Central Wharf Park exhibits new installatioin "Five Marble Leaves" by international artist Claudia Comte
The First Art Newspaper on the Net    Established in 1996 Tuesday, December 3, 2024


Central Wharf Park exhibits new installatioin "Five Marble Leaves" by international artist Claudia Comte
Five Marble Leaves in Central Wharf Park, Boston. Photo: Faith Ninivaggi



BOSTON, MASS.- Inspired by 24 pin and red oak trees inside Boston’s Central Wharf Park, the acclaimed and award-winning international artist Claudia Comte has developed a new body of sculptural work, Five Marble Leaves, is on view now. Drawing attention to the marvel of nature and the importance of rising to the challenge of the current environmental crisis, the large-scale work was commissioned by Now + There, Boston’s public art nonprofit that brings temporary, site-specific installations to all of the city’s neighborhoods and was curated by Boston’s Pedro Alonzo.

Comte’s artwork has captivated art critics and the public in solo and group shows all over the world including Berlin, Geneva, Copenhagen, Madrid, London, Vienna, and New York City. A native of Switzerland, she has long been inspired by nature. Growing up near a forest, she has been surrounded by trees since her earliest days. As a child, she visited the Grand Canyon and became enamored of desert landscapes; as an avid scuba diver, she developed a fondness for undersea environs. Her love of flora and fauna from different environments has resulted in her creation of dramatic vibrant sculptures in the form of cacti, corals, and leaves.

For Five Marble Leaves, Comte created enlarged star-shaped leaf sculptures, placed along the path to the Boston waterfront as if they had fallen from the trees in Central Wharf Park. The works reflect the seasonal cycle of leaves, falling in autumn and growing back in spring. They are accompanied by six marble plaques with fragments of quotes from environmental activists, marine biologists, and anthropologists whom Comte admires, such as David Attenborough, Rachel Carson, Jane Goodall, Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, Greta Thunberg, and Paul Watson.

“The sculptures that make up Five Marble Leaves have the scale and magnitude of trees,” Comte said. “The leaf forms are magnified to monumental proportions. This installation is a representation of the living beings not being paid enough attention like the marine life hidden in the depths of our oceans or fallen leaves taken by an autumnal breeze.”

To create her sculptures, Comte begins with hand carved wood from a sustainably sourced fallen tree. Using a chainsaw, she carves the initial shape and then sands it until smooth. The wooden figure is then 3D-scanned and fed to a milling robot that renders the exact form on a larger scale. The process begins with the artist’s hand, goes through an industrial mode of fabrication, and ends in the hands of the stone carvers who polish the stone meticulously. It reflects the transformation of the Carrara marble itself, which is composed of once living microorganisms that were calcified over thousands of years.




“It’s my hope that people will find the sculptures inspiring and inviting so they feel free to lay down on them, feel closer to trees and nature in a small urban setting, while also deepening an appreciation for trees, a vital natural resource for addressing climate change,” Comte said.

Curator Pedro Alonzo sees the accessible, playful nature of Five Marble Leaves. “Comte has the power to make us want to cuddle up and embrace her marble sculptures,” he said. “At a time when humanity must reimagine our complicated relationship with the environment, Comte’s work in Central Wharf Park makes it easy to appreciate the wonders of nature.”

Central Wharf Park is an urban micro-forest, composed of mature oak trees, and sits between the New England Aquarium and the Rose Kennedy Greenway at 250 Atlantic Avenue in Downtown Boston. “It’s a place in Boston that has the power to remind us of the intersection of greenways and ocean and our need to protect and revere the natural world,” said Kate Gilbert, Now + There’s Executive Director. “Claudia’s beguiling sculptures give us time to contemplate, pause, and focus on the necessity of paying attention.”

Claudia Comte (b. 1983) is a Swiss artist whose work is defined by her interest in the memory of materials and by a careful observation of how the hand relates to different technologies. She studied at the Ecole Cantonale d’Art de Lausanne, ECAL (2004-2007), followed by a Master’s of Art degree in Science of Education at Haute Ecole Pédagogique, Visual Arts, Lausanne, Switzerland (2008-2010). Her body of work is best known for her site-specific installations. The artist's practice is guided by a distinct rule-measurement system of her own creation, wherein each artwork specifically relates to one another.

