions tangible. These often mask political agendas,e.g. immigration issues, climate change, or globalization. He has also created a series of sculptures and films based on the modernism of architect Mies van der Rohe. Manglano-Ovalle is a professor in the Department of Art Theory and Practice at Northwestern University, Chicago, and won a MacArthur Fellowship in 2001.
Mary Ellen Childs composes concert work, often with a strong visual element, for a variety of instrument al ensembles. The creator of many multi-media works, Childs is best known for her "visual percussion" pieces for her percussion group CRASH, in which she incorporates the movements of the bodies of the performers. Childs has received commissions from the Kronos Quartet, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Kitchen, and the Walker Art Center, among others.
Additional Partners: United States Artists (USA), the national Chicago-based organization dedicated to supporting accomplished and innovative American artists with significant financial awards
