About

Charles Gadeken is an industrial artist working in the Bay Area for over 25 years. His monumental interactive public artworks reimagine the world “post-nature” and include commissions from Burning Man, Insomniac Events, Coachella, Absolut Vodka, the Cities of Palo Alto, San Francisco, and Reno. He has exhibited internationally and been featured in the Wall Street Journal.Skilled in the manipulation of metals, Charles makes copper, bronze, and steel pieces of varying dimensions and functionalities — from a tabletop fire flower that illuminates an intimate space to a 30ft tall LED weeping willow tree that graces a public plaza. Inspired by the objects, structures and processes in the world around us, Charles’ art depicts natural objects in fantastic ways and realizes the potential for serendipity in everyday life. Often incorporating and developing technology for various effects — LEDs, flame, hydraulics, and electricity — to increase the visual and physical impact of his work, he seeks to instill a sense of play into the environment. Ever curious, Charles takes the forms of things we tend to overlook and remakes them as magical objects that exist as portals to our collective consciousness. Focused on engaging the imagination both in the objects he creates and the method of their creation, Charles is dedicated to increasing artistic community and public awareness of art. Many of his pieces are interactive, encouraging spectators to become participants in the artistic experience. He not only makes art, but also uses his artistic practice to encourage others to do so. Charles has inspired hundreds of people to participate in art-making and personally trained volunteers in the process of creating and installing art for private collections and public art for various commissions. For 2019-2020, Charles is an adjunct lecturer at Stanford University in the Electrical Engineering department. He will be creating a collaborative kinetic light art sculpture with students in EE185 to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the department at Stanford.

ARTIST RESUME

AFFILIATIONS

Stanford University (Adjunct Lecturer) - co-teaching an electrical engineering class EE - 125 and 225 where we are building a large scale work of art to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the EE dept at Stanford.
Box Shop (Founder) - a communal artspace in San Francisco that provides studio and work space and access to high quality tools for local artists and makers
Flaming Lotus Girls (Founding member and LLC board member) - a volunteer artist collective dedicated to empowerment of women and men through education and participation in the industrial arts
Qbox (Founder) - an organization producing shows focusing on art and technology, fiscally sponsored by SOMArts

SELECTED COMMISSIONS  

*Public Art Installations

*Murmuration (2022)
*Pastoria (2021-22)
*Entwined Meadow 2.0 (2021-2022):
*Entwined Meadow Canal (2021)
*T2 (2021)
*Entwined Red (2021)
*T3 Red (2021)
*Entwined HSB (2021)
Entwined Arc (2021)
*Entwined Meadow (2020-2021):
Fractal Flyer (2019-2020):
*SquaredNV - Reno, NV 2019-present 
*SquaredSF - San Francisco, CA 2018-2019
Crown - Burning Man (2018)
*T1 - Calabasas, CA (2017)
Entwined - Insomniac (2017)                 
Roshanai - Burning Man (2016)                                             
*Tabula - Brick Architecture and City of Palo Alto (2016)                                 
*Crash - Hotel Zephyr (2015)
Absolut Nightscapes Johannesburg - Absolut Vodka (20i4)
2Squared - Coachella (2014)
*Aurora - Burning Man (2011), City of Palo Alto (2013)
Nested - Heroes & Hearts (2013)
Helix - Burning Man (2013)
Sticks and Stones - Heroes & Hearts (2012)
23 Love - Coup d’Etat (2011)
*Sea Stars - National Parks Service (2008)
Aperion - Golden Voice Productions (2010)
Wave - Coachella (2009)
Nous - Golden Voice Productions (2009)
Pneuma - City of Seattle Winter Festival (2009)   
Cauldron - 42nd International Children's Games (2008)
El Corazon - Hearts for the Arts (2004)

EXHIBITIONS

2021
TABS for Stanford University ‘Art in the Atrium’ in Electronic Engineering building (group show)
Entwined for the Electric Daisy Carnival, Las Vegas, NV
Entwined Meadow Cluster Sotheby’s online sale/auction a fundraiser for Burning Man

