34 Artists in TERRA NOVA

Featuring over 200 objects made of polymer, including adornment, vessels, and furniture, Terra Nova: Polymer Art at the Crossroads reflects a short but sweet period in the history of creative endeavors.

The exhibition highlights advances in the use of polymer as an artistic material over the last 30 years and forecasts potential for the future. While Terra Nova debuts a large portion of work RAM received to establish a permanent collection of polymer art, it is also comprised of works borrowed from artists, private lenders and galleries.

Narrowing the focus in order to emphasize how far the field has come in a short time, Terra Nova features 34 artists yet spotlights eight Boundary Breakers—artists who have been recognized within the polymer field and/or by other contemporary craft disciplines, such as Art Jewelry and furniture. The Boundary Breakers—Bonnie Bishoff and J.M. Syron, Jeffrey Lloyd Dever, Kathleen Dustin, Steven Ford and David Forlano, Tory Hughes, Cynthia Toops, Pier Voulkos, and Elise Winters—will be represented by new works as well as by pieces that offer a visual history of their experimentation in polymer. In addition to featuring the Boundary Breakers, supplemental pieces from the museum’s permanent collection will support a historical look at polymer’s development and demonstrate the scope of RAM’s holdings.

TERRA NOVA: Polymer Art at the Crossroads
Racine Art Museum, Racine WI
October 21, 2011 – February 5, 2012

Also available in October 2011: A fully illustrated 140 page book , Terra Nova:Polymer at the Crossroads, that supports the content of the exhibition as well as functions as a singular resource for the historical and philosophical dimensions of the polymer medium.