Biennial 33: Tensile, South Bend Museum of Art
South Bend, IN
Group, September 27, 2025 – January 4, 2026
Dear Viewer,
The call for this exhibition asked, “What are the innovative forms, ideas, and themes happening right now in artistic creation in the Midwest?” The question of what unites artistic practices across a region or era is an interesting one. If I’m being honest, I don’t know if I believe in the idea of a regional aesthetic or trend in a place so broad and diverse as “the Midwest.” I’m of the mind that all kinds of artwork are being made all the time, everywhere; it’s what one tunes into that one ends up seeing.
That being said, we are all a reflection of our specific place and time, and artists often work with regionally or culturally specific traditions, crafts, materials, and histories. But the things that bind us together may not always be apparent on the surface—an important lesson to remember, especially during these perilous times. Rather than a particular artistic motif or style, perhaps it’s an approach, a perspective,
or a value system that we share.
What I noticed across the artworks submitted to Biennial 33, and in my work in the Midwest more broadly, is a sense of tension. A push and pull; stay or go; mainstream or rebel; second city or overlooked jewel; flyover state or central meeting hub? This notion of tension is not a negative one. Tensile strength—the ability to stretch without breaking, to both reach out and hold on—is a power. No matter where you look in nature, flexibility and adaptability always win out against rigid structures in the end.
My selection of artists and artworks coalesced around this idea of tension and tensile strength. The individual works don’t necessarily engage with that concept directly so much as they evoke that feeling in the space. The artists stretch themselves across concerns to embrace both tradition and progress, fact and fiction, the visible and hidden, and the sublime and the ordinary. They push materials and techniques to their limits. Rather than present a unified vision of contemporary art in the Midwest, I wanted to evoke the feeling prompted by the wonderful work submitted. And now I make this offering back to you.
Sincerely,
Scott Vincent Campbell Biennial 33 Juror and Guest Curator
Scott Vincent Campbell is an artist and curator based in Chicago. He is the Midwest Programs Manager at Independent Curators International. He is originally from New York City.
Michael Coppage, Eli Craven, Nicole Havekost, Basil Kincaid, Amelia Mendelsohn, Diana Noh, Ari Norris, Mary Porterfield, Anna Reed, Amanda Smith, Travis Townsend, Jackson Wrede
