Elsa Rady
dal 3/2/2005 al 4/2/2005
Segnalato da
3/2/2005
Elsa Rady
Long Beach Museum of Art, Long Beach
The Cycladic Swing. In an effort to remove the ceramic vessel from the constraints of the tabletop and assert its identity as a unique, richly-layered work of art, the artist has explored a wide range of installation strategies in which to present her ceramic sculpture.
The Cycladic Swing
The Long Beach Museum of Art presents Elsa Rady: The Cycladic Swing, a remarkable new body of work by the internationally-recognized, Los Angeles-based artist Elsa Rady. For the past twenty years, in an effort to remove the ceramic vessel from the constraints of the tabletop and assert its identity as a unique, richly-layered work of art, Elsa Rady has explored a wide range of installation strategies in which to present her extraordinary ceramic sculpture. Her explorations have culminated in this series of installations in which her elegantly shaped porcelain vessels, spare and uniformly glazed, are placed on swing-like palettes, suspended from stainless steel cords.
These hauntingly poetic installations were inspired by Rady’s study of the marble effigy figures produced about 2600 B.C. on the Cycladic Islands off the coast of Greece. While the shapes of Rady’s vessels were inspired by Cycladic figures, her use of the swing stems from her fascination with a marble, swing-like palette found at various Cycladic burial sites. These ancient palettes, which early antiquarians thought may have been used as beds on which the marble figures were placed, were referred to in 1841 by the German writer Karl Fiedler as “Holy Swings.†It was from this source that Rady found the inspiration for her new series. Elsa Rady: The Cycladic Swing is accompanied an illustrated publication, with an essay by guest curator Bernard Jazzar. The exhibition and its publication have been made possible by generous gifts from Earl and Margaret Leake, Elizabeth A. Sackler, Yellow Book USA, Long Beach View and other generous sponsors.
Elsa Rady: The Cycladic Swing is part of California Visions, a series of exhibitions and programs scheduled throughout 2005 to celebrate the extraordinary talents of California-based artists, including: Enigma Variations: The Sculpture of John Frame, 1980-2005, January 7 – April 10, 2005; California Visions: Art Auction XI, April 29 – May 14, 2005; California Landscape, June 3 – August 21, 2005; High Drama: Eugene Berman and the Legacy of the Melancholic Sublime, September 9 – October 30, 2005; Crossing Boundaries: The Ceramic Sculpture of Mineo Mizuno, November 18, 2005 – January 15, 2006
California Visions extends the Long Beach Museum of Art’s 54-year commitment to the visionary artists who live and work in the State of California. From its inaugural exhibition Design for Today’s Living presented in 1951 until today, the Long Beach Museum of Art has served as a showcase for work produced by California-based artists.
Image: The Cycladic Swing (detail), 2004 - Porcelain, Corian, plated brass and stainless steel wire
Long Beach Museum of Art - 2300 E. Ocean Blvd. - Long Beach, CA 90803
Opening day is Free Friday; the galleries are free and open to the public all day.