en caminos introduces a new body of work that engages directly with the existing interior of Farnsworth House by repurposing and reupholstering sourced designs by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. 2026 Artist in Residence, Noel Mercado, replaces the upholstery of select furniture with textiles and leather brought from his family’s home state of Jalisco, Mexico, drawing from tablecloths, repurposed bags, belts, and leather remnants shaped by traditions of domestic making and repair. These materials carry generational knowledge formed through labor, migration, and resourcefulness, forms of expertise frequently excluded from canonical histories of modernist design. By situating these transformed works within the house, Mercado inserts himself and the historical path behind him into the conversation, expanding it to include overlooked histories that have long existed in parallel with modernist design.

Through subtle yet deliberate interventions, Mercado redirects attention toward questions of cultural identity and migration, allowing inherited knowledge to sit visibly within a space historically defined by architectural purity and restraint. en caminos offers a thoughtful reflection on authorship, identity, and design, demonstrating how contemporary practice can dialogue with modernism while reshaping its narrative from within.