SPACES Archives

08/28/2026

Some places are built to be seen. Others are built to express a way of life.

In 1886, Paul and Matilda Wegner immigrated from Germany to Wisconsin in search of a new beginning. They carried with them a deep commitment to peace, religious unity, and the freedom to live according to their beliefs.

After visiting the Dickeyville Grotto in 1929, the couple returned home inspired to transform their farm into an extraordinary environment of embellished concrete, glass, shells, and found objects.

Over the following years, they created winding fences, symbolic sculptures, a Peace Monument, and the remarkable Glass Church. Every surface sparkled with colorful mosaics, while messages like "For Peace on Earth" and "One God One Brotherhood" reflected the values that guided their lives.

More than a garden, the Wegner Grotto became a place for gathering, reflection, and conversation. On Sundays, visitors came to hear speeches, attend weddings, and experience a space where art, faith, and community came together.

Today, the Paul and Matilda Wegner Grotto remains one of Wisconsin's most extraordinary art environments and a lasting testament to the power of creativity, conviction, and hope.

Learn more → www.spacesarchives.org.

Image:
The Paul and Matilda Wegner Grotto (site view, n.d.), Cataract, WI, c. 1929–1942. Photo: Roger Brown, Roger Brown Study Collection at the John Michael Kohler Arts Center, gift of Kohler Foundation Inc.

08/21/2026

Some backyards tell a story. Nick Engelbert turned his into one.

Born in Central Europe in 1881, Engelbert spent years traveling the world as a machinist, sailor, soldier, engineer, and laborer before settling with his wife, Katherine, on a dairy farm in rural Wisconsin.

Inspired by a visit to the Dickeyville Grotto, Engelbert began transforming his home into an extraordinary sculpture environment he called Grandview.

Over the next fifteen years, he created more than 40 concrete sculptures that blended history, mythology, folklore, and humor. Uncle Sam stood beside an elephant and a donkey. Paul Bunyan towered over Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Neptune, mermaids, Vikings, and fairy tale characters shared the landscape with monuments celebrating immigrants and American democracy.

Together, Nick and Katherine welcomed visitors with lush gardens, picnic areas, and sculptures that reflected their appreciation for community, creativity, and their adopted home. Every summer, Katherine planted flowers that spelled out one simple word: PEACE.

Today, Grandview remains one of Wisconsin's most imaginative art environments, where art, storytelling, and landscape come together in unexpected ways. Several of Engelbert's original works are also on view at the Art Preserve in Sheboygan, WI, offering another opportunity to experience his remarkable artistic legacy.

Learn more → www.spacesarchives.org.

Image: Nick Engelbert, Grandview (site view, 2004), Hollandale, WI. Photo: Kelly Ludwig, SPACES Collection at the John Michael Kohler Arts Center, gift of SPACES and Kohler Foundation, Inc.

07/13/2026

The Watts Towers have been recognized by World Monuments Fund as one of just ten sites selected for Irreplaceable America, a special initiative highlighting places that reflect the range of the American experience and demonstrate how heritage can shape the nation’s future.

Built by hand over three decades by artist Sabato “Simon” Rodia, the Watts Towers stand as a powerful symbol of creativity, resilience, and community in South Los Angeles.

Learn more about the Irreplaceable America initiative: www.wmf.org/irreplaceable-america

Image: The Watts Towers were constructed entirely by hand by Simon Rodia. Photo credit: Adobe Photostock.

06/25/2026

Congratulations to former SPACES Director and Curator Jo Farb Hernández on the publication of Architectural Fantasies: Artist-Built Environments.

Drawing on decades of research and fieldwork, Hernández documents more than 60 artist-built sites across the United States, highlighting the work of self-taught creators whose environments expand our understanding of architecture, place, and creative expression.

Hernández led SPACES from 2006–2019 and was named Director/Curator Emerita in 2019. We're grateful for her prior stewardship of SPACES and pleased to see her latest contribution to the field bring greater attention to these remarkable sites and the individuals who built them.

Published by Tra Publishing, Architectural Fantasies: Artist-Built Environments is available now.

From Miami’s Coral Castle to LA’s Watts Towers, Architectural Fantasies explores over 60 dwellings across more than 30 states. These artist-built spaces allow one to step directly into the artwork, and range from scratch-built creations and modified structures to monuments, sites of devotion, an...

05/07/2026

📢 New blog alert!

What happens when an art environment disappears—but its story refuses to fade? "The Ghosts of Melrose Ave" by Jennifer Jameson Merchant explores the legacy of Milt Hopkins’ once-enchanted Castle of Enchantment through a new short film by Weston Lyon and Karolina Lavergne. Blurring fact and fiction, the filmmakers trace memory, myth, and the afterlife of creative work on a now-empty Los Angeles lot.

Dive into the interview and discover how this lost castle still inspires new worlds:
https://ow.ly/Ajjw50YWevy.

Photo: Seymour Rosen, 1969. ©SPACES—Saving and Preserving Arts and Cultural Environments.