Naomi Wolf tells us in The Beauty Myth that “women’s identity must be premised upon our ‘beauty’ so that we will remain vulnerable to outside approval, carrying the vital sensitive organ of self-esteem exposed to the air.”
Ilan Averbuch: Between the Intimate and the Monumental
Every art form conveys a specific sense of human nature, and there is a bond between sculpture and the surging sensation of monumentality, of our belief in our own grandeur. But the monumental does not merely, perhaps not even primarily, demarcate human pride, the feeling of our importance to a universe that needs to be
Greg Johns: Acknowledging the Land
For many artists, their most recent work is the most important; past production fades in significance. Not so with Greg Johns. In spite of basic changes in style over the course of his career, he is quite prepared to return to and develop earlier concepts.
Disappearing into Your Work: A Conversation with Mai-Thu Perret
For nearly a decade, Mai-Thu Perret has created a variety of works that stem from The Crystal Frontier, a fictional narrative revolving around the members of a feminist commune in the New Mexico desert. Although she splits her time between Geneva and New York, the desert provides the perfect blank slate for her utopian ideal.
Art as a Disappearing Act: A Conversation with Dustin Yellin
Dustin Yellin’s sense of wonder seems to come from another age. In his view, there is nothing quite as extraordinary as the rhythms, forms, and patterns found in nature. He surrounds himself with objects drawn from the worlds of fauna, flora, and minerals, as well as manmade things, ranging from the commonplace to the sublime,
Henrique Oliveira’s Tridimensionals: Brushstroke, Form, and Space
What was once radical is now accepted within the context of high art, from urinals to coyotes to canned feces. How do we recognize innovation in contemporary sculpture after we have seen so much over the past century?
New Dimensions for the Senses: A Conversation with Ernesto Neto
Ernesto Neto, who began exhibiting internationally in the mid-1990s, is known for elaborate sculptural installations. A leading figure in Brazil’s contemporary art scene, the Rio de Janeiro-based artist creates biomorphic sculptures made of flexible fabrics, such as Lycra tulle and nylon.
Federica Marangoni’s Luminous Signs
After more than 30 years of international activity, Venetian artist Federica Marangoni, a pioneering figure in the realm of light sculpture and video installation, still maintains a strong aesthetic quality and humanist essence in her message.
Roberley Bell: Inside Out
Roberley Bell’s “Inside Out” at Laumeier Sculpture Park in St. Louis was a breathtaking mini-retrospective and the sculptor’s largest show to date. Installed in Laumeier’s indoor galleries, it included prints, sculptures from the “Flower Blobs,” “Other Landscapes,” and “Wonder” series, an installation titled Room with a View, and an artist’s book, A Borrowed View.
Kathy Bruce: Ritual Renewal
Kathy Bruce explores bamboo and other non-invasive organic materials, building site-specific works that have implied ritualistic connections to the land and that investigate climate, ecosystems, and plant and animal life. She also uses the figure and, more specifically, the archetypal female form.
