A 1955 brochure for McCormick House, the Mies van der Rohe-designed suburban residence on the campus of the Elmhurst Art Museum, reads: “In this house, architecture and technology have combined to contribute a new dimension.” 

These words served as inspiration for In This House, a group exhibition on view within the historic home itself, which aimed to unburden familiar domestic objects from their usual functions. Materiality, repetition, color, and spatial order were celebrated in works by five artists: Michelle Grabner, Brad Killam, Tony Tasset, James Welling, and Paula Crown, whose beloved SOLO TOGETHER was a highlight of the show.

One-hundred of Crown’s replicas of red plastic disposable cups–a common convenience at frat parties, backyard barbecues, and other informal get-togethers–were strategically positioned throughout the living space. In this context, energy and intention seemed to be transferred from hands to plastic, marks of gestures in time. The cups occupied a zombie space, an immortalized intersection of souls, and point to the intersection of individuality and uniformity.