Allen Berke & Lise Soskolne

Allen Berke (1948–2003, Detroit) was an American painter whose work probed the intersections of social control, masculinity, and political violence. Emerging from Detroit during an era of profound social upheaval, Berke earned his M.F.A. from Wayne State University in 1971. A public school teacher and artist for nearly four decades, he moved to New York in 1983 where he exhibited extensively during the rise and fall of the East Village scene. Before returning to Detroit in 1991, Berke participated in more than 50 group exhibitions alongside Colab, Greer Lankton, and Martin Wong, among many others, and at galleries including ABC No Rio, Nada, No Se NO, Nolo Contendere, Now, P.A.C.A., Tobe Art International, and Vox Populi (American Fine Arts, Co.). Berke maintained a strong presence in Detroit during the 1980s and 90s with solo exhibitions at Xochipilli Gallery in Birmingham, MI, as well as in New York at NYU's 80 Washington Square East, P.S.1, and The Pharmacy. Berke was shown internationally at Arte Studio '88 (Italy), the Osaka Museum (Japan), Adam Gallery (UK), and the 2nd International Olympia Exhibition (UK). His final solo exhibition took place at the Swords Gallery in Detroit in 1998.

Lise Soskolne (b. Toronto, CA, 1971) has lived and worked in New York since the late 1990s. Among many others, she is a co-founder of Working Artists and the Greater Economy (W.A.G.E.) and has been its core organizer since 2012. Prior solo exhibitions include Lars Friedrich, Berlin (2023); Ulrik, New York (2022); Kunstverein Nürnberg, Nürnberg (2020); Svetlana, New York (2020); Mishkin Gallery at Baruch College, New York (2019); The Middler, New York (2018); Diorama, Oslo (2015); Modern Culture, New York (2001); Artists Space, New York (1999). Recent institutional group exhibitions include Raven Row, London (2025); Backrooms, Kunsthalle Zürich, Zurich (2024); and Kunstverein München, Munich (2020).

Esthetic Bomb Shelter has been organized by Lise Soskolne in coordination with Ulrik Gallery and the Estate of Allen Berke.