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Exhibit
mixes environmentalism, art
New
York-based artist Christy Rupp has created several large installations
from recycled materials that address the interrelated issues of
public health, pollution, genetic engineering and biohazards.
"Nature
in Pieces: The Environmental Sculpture of Christy Rupp" can be seen
at the Ulrich Museum of Art Thursday, Feb. 21 through Sunday, April
7.
Made
primarily of steel and paper, Rupp’s sculptures focus on the
fragmentation and dismantling of nature.
Kevin
Mullins, curator of exhibitions at the Ulrich Museum, says Rupp
places great emphasis on the skins of her sculptures.
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As
part of her exhibit "Nature in Pieces," New York-based artist
Christy Rupp will talk about her work during the free, opening
reception Feb. 21. The reception, in the Ulrich Museum, is
from 5-7 p.m.; her talk, part of the Art and Architecture
Lecture Series, is from 6-6:30 p.m.
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"They
are often made of paper, reflecting the fragility of this border
between vital organs and the effects of toxicity," Mullins says.
"Or they are heavily armored, as in ‘Insufficient Data Fish,’
constructed of empty clipboards which suggests that the alteration
of the ecosystem may leave us with a series of species we cannot
understand."
Rupp’s
1999 sculpture "Chloroform" directly addresses the ecological niche
of salamanders, which have been mutating or disappearing at alarming
rates throughout the world, Mullins says.
In
the work, a bleached-out frog with a deformed arm ascends from its
green companion, while a molecular configuration, possibly a mutated
gene, hovers between the two.
Admission
to the Ulrich Museum is free. Hours are weekdays 9 a.m.-5 p.m. and
weekends noon-5 p.m.
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Compiled by Julie Rausch
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