In the summer of 2001, artists David Grant, Josh McPhee, Laurie Joe Reynols, Ben Rubin, Trevor Paglen, Paul Seargent, and Nato Thompson, were approached about doing a project by Michael Thomas, owner and curator of the Dogmatic gallery in Chicago.

The Dogmatic space is located in Chicago's Pilsen neighborhood, a primarily Spanish-speaking neighborhood that has been undergoing a dramatic processes of gentrification. All of us were interested in the relationship between globalization, gentrification, and the reconfiguration of urban space according to the mandates of an 'information economy.' We decided to produce a project that directly engaged this discourse and economy.

The gallery, located at 1822 South Desplaines, is contained in the basement and first floor of a postwar townhouse. Rather than producing a series of objects about the theme of our investigations, we decided to directly insert ourselves into the web of urban financing and real estate by putting the house on the vibrant local real estate market.

The project unfolded in three stages over the course of a month. In the first stage, the artists created a real estate company called Pioneer Renewal Trust and put the house on the real estate market, placing classified ads in the newspaper, fliering around the neighborhood, and placing a large 'For Sale' sign in front of the house.

In the second stage, three open houses were scheduled. At each of the open houses, the house was presented in different stages of remodeling, and an informational kiosk was available for perusal.

The people who responded to the advertisements consisted of local families, suburbanites looking to relocate to the city, real estate agencies, and housing speculators. David Grant and Holen Kahn posed as real estate agents on behalf of Pioneer Renewal Trust.

Over the course of the month, remodeling continued to the point of absurdity. The three-bedroom house, renamed Pilsonian Gardens, was subdivided into 23 units. Advertisements for the home lauded 24 hour security, hepafiltered central heat, a 3 gigabyte ethernet, smart kitchen, and valet parking.

During the last weekend of the project, the artists hosted a street-side round table discussion featuring local housing activists.