2020
SQUARED[mini] Art in the Atrium Series, Stanford University, CA

2019
Squared, Reno, NV (2+ year exhibit)
Mini-Murder, Inc. Burning Man Decompression, San Francisco, CA
Murder, Inc. Burning Man Festival, Black Rock Desert, Nevada
Entwined (partial), Alice Street Gardens, San Francisco, CA

2018
Squared, San Francisco, CA (1 year exhibit)
Entwined (partial), Toronto Light Festival, Ontario, Canada
Crown, Burning Man Festival, Black Rock Desert, Nevada

2017
Squared, Hermitage Museum and Gardens, Norfolk, VA (6 month exhibit)
Entwined (partial), Beyond Wonderland, San Bernardino, California
Entwined, Electronic Daisy Carnival, Las Vegas, Nevada

2016
Helix, Adobe Max Bash, San Diego, California
Helix, Treasure Island Music Festival, San Francisco, California
Roshanai, Burning Man Festival, Black Rock Desert, Nevada
Aurora, Robina Town Centre activation, Queensland, Australia (6 months)
Helix, Nous, and Spike, Rock on the Range, Columbus, Ohio 

2015
Helix, Symbiosis Gathering, Oakdale, California
Squared [mini], Maker Faire Bay Area, San Mateo, California

2014
2Squared, Coachella Arts and Music Festival, Indio, California
Squared, Burning Man, Black Rock Desert, Nevada

2013
Aurora, City Hall, Palo Alto, California (2 year installation)
Aurora, Maker Faire Bay Area, San Mateo, California
Helix, Escape from Wonderland, NOS Event Center, San Bernardino, California
Helix, Burning Man Festival, Black Rock Desert, Nevada
Spike, Symbiosis Gathering, Oakdale, California

2012
Aurora, Symbiosis Gathering, Pyramid Lake, Nevada
Aurora, I Love This City Festival, Shoreline Amphitheater, Mountain View, California
Aurora, Beyond Wonderland, NOS Event Center, San Bernardino, California
Sticks and Stones, Heroes and Hearts benefitting SF General Hospital
Nous, Burning Man, Black Rock Desert, Nevada
Aperion, Opulent Massive, Treasure Island, San Francisco, California
Spike, Treasure Island Music Festival, Treasure Island, San Francisco, California

2011
Aurora, Burning Man, Black Rock Desert, Nevada
Aurora, Nocturnal Wonderland, NOS Event Center, San Bernardino, California
Aperion, Maker Faire, San Mateo, California
Aperion, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California
23 Love, Coup d’Etat, San Francisco, California
Spike, Oracle Event, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, San Francisco, California

2010
Aperion, Nous, Spike, Insomniac Events, NOS Events Center, San Bernardino, California
Nous, Maker Faire, San Mateo, California

2009
Spin, Nous, Spike at Phish Concert, Indio, California
Pneuma, Halifax Fire Arts Festival, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
Spike and Pneuma, Insomniac Events, San Bernardino, California Wave, Coachella Arts and Music Festival, Indio, California

2007-2008
Sea Stars, Ocean Beach, San Francisco, California

2004
El Corazon, Hearts for the Arts benefitting San Francisco General Hospital, San Francisco, California

1996-2001 The Illumination Project, Burning Man Festival and beyond

IN COLLABORATION WITH flaming lotus girls

2015 Serpent Mother
2011 Tympani Lambada
2009 Soma, Lead Fabricator
2008 Mutopia
2006 Serpent Mother
2005 Angel of the Apocalypse                                                                                                
2004 Seven Sisters                                                                                                                    
2003 Hand of God, Lead Fabricator
2002 Fire Island, Fire Fan, Mini Mega Jr.
2001 Flaming Flower Garden
2000 Flaming Lotus