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Exhibition + Gallery Talk | Future/Past: Crossing Lines

September 21, 2019
4:00-5:00pm CST
Robert F. Carr Memorial Chapel, 65 East 32nd Street
65 East 32nd Street
Chicago, IL 60616
At the intersection of technology and spirituality—Jan Tichy’s talk about Bauhäusler palm prints created in spring 1926 in Dessau.

Tickets only required for the Gallery Talk on Saturday, September 21 at 4pm. The exhibition will be on view September 16–28 from 11am to 6pm.

At the intersection of technology and spirituality, Jan Tichy’s exhibition and community exploration of palm prints created in spring 1926 in Dessau by László Moholy-Nagy and other Bauhäusler are on view in the Mies-designed Carr Chapel.

Future/Past: Crossing Lines is an exhibition developed by artist and educator Jan Tichy and curator Christian Oxenius on the occasion of the Bauhaus centenary. The concept for the exhibition was inspired by an unusual find in László Moholy-Nagy’s estate: a series of life-size prints of his hand, as well as of other Bauhäusler, created in May 1926. While probably the result of Moholy-Nagy’s interest in palmistry and spiritual practices, not at all uncommon within the Bauhaus, we cannot be certain about the precise reason that 13 individuals (including Kandinsky, Brauer, Brandt and Moholy-Nagy himself) produced these documents, which have never before been exhibited collectively. The prints' aura of mystery and mysticism, as well as the sense of community they express, makes the setting of Carr Chapel (also known as the God Box) of special interest. Carr Chapel was designed by the last director of the German Bauhaus, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. Crossing Lines refers to the dialogue that the palm prints has inspired among contemporary artists and that has developed between IIT Institute of Design (ID) and Kunsthalle Osnabrück, a former monastery, as well as the dialogue that the publication debuting with the opening of Future/Past on September 16 will promote. This publication will mark the first occasion in which the palm prints are extensively discussed in literature.

This event is part of Shapeshift 2019: Design @ Illinois Tech, presented by IIT Institute of Design and IIT College of Architecture. On the occasion of the Bauhaus centenary, the inaugural Shapeshift celebrates Bauhaus in Chicago. From September 16–28, 2019, we will explore our Bauhaus heritage, address our city’s key challenges, and host conversations about how we can build equitable and sustainable long-term solutions. Acknowledging Chicago’s and Illinois Tech’s leading roles in the development of 20th century modernism, Shapeshift celebrates Chicago and Illinois Tech as partners in reimagining the urban environment for the 21st century.

About IIT Institute of Design (ID)

Founded by László Moholy-Nagy as The New Bauhaus in 1937, IIT Institute of Design (ID) is known for pioneering human-centered design and systems design. Today we are home to the only US design school devoted completely to graduate students. But ID is more than a graduate school. We are an international community of learners and practitioners building responsible, cooperative, intelligent futures to address the biggest issues of our time. Learn more about ID at id.iit.edu.

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