This installation by Luftwerk captures and reimagines fragments of the landscape we inhabit as a reminder of the loss of native prairies. Acres of Blooms, a color field filling the walls, is made from collected botanics used as pigments. This extended landscape painting references a time when prairies occupied two-thirds of the midwestern landscape. Rich in biodiversity, prairies are a holistic interconnected ecosystem of healthy soil, abundant flora, and myriads of bees and butterflies. This project is an expression of curiosity about this natural system, its materiality, and color palette.

Illinois – the prairie state – was once dominated by indigenous prairies. With their deep and intricate root systems and continuous cycles of life, prairies produce extremely nutrient-rich soil. After the arrival of European settlers, prairies were quickly converted into fertile cropland and are now estimated to cover just 1/100th of 1 percent of Illinois.

In the middle of the booth’s floor is Extraction, a mound of sand and botanicals. This work represents the prairie that has been removed to make way for destruction, construction, and other changes to the land. Visitors are invited to add to the mound, by choosing from a color spectrum of botanicals. By adding to Extraction, visitors acknowledge their participation in these ongoing changes. As an exchange, they are encouraged to plant pollinator seed balms.

The first iteration of Acres of Bloom was created as part of Lost & Found, a group exhibition at the Chicago Botanic Garden (2024). The work came alive as part of an effort to raise awareness of the science involved in prairie preservation. The botanicals used were collected by a group of volunteers at the Chicago Botanic Garden. This new iteration uses the remainder of those materials in combination with black eye susan handpicked along train tracks during last summer and pine needles sourced from repurposed Christmas trees. The botanics were processed at three public activations at 6018North and within the Learning Lab of Chicago’s Cultural Center. Prairie Colorfield is not archival, to live with it is like observing an evolving painterly experience that changes like our landscape in seasons. 

Luftwerk has a similar work within the exhibition currently on view at 6018North, Myth of the Organic City. This exhibition considers land usage, climate change, and sustainability within Chicago. It is a partner project of Art Design Chicago, an initiative of the Terra Foundation for American Art investigating and elevating Chicago’s rich visual art and design histories and creative communities.

Luftwerk is the artistic duo of Petra Bachmaier and Sean Gallero. Since founding in 2007, the practice has developed a significant body of work that explores the interplay of light, color and space through the exploration of data, nature, history, and architecture. Their work is multi-faceted, taking the form of installations, site-specific interventions, and artwork, engaging with landscapes, architecture along with galleries, museums, and art centers.

Installations and artwork by Luftwerk have been exhibited broadly at institutions including: Chicago Cultural Center, Chicago, IL; Fosdick-Nelson Gallery, Alfred University, Alfred, NY; Cheekwood Estate & Gardens, Nashville, TN; Mattress Factory, Pittsburgh, PA; Museum für Gestaltung, Zürich; Arts Club of Chicago, Chicago, IL and Garfield Park Conservatory, Chicago, IL. Throughout their practice, Luftwerk has develop a robust portfolio of projects that engage with notable modern and contemporary architecture including: Jay Pritzker Pavilion, Chicago, IL by Gehry Partners;  Barcelona Pavilion, Barcelona and Farnsworth House, Plano, IL by Mies van der Rohe; Ford Residence, Aurora, IL by Bruce Goff; Millennium Park, Chicago, IL by SOM; Fallingwater, Mill Run, PA and Robie House, Chicago, IL by Frank Lloyd Wright; and Netsch Residence, Chicago, IL by Walter Netsch. The artists have realized numerous large-scale permanent public and private commissions in Atlanta, Calgary, Charlotte, Chicago, Harare, Tampa, and Kansas City. They have received numerous awards, including project awards from the AIA Chicago, Graham Foundation, and the Illinois Arts Council. Their work is in several public and private collections including the Public Art collections of Chicago and Fulton County, Museum Buchheim, USF Institute for Research in Art. Their work has been featured in publications such as Artforum, Hyperallergic, Time Magazine, The New Yorker. For more information and images, visit luftwerk.net.

This program is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency through an award from the National Endowment for the Arts. This program is partially supported by a CityArts Grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events. 6018North projects are partially supported by an anonymous donor advised fund at The Chicago Community Foundation, a CityArts Innovation Grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events, a Gen Ops Plus Grant from the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, Field Foundation of Illinois, Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts, IL Humanities, Illinois Arts Council Agency Youth Employment Grants, Joyce Foundation, The MacArthur Funds for Culture, Equity, and the Arts at the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, Terra Foundation for American Art, and individual donations. 

6018North is an artist-centered, sustainable, non-profit platform and sustainable venue for innovative art and culture in Chicago. We challenge what art is, whom it’s for, and where and how it’s created. 6018North champions the creation of adventurous work that connects multiple disciplines and audiences while promoting artistic excellence. We support emerging and established local and international artists to create innovative, multidisciplinary work that connects artists and audiences in transformative ways. As a nimble lab for incubating, modeling, and experimenting, we leverage new ways of connecting artists and audiences to advance and sustain artists and Illinois’ creative ecosystem. For more info visit us at 6018North.org.

When: April 24 - 27, 2025

VIP PREVIEW

Thu, April 24 | 12pm–6pm with Vernissage 6pm–8pm 

GENERAL ADMISSION

Fri, April 25 | 11am–7pm

Sat, April 26 | 11am–7pm

Sun, April 27 | 11am–6pm 

Booth 146 programming includes: 

Ceded and Reseeded: Seed Balm Workshop with Sonja Henderson and Toni Asante Lightfoot 

This ritualized meditation invites participants to create seed balms to replenish, heal and remediate that which has been extracted.

Thursday 2-7pm and Friday 1-5pm

Circle Garden: Solstalgia discussion with Melissa Potter

Solstalgia addresses native plants’ histories, needs, and climate resilience.

Thursday 12-8pm; Saturday and Sunday 12- 5pm

The Anthropocene and new conceptions of nature in art discussion with Giovanni Aloi 

Saturday at 1pm

Parkway Pollinator Ordinance discussion with Paul Naylor 

Sunday at 4pm

Where:

Navy Pier Festival Hall – Booth 146
600 E Grand Ave, Chicago IL 60611

Click Here for Tickets.

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