BAINBRIDGE ISLAND, WA.- The new art museum
Bainbridge Island Museum of Art presents David Eisenhour: Dialogue with Nature on view March 22 through June 1, 2014.
BIMA is hosting a major solo exhibition of sculptures by David Eisenhour, an artist
living in Port Hadlock, WA. Eisenhour’s work reflects on his lifelong inquiries and documentation of the forms and beauty in nature, as well as issues related to the environment. The exhibit includes more than fifty individual works and a new series created in bronze, stainless steel, found stones, cast concrete, coal and mixed media.
Dialogue with Nature features six discrete yet related series of works and some earlier pieces – visitors will learn about Eisenhour’s evolution as an artist since the 1980s. His early work is more representational – later on the progression of his series document both abstract forms in nature and begin to address specific topics such as ocean acidification.
Eisenhour’s work portrays and interprets organic forms. Through his artistic processes he tells stories of natural history and human experience. He experiments with patina processes and with casting techniques – enhancing the textures, colors, and reflective qualities in his work. He uses a dissecting microscope to study small items found in the nature, exploring seeds, pods, leaves, twigs and insects which have led to series of sculptures Seeds, Lichen, Biomorphic Forms and Narrative Portraits.
"The recognition of the patterns of life that I see triggers a feeling of belonging to something grand. I want to convey these feelings through my work. Inspired by the patterns on the surface of organic material I have placed under my microscope, I've developed methods of texture that honor their complexity.” David Eisenhour
The exhibition includes a dissecting microscope with a large monitor - BIMA will have regularly scheduled times when visitors of all ages can place specimens under the microscope, engage in the artist’s inspirations, and create their own artworks.
David Eisenhour
As a child in Northern Pennsylvania, Eisenhour spent his free time in the wild. He examined his world through a microscope and began a lifelong process of discovering and interacting with nature. At eleven he was given a camera - another window for investigating the outdoors. He pursued his love of nature through black and white photography. He left the army in 1985 and came across a fine art foundry while working as a welder in Virginia, where he began his experimentation with turning molten metal into art, and became devoted to creating 3-dimensional sculptures. In 1992 Eisenhour moved to the Olympic Peninsula to work with Riverdog Foundry in Chimacum. He has been working as a sculptor full-time since 2003.
From the artist: “I am at heart a naturalist and environmentalist. I love to explore the life of a place. I fill my studio with small bits of inspiration, which I keep in fishing tackle boxes. An entire microcosm to work from - tiny pieces of the natural world gathered from everywhere I go. I can bring an entire trip home with me and then when placed under the microscope another world is revealed…”
David Eisenhour’s recent solo and two-person shows in Washington include Simon Mace Gallery (Port Townsend), Smith Vallee Gallery (Edison), Waterworks Gallery (Friday Harbor) and Port Angeles Fine Arts Center. He has also shown at Platform Gallery (New York), Gerald Peters Gallery (Santa Fe). His public installations include those in Lakewood (Gateway Project), Port Townsend (City Hall Annex), Port Angeles (Streetscape Improvements), and Trondheim, Norway (Leif Ericsson Society Memorial).
David Eisenhour lives and works in Port Hadlock, WA. He is represented in Washington by Simon Mace Gallery (Port Townsend) and Smith and Vallee Gallery (Edison). He is also represented by Denise Bibro Fine Art (New York City). Bainbridge Island Museum of Art is proud to present his first solo art museum exhibition.
