Luftwerk

Luftwerk (Petra Bachmaier & Sean Gallero) explores light, color, and perception in immersive, experience-based installations. Focused on the context of a site for each project, Luftwerk applies their own interpretive layer, integrating the physical structure, historical context, and embedded information into each piece. Since founding in 2007, Luftwerk has amassed a significant body of work ranging from site-specific installations to experimental projects that interpret data. 

Light and color are primary elements in work by Luftwerk. Their interest lies in the power of light as a crucial element to sight, exploring its dynamic relationship with the perception of color. Using various modalities—projecting videos, casting shadows, creating custom sculpture—they integrate light into every project to explore its ephemeral and shifting nature. Luftwerk has amassed a significant portfolio of work interacting with iconic architecture by architects including Renzo Piano, Frank Lloyd Wright, and Mies van der Rohe. In each project, they draw from the surrounding environment to interpret and expand on the context of the site. 

Petra Bachmaier, originally from Munich, holds a MA from the University of Fine Arts of Hamburg Germany and a BFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC); she also spent time at the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in Amsterdam. Sean Gallero, a Filipino American, is originally from the Bronx, New York where he studied arts and humanities at Lehman College with a focus on applied arts. He continued his studies at SAIC where he began collaborations with Bachmaier in 2000.