At the Herndon

The Herndon Gallery hosts an exciting new show: “Rhythm of Structure: Bowery and Beyond / Mathematics, Art and Poetic Reflection”

A John Sims Project

May 18-November 1 2011

Opening Reception Saturday, May 21, 6-9 pm

Gallery Hours: 1-4pm Tuesday-Sunday

The Morgan Fellows at Antioch College are hosting the Midwest premiere of Rhythm of Structure: Bowery and Beyond / Mathematics, Art and Poetic Reflection at the Herndon Gallery. The exhibition explores the poetic intersections between mathematics and art through a wide range of mediums: painting, installation, poetry, films, dance, music and sound art.

Created by conceptual artist and Antiochian John Sims ‘90 from a year-long series of shows that premiered at the Bowery Poetry Club in New York City in 2009, the exhibition features pieces by a number of major contemporary artists: Sol LeWitt, Karen Finley, DJ Spooky, Dread Scott, Ken Hiratsuka, Paulus Gerdes, John Hiigli, Vandorn Hinnant, and John Sims, among others. Over thirty-five poets who participated in the original exhibition appear in the documentary film that accompanies the show, including Antiochian Mark Strand, former Poet Laureate of the United States. Rhythm and Structure has been reviewed in Art in America, Nature, The International Journal of African American Art, and FiberARTS.

Three major sections explore different themes: Geometry as it is manifested in visual abstraction, inspires algorithmic processes, and frames the diverse vocabulary of mathematical art, as in collaborative piece The Cartesian Hive; Conceptual Context, a meditation on abstract ideas such as randomness, with motifs ranging from the lottery and love to the metaphysics of space; and the Social Component, which highlights collaborative forms of math art, including graffiti and quilting.

The exhibition seeks to engage many different age groups in the community to become participants in evolving dialogues around mathematics, structure, and formalism. Numerous Miami Valley visual artists, poets, dancers, musicians, and students will be invited to investigate and celebrate the overlapping territories of mathematics and art through the unique MathematicalGraffitiWall and through performance events. Poetry readings and musical and dance events with local performers are currently being planned in conjunction with the show.

For more information contact Anne Bohlen at 937.286.8455 or abohlen@antiochcollege.org.