Nature Into Art

The works in this multimedia exhibition illustrate a current trend toward the use of natal phenomenon as he basis of different art forms The artist’s perception as well as his subtle transformations of natural elements create a wide range of art works from traditional sculpture to conceptual events.

Some of the artists represented have an ecological bias and are involved with their materials in a scientific way. This is true of Alan Sonfist who uses chemical and biological elements, seeking to create change, rhythms, and inter-dependencies within eco-systems. His growing crystals change into a purple gas with the application of heat and back into crystals again in their own eco-systems.

Other artists have an irreverent attitude to classical art forms and intend to shock with their juxtaposition of natural materials. Rafael Ferrer, who recently emptied 84 bushels of leaves in three separate art locations in New York and who created ice sculptures for the Whitney Museum, illustrates this irreverent attitude,

Still other artists use natural materials for their sensual and evocative qualities. Charles Arnoldi’s beautifully painted relief sculptures made of tree branches are examples of this aesthetic use of natural media.

In addition to the sculptural objects crated from trees, leaves, and crystals, the exhibition includes photographic recordings of atmospheric optics and conceptual events inspired by natural phenomena. Whether the bias is scientific irreverent, or evocative, the media are natural and the range of possibilities for creative expression are limitless.