body of work
Exhibits
Five Points Gallery, Torrington, CT. ‘Spatial Delineation’
The space for this exhibition was long and narrow with a wall of windows on one long side. The ‘Counterpoise’ Series worked perfectly with the architecture of the long wall. ‘And Miles To Go’ used the center length of the space with Entrapped’ coming off a smaller wall on one end. The entire exhibition could be seen from the street and it glowed from within at night. A small but powerful exhibition.
Axom Gallery, Rochester, NY. ‘New Work’
I selected this small but spectacular space to open a series of three exhibitions. I did not need a massive space for a great show. I need a space that challenged me. It was my intention to create a dramatic installation on one enclosed end of the space, and 4-2-2 was designed for that purpose. The smaller pedestal sculptures were created and placed on the opposite end of the space. The two competing sizes of work were successful in the totality of the show.
OK Harris #1, Manhattan, NY. ‘New Work’
At this time, I had ‘left the wall’ and was exploring free-standing sculpture. The work was all about the purity of line, and the exterior shell of the sculptures integrating with the interior space, pulling the viewer around and in visually. Shadows from actual lines, become complex when they combine with those case. My interest in balance is becoming evident, most strikingly in ‘Precarious’. I enjoy creating two-dimensional framed pieces that are derivative from the sculptures, and began a new series of sculptural deconstructions to accompany several of them. ‘Cantilevered Plane’ is the perfect example of this endeavor, specifically placed on the back wall of the gallery.
OK Harris #2, Manhattan, NY. ‘New Work’
The creation of free-standing sculpture continues in this exhibition, and I am starting to gravitate to the wall, however, in new ways than previously. The awareness of cast shadows as an integral part of each sculpture has become a permanent design concept. Line and balance remain of critical importance while I begin to play with proportions in several of the sculptures. ‘And Miles To Go’ and ‘Balancing Act’ exemplify those directions. ‘Declaration of Ruin’ took my love of line, form, and desire to play with depth off the wall, more intensely than ever before. Again, it created drama on the back wall of the 2,000’ space for the viewer entering the room.
OK Harris #3, Manhattan, NY. ‘New Work’
The concepts of balancing improbably, and using the wall and the floor to support sculpture, while the surrounding space takes on great importance, was paramount for this exhibition. ‘4-2-2’, ‘Run Through’ and ‘Entrapped’, exemplified this interest, and the large 2,000’ space allowed me all the freedom I needed to grow. One-three balance points of connection to the architecture are a constant theme in my work. I had a strong desire to express these same concepts from the large work, to smaller work, without sacrificing my aesthetic. The collection of sculptures on their own pedestals satisfied this need to be able to change scale successfully.
The Delaware Contemporary Museum, Wilmington, DE. ‘Improbable Suspension’
Being offered this space offered me the opportunity to observe the architecture and plan the sculptures accordingly as there was not time to create new work. When ‘Run Through’ was installed, it was noted that there had never been sculpture that ‘used the whole wall’ there. The museum was pleased, and so was I. This is what I do. My new series, ‘Line Interrupted’, was new ‘small work’ that used line and form in the most minimal of ways, creating the series of four, shown. Additionally, it maximized the concept of shadows as part of the work, visually as optical illusion.
Rochester Institute of Technology University Gallery, Rochester, NY. ‘Suspension vs Gravity’
The massive space that is the University Gallery was offered to me with the one challenge I welcomed. I had to use the expansive elevated wall space as a springboard for a series of site-specific installations. I was awarded a $5,000 grant from the Rubens Family Foundation to fund the exhibition. My goal was to unify areas of upper/lower architecture vertically, while upper planes would be unified by monumental horizontal sculpture. Forms appear to float on walls, defying gravity, while simultaneously possessing elements that succumb to it. Materials that offer defined lines, contrast with translucent materials, creating layers of ethereal presence. They advance, recede, narrow, and swell, unencumbered by the planar wall behind them. Ambient light creates visual and conceptual complexity of implied motion. The white to grey scale of the tangible, and the interplay of shadows intensify the visual illusions. The smaller sculptures, in series, are displayed on the lower walls.
Two Dimensional Deconstructions of Sculptures
When I complete a body of sculptural work for exhibition, I often am compelled to create two-dimensional work that explores the components and concepts of the sculpture further. This work is a deconstruction of the sculpture in that it explores individual aspects on a more intimate basis. The process is one of creating low relief from the layering of materials taken from the sculptures themselves.
![](https://susanferrarirowley.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/deconstruction-cropped.jpg)
![](https://susanferrarirowley.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/deconstruction-sketch-cropped.jpg)