"Elements of a Metropolis" by Gina Burri and Valentin Böhm

Giclee, 6"x8"

From the artists:

"We are Gina Burri and Valentin Böhm, an Artistduo based in Switzerland. Our collaboration operates at the intersection of architecture, graphic design, and art. Coming from different backgrounds – architecture on the one hand, printmaking and graphic design on the other – we merge our perspectives into an interdisciplinary practice that engages with structures, spatial systems, and urban spaces.

Our shared interest lies in translating and reconfiguring: from image to space, from analog to digital, from two-dimensional to three-dimensional. At the core of our work is the question of how architecture can be understood beyond its built reality. By combining architectural thinking with graphic logic, we develop a practice that places transformation, process, and experimentation on an equal footing with the finished work. This work was developed during the artist residency of Gina Burri and Valentin Böhm in Chicago. Together, we explored urban structures, architectural grids, and modular systems through printmaking, drawing particular inspiration from our travels through Chicago, New York, and Milwaukee. In the monotypes, we examined how provisional spaces can be constructed on paper. The works feature geometric, clearly defined forms that interact in ever-changing constellations, entering into dialogue with one another. Their modular arrangement evokes building blocks that can be flexibly combined – a metaphor for metropolises, which are constantly planned, expanded, and transformed. Each pass through the press alters the sequence, placement, and color of the elements, generating new moments that suggest distinct perspectives or frames of reference.

At the core of the work is an investigation of metropolitan structures: grid, repetition, order, and rhythm. The series highlights that urban spaces are never complete, but function as open systems capable of generating new combinations, meanings, and perspectives. Its relevance today points to questions of urbanization, densification, and the flexible shaping of living environments. In a time of rapid social, ecological, and architectural change, the work underscores the importance of understanding cities not as rigid constructs, but as dynamic systems – open playgrounds shaped by constant negotiation, transformation, and recombination."

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