Deep Focus: Inside Art21 Films

Behind the Scenes of Season 8: Chicago

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We’ve been sharing behind-the-scenes photos of Art in the Twenty-First Century: Season 8 on our Instagram for months now, but this is the first post here on the ART21 Magazine dedicated to uncovering what goes on behind the camera, as we film our documentary series on contemporary art and artists.

Season 8’s first episode, Chicago, premieres on Friday, September 16th at 9pm on PBS. 


Filming Barbara Kasten at Work

Last winter, on a cold day in Chicago, ART21 joined Barbara Kasten at the Graham Foundation as she installed her survey exhibition, Stages.

ART21 filming Barbara Kasten at The Graham Foundation in Chicago, USA, 2015. Behind the scenes of ART21’s series Art in the Twenty-First Century, Season 8, 2016. Photo: Nick Ravich. © ART21, Inc. 2016.

ART21 filming Barbara Kasten at The Graham Foundation in Chicago, USA, 2015. Behind the scenes of ART21’s series Art in the Twenty-First Century, Season 8, 2016. Photo: Nick Ravich. © ART21, Inc. 2016.

ART21 filming Barbara Kasten at The Graham Foundation in Chicago, USA, 2015. Behind the scenes of ART21’s series Art in the Twenty-First Century, Season 8, 2016. Photo: Nick Ravich. © ART21, Inc. 2016.

ART21 filming Barbara Kasten at The Graham Foundation in Chicago, USA, 2015. Behind the scenes of ART21’s series Art in the Twenty-First Century, Season 8, 2016. Photo: Nick Ravich. © ART21, Inc. 2016.

 

Then, early in 2016, ART21 sat down with Kasten to shoot an in-depth interview.

ART21 filming Barbara Kasten at her studio, with director Stanley Nelson, in Chicago, USA, 2016. Behind the scenes of ART21’s series Art in the Twenty-First Century, Season 8, 2016. Photo: Keith Walker. © ART21, Inc. 2016.

ART21 filming Barbara Kasten at her studio, with director Stanley Nelson, in Chicago, USA, 2016. Behind the scenes of ART21’s series Art in the Twenty-First Century, Season 8, 2016. Photo: Keith Walker. © ART21, Inc. 2016.

 

ART21 also filmed Barbara Kasten at work, capturing her process in her studio at Mana Contemporary.

Barbara Kasten in her studio at Mana Contemporary in Chicago, USA, 2016. Production still from ART21’s series Art in the Twenty-First Century, Season 8, 2016. Cinematography: Keith Walker. © ART21, Inc. 2016.

 


Filming Theaster Gates’ Stony Island Arts Bank

Theaster Gates saw potential in the crumbling structure of a 1920s bank on Chicago’s South Side. He bought it from the city for a dollar, and proceeded to transform it into a hybrid gallery, media archive, library, and community center.

ART21 gathered footage inside the building that had metamorphosed from eyesore to asset.

ART21 filming at Theaster Gates’s Stony Island Arts Bank in Chicago, USA, 2016. Behind the scenes of ART21’s series Art in the Twenty-First Century, Season 8, 2016. Photo: Brian Ashby. © ART21, Inc. 2016.

ART21 filming at Theaster Gates’s Stony Island Arts Bank in Chicago, USA, 2016. Behind the scenes of ART21’s series Art in the Twenty-First Century, Season 8, 2016. Photo: Brian Ashby. © ART21, Inc. 2016.

ART21 filming at Theaster Gates’s Stony Island Arts Bank in Chicago, USA, 2016. Behind the scenes of ART21’s series Art in the Twenty-First Century, Season 8, 2016. Photo: Brian Ashby. © ART21, Inc. 2016.

ART21 filming at Theaster Gates’s Stony Island Arts Bank in Chicago, USA, 2016. Behind the scenes of ART21’s series Art in the Twenty-First Century, Season 8, 2016. Photo: Brian Ashby. © ART21, Inc. 2016.

ART21 filming at Theaster Gates’s Stony Island Arts Bank in Chicago, USA, 2016. Behind the scenes of ART21’s series Art in the Twenty-First Century, Season 8, 2016. Photo: Brian Ashby. © ART21, Inc. 2016.

ART21 filming at Theaster Gates’s Stony Island Arts Bank in Chicago, USA, 2016. Behind the scenes of ART21’s series Art in the Twenty-First Century, Season 8, 2016. Photo: Brian Ashby. © ART21, Inc. 2016.

ART21 filming at Theaster Gates’s Stony Island Arts Bank in Chicago, USA, 2016. Behind the scenes of ART21’s series Art in the Twenty-First Century, Season 8, 2016. Photo: Brian Ashby. © ART21, Inc. 2016.

ART21 filming at Theaster Gates’s Stony Island Arts Bank in Chicago, USA, 2016. Behind the scenes of ART21’s series Art in the Twenty-First Century, Season 8, 2016. Photo: Brian Ashby. © ART21, Inc. 2016.

ART21 filming at Theaster Gates’s Stony Island Arts Bank in Chicago, USA, 2016. Behind the scenes of ART21’s series Art in the Twenty-First Century, Season 8, 2016. Photo: Brian Ashby. © ART21, Inc. 2016.

ART21 filming at Theaster Gates’s Stony Island Arts Bank in Chicago, USA, 2016. Behind the scenes of ART21’s series Art in the Twenty-First Century, Season 8, 2016. Photo: Brian Ashby. © ART21, Inc. 2016.


Check back here on the ART21 Magazine next week for more from behind-the-scenes of Season 8.