Currier features glimmering kinetic sculpture in spotlight New England; George Sherwood: In Delicate Balance

This summer at the Currier catch the gleam of shiny steel swirling in the breeze as Spotlight New England presents kinetic sculptures by Massachusetts-based artist George Sherwood. George Sherwood: In Delicate Balance opens Saturday, May 29 and runs through September 6. Sherwood’s dynamic constructions are harmonies between artistic vision and engineered mechanics that respond to shifts in environmental conditions and move through space and time to give viewers an ever-changing experience. This Currier exhibition debuts two new sculptures and features installations in the galleries, Winter Garden, and outdoors in Zachos Court. Preliminary models and studies from Sherwood’s studio are also on view and invite an exploration of artistic process and kinetic principles in more detail.

While Sherwood’s sculpture has its roots in the history of twentieth-century art, it also speaks directly to our contemporary moment. His kinetic forms combine manufactured materials with organic shapes and invite a meditation on the complex relationship between nature and modernity. With a recent installation on the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway in Boston and past exhibitions at the Boston Sculptors Gallery, Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, and St. Gaudens National Historic Site, Sherwood is an accomplished artist from the region and honorably continues the Spotlight New England series, initiated in 2008.

While typically shown outdoors, Sherwood’s sculpture exhibited inside the Winter Garden and Putnam Gallery is an opportunity to focus on the work’s finely engineered mechanics. Alexander Calder’s mobile in the nearby contemporary gallery and Mark di Suvero’s kinetic sculpture Origins outdoors in the Zachos Court—both part of the Currier’s collection— form a conversation with Sherwood’s work and create a context and history for kinetic practices.

The Currier celebrates the opening of George Sherwood: In Delicate Balance with a Meet the Artist event on June 3 as part of the museum’s First Thursday programming. George Sherwood will join curator Nina Gara Bozicnik in the auditorium at 6:30 pm to discuss his creative process, followed by an informal conversation in the exhibition.

This exhibition is supported by David and Barbara Roby and the Fleisher Family Fund of the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation.

About the Currier The Currier Museum of Art (www.currier.org) in Manchester, NH is home to an internationally respected collection of European and American paintings, decorative arts, photographs and sculpture. New galleries showcase the collection of over 11,000 objects, including works by Picasso, Matisse, Monet, O'Keeffe, and Warhol. Visitors of all ages will enjoy engaging traveling exhibitions, a series of dynamic programs ranging from music to lectures to hands-on art-making, an expanded gift shop and an airy new café filled with light and equipped with Wi-Fi.

The associated Art Center offers studio classes, art camps and intensive workshops for all ages. The museum also owns the Zimmerman House designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, complete with the original furnishings and the owners' fine art collection. The Zimmerman House is the only Wright-designed house in New England open for public tours which are offered April – December. To book a tour or get more information, visit www.currier.org or call 603.669.6144 x108.

Contact: Karen Tebbenhoff,Director of Marketing and Public Relations,Currier Museum of Art, 603.669.6144 x102,ktebbenhoff@currier.org,Images available upon request