Public Sculpture on Main Street

Public Sculpture on Main Street
June 21–September 9, 2018

Outdoor sculpture at the Wadsworth Atheneum dates back to the 19th century with a sculpture that still graces the front of the museum to this day: Enoch Woods’s Nathan Hale (1889). Adjacent to the MATRIX 179 exhibition by Conrad Shawcross, this installation celebrates outdoor sculpture’s enduring legacy and renewed presence, focusing on abstract works from the 1960s to today that are currently on view in public spaces surrounding the museum.

Models and related material provide an opportunity to explore the histories of Hartford’s large-scale sculptures: Tony Smith’s Amaryllis (1965), Alexander Calder’s Stegosaurus (1973) on the Alfred E. Burr Memorial, Carl Andre’s Stone Field Sculpture (1977) along the north edge of the Center Church’s Ancient Burial Ground, Conrad Shawcross’s Monolith (Optic) (2016), and Sean Scully’s 30 (2018).

 

Images (left to right): Alexander Calder, Maquette for Sculpture “Stegosaurus”, c.1976, Painted sheet metal and wire; Lent by the Trustees of the Ella Burr McManus Trust, T.L.1976.128; Sean Scully, Frames 1.24.17, 2017, Watercolor on paper, Courtesy of the artist; Tony Smith, Amaryllis, 1965, Painted steel, Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, 1967.2.