Elmhurst Art Museum presents ‘Shakkei:  Work by Mayumi Lake and Bob Faust’ September 6, 2025 – January 4, 2026

This fall, the Elmhurst Art Museum presents Shakkei: Work by Mayumi Lake and Bob Faust, the first major museum exhibition for Chicago-based artists Mayumi Lake and Bob Faust. Curated by Liz Chilsen, Manager of Exhibitions & Collections, Shakkei will be on view from September 6, 2025 to January 4, 2026.

Lake and Faust are mutually inspired by the Japanese principle of Shakkei (“borrowed scenery”), a design philosophy that incorporates organic features and architectural designs. The artists’ kaleidoscopic works create immersive optical experiences, addressing the intersection of the patterns of everyday life and cultural and social histories. The exhibition will feature recent large-scale artworks by Lake and Faust in separate galleries, as well as a collaborative new work combining their design languages.

For this exhibition, each artist will bring their own perspective to the concept of Shakkei, reflecting their unique experiences and history.

Building on her Unison series (2019-present), Lake designs monumental new site-specific works for Shakkei which explore the relationship of interior and exterior spaces. Based on the symbolic floral motifs found in antique Japanese girls’ kimonos, Lake creates a dynamic, interactive, ever-moving framework through which her art and the natural world can be viewed.

Faust reveals brand new two- and three-dimensional works for the exhibition, including site-specific “wallworks” and the debut of Blister, a new series that features phrases of text (“Don’t mind me,” “Honestly, nevermind,” “ur up”) thermoformed in polycarbonate. In the McCormick House, Faust organizes a selection of books he has designed into a welcoming reading circle.

Together, Lake and Faust unveil LOVEVOLVE (2025), a seven-panel curtain inspired by the traditional Noren curtain common in Japanese homes that visitors are invited to walk through. Installed in the central gallery of the exhibition, LOVEVOLVE reflects the coexistence of multiple perspectives that is inherent in the concept of Shakkei.

Allison Peters Quinn, Executive Director and Chief Curator of the Elmhurst Art Museum, said, “Shakkei highlights cross-cultural exchange by showcasing Japanese principles of landscape design and its influence on contemporary art and architecture. The artists are longtime admirers of each other’s work and decided to collaborate for the first time on a new installation for this show.” Quinn added, “Inspired by our McCormick House designed by Mies van der Rohe, Mayumi and Bob have pushed themselves to consider how their work creates vistas and portals that heighten our understanding of the world around us.  We are excited to be the first to present this incredible blend of art practices rooted in nature, pattern, and play, that turn the everyday into an extraordinary, immersive sculptural experience.”

Through their shared love of vibrant colors, symbolism, and intentional design, Lake and Faust aim to celebrate both their differences and commonalities. Their collaboration promises to be a fascinating exploration of the intersections and divergences between their artistic practices.

“I have admired and respected Bob’s practice for years, so the opportunity to present my work alongside his feels both an honor and an awe-inspiring opportunity”, noted Lake. “We come from entirely different cultural heritages, yet I believe our practices arise from the same profound soul—a flood of colors, rich symbolism, rhythmic patterns, and metaphor. In the exhibition, our works resonate to create an immersive space, with different roots intertwining to produce something richer than either could alone. I look forward to sharing an environment that celebrates both our distinctions and our unity.”

Faust concurred, “There are many reasons I am honored to share this exhibition with Mayumi. We both have a lifetime of professional design careers leading up to our first museum presentation of our art. There is our shared love of scale, both immersive and intimate. There is a common use of juicy color, and a reverence for Japanese culture. Hers as a direct line of heritage, while mine was passed through my professor Doyle Moore, who took a handful of design undergrads on a summer long study program throughout Japan, where we learned how aesthetics become an unavoidable outcome of living and spending time with intention.”

The exhibition has inspired a slate of relevant programs, including a lively opening reception and concert, an artist talk and tour, and interactive all-ages workshops exploring the idea of Shakkei. Plus, the museum invites the community to its first-ever Aces & Art: A Night of Luck and Giving, a fun-filled event in support of its exhibitions and education programs.

For additional information on the exhibition and accompanying events, please call 630.834.0202 or visit elmhurstartmuseum.org.