Activate: Market Street 9
Through A Moving Window
June 11th – August 27th, 2016
Michael Wolf
The themes Michael Wolf is investigating in his current work are the dichotomies of permanence and transience and sheltered vs. exposed. In these sculptures he has been exploring archetypal forms of architectural structures and the sculptural possibilities of these forms. Wolf is examining how openings can pierce and divide the structure. Piercing these solid forms allows shadows to be created that move with the changing light of the day. A quote from Gaston Bachelard’s The Poetics of Space conveys the essence of this series of sculptures “…the imagination functions in this direction whenever the human being has found the slightest shelter: We see the imagination build “walls” of impalpable shadows, comfort itself with the illusion of protection-or, just the contrary, tremble behind thick walls, mistrust the staunchest ramparts. ”
Through this work Wolf has become fascinated with how the movement of the sun affects shadows moving across the forms of buildings. He especially enjoys observing sunlight move across structures and how the angle and orientation of the sun shifts with the changing seasons. Ancient monuments inspire some of these sculptures, while others are inspired by local vernacular architecture, either urban-industrial or rural. Some of the structures that inspire this series are in current use and some are in various stages of neglect as their function has become obsolete with the changing technologies of our era.
Material integrity is an important aspect of Michael’s sculptures. He chooses the medium of each sculpture carefully so that the material speaks to the spirit of the piece. Wolf has a renewed interest with minimalism but with a post-minimalist perspective in which content, location, and historical connections are important to the work.
Michael Wolf is a New York City area artist working primarily in sculpture and installation. Wolf participated in the exhibition SANCTUARY at the Orlando Museum of Art in a show organized by the Jai Gallery and curated by Jai Gallery director Coralie Claeysen-Gleyzon. Frequently exhibiting in NYC and the surrounding area, Michael recently had a solo show at the Sculptors Guild Gallery in DUMBO, Brooklyn as well as recent summer exhibits on Governors Island, NYC. Guggenheim Museum curator Katherine Brinson selected Michael’s work for an exhibition at the Viridian Gallery in Chelsea, NY. He has shown at the Leigh Wen Gallery and The Painting Center also in Chelsea.
Wolf received an individual fellowship grant from the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation and the NJ State Council of the Arts. He received the Power of Art award personally presented to him by Robert Rauschenberg at the East Wing of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC.
Michael earned a BFA from Philadelphia College of Art and an MFA from William Paterson University where he is now an adjunct professor of sculpture. Additionally, Michael serves as a board member of the Sculptors Guild, an organization founded in 1937 to educate the public about contemporary sculpture. Former members of the Sculptors Guild have included Chaim Gross, Louise Nevelson, David Smith and Louise Bourgeois.
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