As the Douglas A. Garofalo Fellow for 2023–24, Cédric Van Parys has investigated and transformed the meaning of billboard infrastructures as representative monuments of American culture by juxtaposing and reconciling word, image, and object. This talk elaborates on his creative process, from initial research to conceptual and material appropriation. This presentation follows the opening of the exhibition Sentinels at University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) School of Architecture on April 5, 2024.

Exhibition: Sentinels, April 5–May 3, 2024
UIC School of Architecture
845 W Harrison St, Chicago, IL 60607
Exhibition opening: April 5, 6 p.m.
Click here to learn more

Cédric Van Parys is an artist-architect and the founder of Cédric Van Parys | CCXD, a Rotterdam and currently Chicago based practice operating at the intersection of architecture and the visual arts. Working across media and conceptual paradigms, his work is based on analytical research and is primarily concerned with the relation between monuments, public space, symbols, rituals, and aesthetics. Van Parys’ research, sculptures, and installations have been exhibited and constructed at the Venice Art Biennale, Venice Architecture Biennale, RAUM Utrecht, Shanghai Art Biennale, Biennale de Arquitetura de São Paulo, Plus359 Gallery Sofia, Sofia Art Week, and Het Nieuwe Instituut in Rotterdam. Drawing inspiration from architectural history, archival research, and natural science, Van Parys aims to foster curiosity about the world we have made and inhabit and how this relates to the planet, the cosmos, and beyond.

Currently, Cédric Van Parys is the 2023-2024 Garofalo Fellow at the University of Illinois, Chicago, School of Architecture and the Arts. www.officeccxd.com

About the Douglas A. Garofalo Fellowship
Named in honor of architect and educator Doug Garofalo (1958–2011), this nine-month teaching fellowship provides emerging designers the opportunity to teach studio and seminar courses in the undergraduate and graduate programs and conduct independent design research. The fellowship also includes a public lecture at the Graham Foundation and an exhibition at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) School of Architecture. To learn more about the fellowship, click here.

Note: This event will be held in the ballroom on the third floor of the Madlener House, which is only accessible by stairs. The first-floor galleries and bookshop are accessible via outdoor lift. Please contact us at 312.787.4071 or info@grahamfoundation.org to make arrangements.

Image: Cédric Van Parys, "Sentinels: Iron Portals of Chicagoland," 2024. Location: Addams (I 90) S/S .8 Mi W/O Wolf F/E; Media/Style: Permanent Bulletin/Regular; Impressions: 550000/week; Advertising Strengths: Located on the Jane Addams Tollway (I-90), this 20x60 reaches NW Suburban commuters.  With a site that is within 2 miles of O'Hare International Airport, and on the main route between Downtown and hard-to-reach suburbs such as Barrington, Hoffman Estates and Schaumburg (Woodfield Mall), this sign is extremely valuable in any general market showing.