Rachel Berg, SURF 2026 Artist in Residence, presents Kapemni: Twisting Between Worlds

In the fields of science and engineering, there is often great value in shifting one’s perspective: a new telescope that illuminates unseen areas of the cosmos, a new stress analysis that reveals an unknown vulnerability in a structure, or a new way of thinking that inspires a breakthrough solution to a challenging problem. 

The ability to recognize the value of seeing the world through different paradigms is one goal of SURF’s Artist-in-Residence (AiR) program—and it’s something SURF’s 2026 AiR, Rachel Berg, brings to her exhibit Kapemni: Twisting Between Worlds.

“Kapemni is not simply a title for the exhibition. It is a philosophical Lakota concept that teaches Lakota people how to relate to the universe,” Berg said. “It tells us that the star world mirrors the earth world. Directly translated as “twisting motion,” it is sometimes described as ‘As Above, So Below.’ It is an appropriate symbol for the ideas I am presenting. The idea of twisting, or moving between worlds, became a useful way for me to think about the residency itself; moving between the surface and the underground, art and science, contemporary physics and Indigenous knowledge, and what is visible and what is hidden.”

The AiR program at the Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF) is a partnership with Black Hills State University (BHSU). The program provides opportunities for artists to create work inspired by their time at SURF. 

Berg will speak at SURF’s Deep Talks event from 5-7 p.m. on Oct. 8 at the Sanford Lab Homestake Visitor Center, and the exhibit Kapemni: Twisting Between Worlds, will open a week later, on Oct. 15 at the Ruddell Gallery on the campus of BHSU.  

Mike Ray, SURF media relations manager, sent questions ahead of these upcoming October events to Berg—her answers are published here in full. 

1.) How do you best describe this show to an audience that has never seen it?  

The show is a visual experiment, examining points where scientific inquiry, research methodology, indigenous knowledge, and the land of the Black Hills meet. These moments of intersection can be understood in many different ways: physically, logically, culturally, historically, and spiritually. 

The work grew out of my experience as Artist in Residence at SURF where I spent time learning about underground research experiments that are asking fundamental questions about the nature of matter in the universe. The work that I created is rooted in my understanding as a Lakota person who is interested in scholarship and the passing on and evolution of knowledge to the next generations. The land and the specifics of the place are central to the work in the show. I used different methods of art-making from cyanotype to sculptural assemblages created with found objects from the SURF campus to tell a story about how our relationships with He Sapa (The Black Hills) and Inyan (stone) are allowing us to advance a human knowledge that has the potential to change our relationship with the universe. The work is twisting together ideas about material, culture, philosophy, spirituality, and physics. In many ways, the show asks what happens when we allow different ways of knowing to exist alongside one another, and when we aim to answer questions that do not necessarily have immediate answers. 

2.) During the Deep Talks, on October 8, at the Sanford Lab Homestake Visitor Center, will you be sharing some of the things that influenced the upcoming exhibit at the Ruddell Gallery on the campus of Black Hills State University? 

For the Deep Talks, I will be talking about my research into Lakota Star Knowledge and creation stories of the Oceti Sakowin, as well as my methodology for the creation of the work in the show. I will explain the cyanotype process and how I am using it to relate understandings of Lakota relationship to the land and stars, as well as the importance of the sun in the underground research. I will be emphasizing the story behind the work; my experience at SURF and the surprising connections I found between contemporary scientific investigation and Indigenous ways of understanding the world. 

3.) Are there any themes/ideas in the exhibit you hope those who see it will take away?

I am trying to superimpose layers of meaning through the images and forms. The work honors the Lakota concept of Mitakuye Oyasin (All My Relatives), the understanding that all things are connected in a web of relationships. One of the things I hope the exhibition opens is the idea that, through the human experience, there are and can be multiple ways of knowing the world. Scientific knowledge and Indigenous knowledge are often placed into very separate categories, but I hope viewers think deeply about how the land and the place have twisted these knowledges together.

Formally, I am crossing Indigenous and scientific aesthetics of image-making to tell a story about what I studied during my time as Artist in Residence at SURF. The research at the lab is connected to understanding fundamental origins and the existence of life in the universe. It is work that is based on a lineage of experiments linking past discoveries to new questions and beyond. It is part of a global evolution of human knowledge. I hope that the work in the show makes space for people to think about our relationship to lineage of knowledge and how they relate to the world around us. Lakota ways of understanding do not position humans as separate from the rest of the living world. Stones, water, animals, plants, stars, and the land are part of a larger system of relations. That way of thinking has deeply influenced how I approached making the art, and I want it to come through in the work in the show. 

4.) Can you reflect on the overall SURF AiR experience? Did it provide value to you as an artist? Will this experience influence your future work? 

The SURF AiR experience was incredibly valuable to me because it permitted me  to enter a world that I would not normally have access to as an artist.

I went into the residency knowing that I was interested in the relationship between art, science, Indigenous knowledge, and the web of life. What I did not know was how much simply being there, talking with scientists, visiting the underground laboratory, and listening to people explain what they were trying to discover would affect the way I think.

I was especially struck by the fact that scientists are building incredibly sophisticated instruments and developing incredibly precise methods, but they are still asking questions in the dark about things that cannot be directly seen or understood. That resonated strongly with my own artistic practice. The nature of experimentation is important to the artistic process, and it was incredible to see the parallels in the process as enacted by physicists and engineers to question, then design and create these instruments. 

The residency also changed the way I think about my role as an artist. I don't feel that I need to translate science into art or illustrate scientific concepts. I am more interested in creating a space where different forms of knowledge can encounter one another.

I absolutely expect the experience to continue influencing my work. I think SURF has opened a much larger field of questions for me, and I am still at the beginning of exploring them.

4.) Applications are now open for the 2027 Artist in Residence at SURF. Anything you would say to someone who is considering applying in 2027? 

This is such a special and rare opportunity rich with inspiration, exploration, and inquiry. 

You don't have to be a scientist, and you don't have to arrive with everything figured out. I think the value of the residency comes from being willing to listen, ask questions, and allow yourself to be surprised.

I would also encourage artists to take advantage of the access that the residency provides. Talk to the scientists. Ask the questions that might seem obvious. Pay attention to the physical experience of being underground. Spend time with the place itself. For me, some of the most important things came from conversations and observations that I could not have planned. And I would encourage artists to permit themselves to let the experience change their work. 

Those with questions or those interested in applying can learn more at the SURF AiR website.  

The AiR program at SURF was created in 2019 by SURF and BHSU. It is coordinated by Gina Gibson, BHSU professor of graphic communication and SURF’s first Artist in Residence.

The SURF AiR program is modeled after artist residency programs offered by government, science, and industry organizations, including the National Park Service, CERN, and Fermilab. 

 Learn more about Rachel Berg’s art here.