Storm King Art Center celebrated the opening of Arlene Shechet: Girl Group on Saturday afternoon. The opening marks the first time Shechet’s six monumental, vividly colored sculptures will be open to the public. The sculptures will adorn Storm King’s rolling hills through November 10, 2024, beckoning visitors to stand in awe of the 20 to 30-foot works.
Guests enjoyed a luncheon and reception along with remarks from Storm King President John Stern and Artistic Director and Chief Curator Nora Lawrence.
Stern said: “Over the past few years, I have been lucky to visit Arlene’s studios with Nora. I have seen how Arlene’s vision to create these new sculptures was carried out through the hands-on way she works. ‘Girl Group’ is unlike anything we’ve presented at Storm King, and it's because of Arlene’s singular artistic voice. Seeing the beautiful colors of her works, set against the green landscape and blue sky, is astonishing. I look forward to seeing these colors against the landscape with the change of the seasons. Thank you, Arlene, for your ambition, creativity, and hard work to realize this incredible exhibition. You’ve made joy for all of us.”
Lawrence said: “The word that keeps coming into my head about the six large works installed outside—and in the best way possible—is ‘outrageous.’ The works are surprisingly wild; forms within them are never revealed from only one viewing perspective. They are playful, inviting, and complicated. Each work outdoors has two different colors—one glossy, one matte—as well as a surface of raw metal. Through Arlene’s careful eye, these three colors transform into so many more. There are haloes of color, shadows that become color, reflections and distortions of pure color.”
Upon welcoming guests, Arlene Shechet also spoke.
Shechet said: “I had the fantasy of being able to make work that embeds, can sink in but also sing out. It won’t be bad if my sculptures are just seen as markers. Because sculptures are good at marking a spot. But if they can offer some delight, some resonance with the feeling of instability we sense in our own bodies and in life; if they can ask some questions and feel a bit generous in the relationship to earth, sky, light, and shadow, I’ll be very pleased. My wish is that the show be felt as a bit of a gift, a reflection of my gratitude.”
The event was attended by more than 350 Storm King supporters, including artists Jordan Casteel, Nicole Eisenman, Valerie Hammond, William Jess Laird, Adam Pendleton, Martin Puryear, Ursula von Rydingsvard, Johnny Swing, Ilana Savdie, and Kiki Smith, Trustees in attendance included David Diamond, Miguel and Grace Hennessy, Debby Landesman, Nicholas Polsky, and Beatrice Stern. Additional notable guests included Vivien and David Collens, Nathan Clements-Gillespie, Joshua Rechnitz and Monica Cook, Samanthe Rubell, Oliver Shultz, Candida Smith, Peter and Simona Stevens, Cybele Maylone, Sheena Wagstaff, and Dianne Wiest, among many others.
Image credit: Matt Borkowski/BFA
