British artist Jane Simpson's ice sculpture 'Somewhere (between freezing and melting) there lies passion II'. More an event than an exhibition, the sculpture will melt in the gallery over the course of the installation.
Somewhere (between freezing and melting) there lies passion II
opening reception Monday, 9 February, 6-8pm
Sandra Gering Gallery is pleased to present British artist Jane Simpson's
ice sculpture Somewhere (between freezing and melting) there lies passion
II from 9-16 February 2004. More an event than an exhibition, the
sculpture will melt in the gallery over the course of the installation.
In its freshly created form, the ice sculpture will resemble Group 1
(concourse) 1951, a marble sculpture by Barbara Hepworth. As the piece
melts, the corners and carving marks will soften, giving way to a smoother
surface and more flowing curves, accentuated by the glow of the melting
ice. While evolving in this unpredictable manner, the figures sculpted by
Hepworth will, in effect, come to life. Interaction between individual
figures will change; their behavior will be capricious. Simpson intends
the sculpture to be infused with all of the complexities and anxieties that
arise at social occasions. The artist also speaks of wanting to highlight
the sensuous aspects of Hepworth's forms, a quality that would not have
been emphasized or embraced during the time in which the sculpture was created.
Jane Simpson is known for her elegant sculptures that transform the
familiar, bringing a magical quality to quotidian objects. Teacups, a
balustrade, a sewing machine are created in unexpected materials such as
rubber and ice. Simpson's series of sculptural still lifes of rubber
objects clustered together are simultaneously three-dimensional Morandi
paintings and intimate, somewhat tense, family portraits.
This is Jane Simpson's first project with Sandra Gering Gallery. She has
had solo projects recently at Galeria Javier Lopez in Madrid, Gagosian
Gallery, London, and the Goteborg Konstmuseum in Goteborg, Sweden, among
many others. Simpson's work was included in the landmark exhibitions Some
Went Mad, Some Ran Away, curated by Damien Hirst, and Sensation (Young
British Artsts from the Saatchi Collection). A monograph on Simpson's work,
Fresh Fresher, was recently published by Other Criteria, London, with an
introduction by Norman Rosenthal.
Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10am to 6pm.
For further information, please contact Marianna Baer at 646.336.7183
Sandra Gering Gallery, 534 West 22nd Street, NYC
between 10th and 11th Avenues