Drawing on the powers of communication, knowledge and symbiosis between animal and plant life, Comte’s dynamic and shape-shifting objects pay testament to the intelligence and transformative capacities of the ecological world. Her minimalist approach to art-making is equal parts methodical and dynamic. Works are infused with a distinct sense of playfulness. Her artistic output incorporates a diverse range of mediums from sculpture, to painting, to various multimedia installations. She has shown her work all over the world.

Pedro Alonzo is a Boston-based independent curator. He is currently an Adjunct Curator at Dallas Contemporary. Since 2006, he has specialized in producing exhibitions that transcend the boundaries of museum walls and spill out into the urban landscape, addressing audiences beyond the traditional museum public. In 2019, Alonzo worked with Now + There as guest curator for Oscar Tuazon’s Growth Rings and then later with artist Jose Davila for To Each Era Its Art, To Art Its Freedom, both designed for Central Wharf Park.










Today's News

October 13, 2022

Behind every monarch, an art alliance

"Tal R: The Forest in My Eyebrow" opens at Tim Van Laere Gallery in Antwerp

RISD Museum announces return of Benin bronze

Frick to present exhibition of major acquisitions this fall

Threshold: An exhibition of paintings by Eric Aho opens at DC Moore Gallery

Hôtel Lambert: Stellar results for contents of Paris' most beautiful residence

Ming Dynasty chair makes record $16 million in Sotheby's Hong Kong Auction

Storm King Art Center appoints Eric Booker to the role of Associate Curator

Nara Roesler debuts "Lines of Abstraction" at 181 Fremont's Gallery 181

Seattle Art Museum transforms its American Art Galleries

Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art opens three fall exhibitions

The Belvedere opens an exhibition of works by Rona Pondick

Baltimore Museum of Art appoints Lara Yeager-Crasselt as Curator of European Painting and Sculpture

Innovative Jewish Center designed by Landau Zinder celebrates grand opening, serves an evolving community

Kavi Gupta opens a solo exhibition of new paintings by Miya Ando

Stephen Friedman Gallery is presenting a solo exhibition by Caroline Coon

Mount Holyoke College Art Museum opens a new exhibition by vanessa german

'Marking Time: Art in the Age of Mass Incarceration' now open at Brown University

American LA based artist presents Visions in Motion Art Installation at the DMZ in South Korea

Harkawik now representing Calliope Pavlides, John Seal and Katarina Janečková Walshe

MTA Arts & Design permanent public artwork by Shawna X features vibrant glass and geometric metal railings

Bitter Sweet moments highlighted pottery exhibition by artist Laurie Carretta Scupp

Baber's "Swirl of Sounds - Wind, Rock and Sun" leads Moran's "She Made It" sale

Central Wharf Park exhibits new installatioin "Five Marble Leaves" by international artist Claudia Comte

How to Keep Your Furry Friend Happy and Healthy: 6 Tips

These casino titles have the best artwork in the business!

Logomaker Small Business Blog

5 Proven Benefits of Breathwork For The Artist's Mind

How to invoice like a pro

Travel With Ease and Comfort in Dubai With Luxury Car Rental

Top 5 Art Galleries For Tourists In The United States

New Jersey and New York - The Hubs of Art and Entertainment!




Museums, Exhibits, Artists, Milestones, Digital Art, Architecture, Photography,
Photographers, Special Photos, Special Reports, Featured Stories, Auctions, Art Fairs,
Anecdotes, Art Quiz, Education, Mythology, 3D Images, Last Week, .

 



Founder:
Ignacio Villarreal
(1941 - 2019)
Editor & Publisher: Jose Villarreal
Art Director: Juan José Sepúlveda Ramírez
Writer: Ofelia Zurbia Betancourt

Attorneys
Truck Accident Attorneys
Accident Attorneys
Houston Dentist
Abogado de accidentes
สล็อต
สล็อตเว็บตรง
Motorcycle Accident Lawyer

Royalville Communications, Inc
produces:

ignaciovillarreal.org juncodelavega.com facundocabral-elfinal.org
Founder's Site. Hommage
to a Mexican poet.
Hommage
       

The First Art Newspaper on the Net. The Best Versions Of Ave Maria Song Junco de la Vega Site Ignacio Villarreal Site Parroquia Natividad del Señor
Tell a Friend
Dear User, please complete the form below in order to recommend the Artdaily newsletter to someone you know.
Please complete all fields marked *.
Sending Mail
Sending Successful