wood stone poem

Meditations on The Natural by Andy Moerlein

May 5 – June 6, 2021

 

Featuring:  Guest Artists Mary Graham, Wen-hao Tien and JooLee Kang

 

On Wednesday 5/5 at 5pm painter Mary Graham and Michael Levin will join me in a short gallery talk to open the exhibit*.

Please RSVP for entry to this limited audience event.
25 max. Masks required, social distance expected.

The Art of Bonsai - Bonsai in Art

This will be a fascinating conversation. Mary Graham and Michael Levin are both Bonsai practitioners. Mary is a painter whose style evokes the Chinese landscape paintings she adores, but often in oil, and composed in the authentic topography of NH's White Mountains. Mary has cultivated trees for years and has gradually expanded her enthusiasm to include on her property "a house of their own." Michael is a lifelong Bonsai enthusiast who turned his passion into an iconic business. Bonsai West in Acton MA, is a national treasure of Bonsai knowledge and ancient trees, as well as quality starter trees. Michael began his studies during travels to California where he was introduced to Japanese elders who continued their tree cultivation even through the internment of Japanese Americans in the United States during World War II 1945-1947. Michael was gifted some of those trees and continues to protect and cherish this heritage. The tree on loan** is exceptional at over 60 years old. ONLY May 5-9.

Both Mary and Michael were invited to join the exhibit with scant understanding of what my new work for this show will look like. It will be a thrilling conversation.

Also opening at Boston Sculptors Gallery:

Donna Dodson
Amazons Among Us
Featuring guest artists Trina Baker, Kledia Spiro & poet Melchor Hall

From 5:30 - 7 both Donna Dodson and Andy Moerlein and the featured guest artists will conduct personal gallery walks and conversations. Timed entry can be arranged by invitation.

 

 

*All Events will be recorded and posted: andymoerlein.com. 

 ** Courtesy of Bonsai West, Littleton, MA.

 

Other Special events in conjunction with this show:

First Friday opening May 7th 5p-8p & June 4th 5p-8p

 

The Art of Bonsai -- Bonsai in Art. May 5, 5 pm

Sijo Contest Poetry Reading.  May 15th, 3pm

The Significance of Stone. May 27th, 7pm

The Philosophy and Practice of Cultivation.

June 3rd, 8 pm

 

 

 

On view May 5 to June 6, 2021, Andy Moerlein’s exhibition wood stone poem considers ancient traditions of reverence for nature. While contemporary culture is confident of our dominance, the pandemic has laid bare the global impact of natural forces beyond our control. As we grapple with our persistent pursuit of comfort and relentless consumption, is it possible to be a gentle partner on this earth? Moerlein’s sculptures invite meditations on The Natural.

 

The works featured are inspired by Moerlein’s fascination with ancient practice of collecting and displaying unusual and often awkward stones. Brought indoors and placed on pedestals, these stones (Scholars Rocks, Viewing Stones) are transformed into icons of personal or imagined journeys. These rocks have influenced philosophers and artists for thousands of years.

 

New to this exhibition are Moerlein’s tree forms. Eccentrically shaped sensual limbs entangle, embrace and support the artist’s “handmade” stones. Reminiscent of the choreographic balance of bonsai cultivation, these constrained and designed forms are both delightful and unsettlingly unnatural. Moerlein’s work shifts between a sense of complete control, and the awkward realization that things are totally wrong in his world.

 

Wood stone poem Meditations on The Natural by Andy Moerlein runs concurrently with Donna Dodson: Amazons Among Us. All events are free and open to the public with COVID -19 precautions in place.