Curated by Marina Kelly & Megan Katz, featuring work by 10 years of participants at Summerwork at the Farm. Overture Center for the Arts in Madison, Wisconsin. April 15-June 30, 2013

Between the years of 2005-2015, visual artist Douglas Rosenberg and choreographer Li Chiao-Ping opened their home, land, garden and studio in Oregon, WI to an annual gathering of artists, dancers, writers, musicians and creative people of all kinds. This intentional community met for one full week each August and included artists from near and far from the Oregon, Wisconsin site. 

Called Summerwork at the Farm, these yearly retreats were open to anyone who wanted to participate in periods of localized, spontaneous collaboration.  Farming was the working metaphor for an approach to art-making that is directly connected to the land on which it’s made, and the people who are present.  

Inspired by people like Allan Kaprow and Lucy Lippard, and spaces such as Black Mountain College, Farmwork was rooted in the idea that Art and Life can be one and the same, a hybrid practice. Together we would make food, practice yoga, take walks, talk, laugh, move, draw, write, play, climb, explore, dig and build.  We staged performances, recorded sounds, made music, and shared ideas.  Along the way we documented.  

Farmwork: A Retrospective exhibited photo documentation alongside video and photography works created by Farmwork participants. Marina Kelly & Megan Katz premiered an 8 channel synchronized video installation for the Farmwork exhibition alongside a 36' long light box, featuring over 100 photographic transparencies curated from the Farmwork archive.