Sculpture in Four Dimensions

Washington, D.C.: The Art Museum of the Americas is pleased to announce the opening of “Sculpture in Four Dimensions,” a juried exhibition in celebration of the twentieth anniversary of the Washington Sculptors Group. This juried exhibition of twenty-six artists, carefully selected by jurors Ana Maria Escallon (Director of the Art Museum of the Americas) and Twylene Moyer (Managing Editor of Sculpture magazine), is a convergence of members of WSG with selected artists of the Americas. “Sculpture in Four Dimensions” will open to the public on Saturday, July 10, and will continue through Thursday, September 30. There will be an opening reception (free and open to all) at the Art Museum of the Americas (201 18th Street, N.W.) in the evening of Friday, July 16 at 6:00 pm. Museum hours are Tuesday-Sunday 10am-5pm. For further information or images, please contact Gregory Svitil at (202) 458-6016 (tel), (202) 458-6021 (fax) or gsvitil@oas.org (electronic mail). Images from each artist and text on the exhibition may be viewed on the world wide web at http://www.oas.org/museum.

This is not the first time that the Art Museum of the Americas has sought to encourage a dialogue between artists from places throughout the western hemisphere. Each experience that we have had in this vein demonstrates how artists continue to fine-tune their language to make sense of the circumstances of the moment, and above all, that the imagination is a repository of boundless possibilities, stretching beyond continental and political boundaries.

Making our final selections from hundreds of most impressive entries was indeed a challenging task. Our priority was to look for innovativeness in language and materials, excellence in execution and overall coherence of the project. In spite of (or perhaps as a result of) the broad scope of aesthetics found in the final body of works, there are certain constants that sew the exhibition together as a whole. Traces of the past in the present, the recuperation of materials and memory are among the themes that seem to be on the minds of most (if not all) of these artists.

Particularly striking amongst these works is the multiplicity of materials (such as roots, plastic, earth, salt) that are converged in abstract or minimalistic ways. Maybe the artists mistrust traditional sculptural weight, or maybe they are just onto something in using the natural light and shadowing effects that the space lends to their pieces.

Regardless of intention (perhaps the mystery of not having the artists’ minds as open books alongside their pieces at all times aids our own imaginations and personal experiences with their works), this body of work results in harmonies when placed together, ones that may be distant from traditional canons of aesthetic beauty, but is, at the same time, equally powerful and striking in their innovation and execution.

We are proud to feature the work of Grimanesa Amoros, Carolyn Bernstein, Margaret Boozer, Lynden Cline, Chas Colburn, Connie Fleres, Malcolm Hally, Edmond Hardy, Rodrigo Idrovo, Susana Jaime Mena, Carolyn Jean, Katherine Kavanaugh, Michael Little, David Mayer, Carolina Mayorga, Lezlie Milson, Dee Dee Moore, Lika Mutal, Sharyn O’Mara, Bridget Parlato, Erin Root, Soledad Salame, Carolina Sardi, Jeong Eun Shim, Lucy Norman Spencer and Lucia Warck Meister.

For further information or images, please contact Gregory Svitil at (202) 458-6016 (tel), (202) 458-6021 (fax) or gsvitil@oas.org (electronic mail). Images from each artist and text on the exhibition may be viewed on the world wide web at http://www.oas.org/museum.