We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Allen Christian a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Allen, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Crazy stuff happening is almost as certain as death and taxes – it’s technically “unexpected” but something unexpected happening is to be expected and so can you share a crazy story with our readers

in 1992, I had a storefront studio in downtown Minneapolis. Having opened in 1986, the House Of Balls represented an idea for me to engage with the public. I did a number of things that those on the other side of the window could interact with. One of them was a puppet I made out of, bowling balls, and bowling pins. I ran two cables through the window frame, and people could pull on them to animate the puppet.
About midnight one spring evening, I got a call from the parking lot attendant across the street. He said to come down as my front window had been knocked out. Upon arriving, he told me that somebody had been pulling on the puppet so hard that it literally tore the puppet feet out of the shoes, which are screwed to the floor and the bowling pin man kicked out the window. In 1993, I was working in my studio when I heard voices from the outside. There was an open window up above, allowing me to hear the sounds of their voices. A man began telling the woman he was with a story about how he and his friend had come to the House Of Balls a year earlier, and while pulling on the puppet strings, they kicked out the window and ran.
I never looked up to acknowledge that I could hear the story he was telling.
This week, a man, his wife and son came into the studio, and he began telling his remembrances of my first studio, going into a tale of how he had loved to manipulate a puppet that was inside the space.
I then told him about the midnight call and the confession a year later, but he said nothing.
There’s a book that I have people sign when they leave the studio, and lo and behold he wrote “I’m so sorry for breaking your window.”

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

In 1986, I moved into a storefront studio in downtown Minneapolis. Shortly there after, I picked up a bowling ball and wondered what it would be like to carve. Picking up a chisel and mallet, I found out. Hence, the House Of Balls was formed. 38 years later, people can still cross the threshold, and enter a space where their own wonderment may begin.
As a found object artist, one of the things I talk about is how do we revalue the valueless in our lives.
What it’s come to mean for me is how do we deconstruct the way we think about the world and reconstruct it in a currency that gives our life meaning.
There are two types of clients, the first one entering the front door, seeing something I’ve created, and wanting it in their life.
The second one is looking for a commission, often for a specific space, or driven by a specific idea.
I don’t do commissions where someone comes in with a photograph and says “this is what I want.“
My 45 years of sculpting have always been about experimentation and pushing me in ways I could have never imagined. If you ever find yourself in Minneapolis, I invite you to enter.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

In 1996, I was involved in an assault, trying to help a woman that was being beaten up. I was at a friends studio when we heard her calls for help, called 911, and went down to see what we could do to help. It’s the last thing I remember. Apparently a car with five guys stopped, and one of them knocked me out while another one stomped on my face. By the time the police arrived, I had quit breathing, having choked on my own blood.
I had eight hours of reconstructive facial surgery, five days after the swelling went down.
Although it didn’t happen at my studio, my first wife didn’t want me to allow the public in anymore. She was afraid something might happen to me.
I was confronted with the idea of either locking myself out, or completely opening myself up. I chose the latter.
I regret to say that decision probably ended my first marriage, but it opened my me up to falling in love with a woman that knows how important it is for me to be vulnerable.
It’s also meant befriending people I never would’ve had the chance to meet otherwise, creating lifelong relationships.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

The biggest advantage I have is being visible. For 38 years, people have been able to walk to or drive up to a place that allows them to enter and engage with the work, literally. They can touch it, lift it, taste it if they like, but it’s all part of the experience I want them to have.

Contact Info:

• Website: Houseofballs.com
• Instagram: Houseof2balls
• Facebook: House of Balls
• Linkedin: Allen Christian
• Yelp: House of Balls