Virginia Overton: Sculpture Gardens

Exhibition Website

Jun 10 2016 - Sep 25 2016

For the second commissioned project on the Whitney’s fifth-floor terrace, New York-based artist Virginia Overton (b. 1971; Nashville, TN) explores the contrast between the concepts of the "sculpture garden" as a cultivated setting for contemplating artworks and the "garden sculpture" as a vernacular ornamental object. Taking inspiration from the Museum's windy rooftop site, situated between the High Line and the Hudson River, Overton will install two towering windmills pumping air to multiple ponds planted with a variety of aquatic flowers and greenery.

In two adjacent galleries, Overton choreographs a series of encounters between her work and the Whitney’s architecture, highlighting the building’s relationship to the outdoors. A wallpapered image of the American Southwest visually expands one of the spaces, while the other features a group of abstract sculptures crafted from industrial and natural materials, some salvaged from the artist’s family farm. These sculptures transform the room into a kind of interior garden, a counterpoint to both Overton’s open-air installation and the environment beyond.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website

  • Installation
  • American
  • Contemporary
  • Virginia Overton

Exhibition Venues & Dates