GRAND RAPIDS ART MUSEUM
101 MONROE CENTER, GRAND RAPIDS, MI 49503 www.artmuseumgr.org

---

Organizations Filed Purposes: CONNECTING PEOPLE THROUGH ART, CREATIVITY, AND DESIGN.

TOURING ALEXIS ROCKMAN: THE GREAT LAKES CYCLE: ALEXIS ROCKMAN: THE GREAT LAKES CYCLE EXPLORES THE PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE OF NORTH AMERICA'S GREAT LAKES-ONE OF THE WORLD'S MOST EMBLEMATIC AND ECOLOGICALLY SIGNIFICANT ECOSYSTEMS. THIS MULTIFACETED PROJECT WAS INITIATED IN 2013 WHEN ARTIST ALEXIS ROCKMAN EMBARKED ON A RESEARCH TOUR OF THE GREAT LAKES REGION. THE CENTERPIECE OF THE EXHIBITION IS A SUITE OF FIVE MURAL-SIZED PAINTINGS WHICH EXPLORE SEPARATE THEMES THAT EMERGED DURING ROCKMAN'S TRAVELS. THESE ARE ACCOMPANIED BY SEVERAL LARGE-SCALE WATERCOLORS AND FIELD DRAWINGS - MONOCHROMATIC ANIMAL AND PLANT STUDIES MADE FROM SITE-SOURCED ORGANIC MATERIAL SUCH AS MUD, SAND, COAL, AND LEAVES. ONE OF THE WORLD'S GREAT NATURAL TREASURES, THE GREAT LAKES-ERIE, HURON, ONTARIO, MICHIGAN, AND SUPERIOR-FORM AN INTERCONNECTED SYSTEM THAT IS AMONG THE MOST BEAUTIFUL, ECONOMICALLY IMPORTANT, AND ECOLOGICALLY COMPLEX REGIONS ON THE PLANET. THE GREAT LAKES, WHICH HOLD OVER 20% OF THE WORLD'S FRESH WATER, CONTAIN SOME OF THE MOST PRECIOUS RESOURCES FOR THE FUTURE OF HUMANKIND AND LIFE ON EARTH. ROCKMAN'S SERIES CELEBRATES THE NATURAL MAJESTY AND GLOBAL IMPORTANCE OF THE GREAT LAKES WHILE EXPLORING HOW THEY ARE THREATENED BY FACTORS INCLUDING CLIMATE CHANGE, GLOBALIZATION, INVASIVE SPECIES, MASS AGRICULTURE AND URBAN SPRAWL. WHILE THERE HAS BEEN SOME SUCCESS IN REVERSING THESE TRENDS, THE EXHIBITION OF THESE DRAMATIC WORKS WILL SERVE TO INSPIRE WIDER UNDERSTANDING AND DRAW GREATER ATTENTION TO THE URGENCY OF THESE ISSUES. ACCOMPANYING THE EXHIBITION IS A CATALOGUE PUBLISHED BY THE GRAND RAPIDS ART MUSEUM IN ASSOCIATION WITH MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY PRESS. THE CATALOGUE WAS WRITTEN BY DANA FRIIS-HANSEN, WITH CONTRIBUTIONS BY JEFF ALEXANDER AND THYRZA NICHOLS GOODEVE, AND A FORWARD BY MARK VAN PUTTEN, CEO OF WEGE FOUNDATION. IT IS AVAILABLE IN THE MUSEUM STORE AND ONLINE. ANOTHER WAY TO DIVE DEEPER INTO THE GREAT LAKES CYCLE IS WITH THE ONLINE COURSE DEVELOPED BY NORTHERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY. THE COURSE CONSISTS OF ESSAYS, VIDEOS, ILLUSTRATIONS, AND INTERACTIVE IMAGES WHICH FOCUS ON ROCKMAN'S FIVE MURAL-SIZED PAINTINGS AND THEIR CONTENTS. NMU BIOLOGY PROFESSOR JILL LEONARD, ART AND DESIGN PROFESSORS TAIMUR CLEARY AND DARIC CHRISTIAN, ALONG WITH A TEAM OF UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS, DEVELOPED THE COURSE WITH THE IDEA THAT APPROACHING THE FIELDS OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, ENGINEERING AND MATH (STEM) THROUGH THE ARTS MAY INCREASE THE ENGAGEMENT AND UNDERSTANDING OF STUDENTS WITH A BROAD RANGE OF INTERESTS. EXHIBITION TOURING SCHEDULE FOR 2018-2019 FISCAL YEAR: MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART, CLEVELAND - OCTOBER 19, 2018 THROUGH JANUARY 27, 2019 HAGGERTY MUSEUM OF ART OF MARQUETTE UNIVERSITY, MILWAUKEE - FEBRUARY 8 TO MAY 19, 2019

MAYA LIN: FLOW MAY 18, 2019 - SEPTEMBER 8, 2019 GRAM IS PLEASED TO ANNOUNCE AN EXHIBITION OF RECENT LARGE-SCALE SCULPTURE BY RENOWNED ARTIST AND DESIGNER MAYA LIN (B. 1959). ORGANIZED BY GRAM IN COLLABORATION WITH LIN'S STUDIO, THE EXHIBITION FEATURES SCULPTURE THAT DEMONSTRATES LIN'S FASCINATION WITH THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT, SPECIFICALLY WATER, AS SUBJECT. CREATED IN RECYCLED SILVER, STEEL PINS, AND COMMON BUILDING MATERIALS, LIN CONCEIVES THESE SCULPTURES WITH THE USE OF CHARTING, MAPPING, AND SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH TO DETERMINE EACH WORK'S ULTIMATE DESIGN, LAYOUT, AND STRUCTURE. LIN HAS CREATED TWO NEW SCULPTURES FOR THE EXHIBITION THAT FOCUS DIRECTLY ON WEST MICHIGAN. PIN RIVER - GRAND RIVER WATERSHED (2019) IS AN INSTALLATION MADE OF STEEL PINS IMBEDDED DIRECTLY INTO THE WALL THAT FORMS A SPARKLING FIFTEEN-FOOT-LONG OUTLINE OF THE GRAND RIVER WATERSHED. AT 260 MILES IN LENGTH, THE GRAND RIVER IS MICHIGAN'S LONGEST WATERWAY AND HAS BEEN CRITICAL TO THE HISTORY AND ECONOMY OF GRAND RAPIDS. THE TRACES LEFT BEHIND (FROM THE GREAT BEAR LAKE TO THE GREAT LAKES)(2019) IS A SHIMMERING WALL RELIEF CAST FROM RECYCLED SILVER. IN CREATING THE WORK, LIN CHARTED THE SPAN OF CONTEMPORARY BODIES OF WATER FROM THE ARCTIC TO THE GREAT LAKES THAT WERE FORMED BY THE MELTING OF THE LAURENTIDE ICE SHELF, WHICH ONCE COVERED MUCH OF THE NORTH AMERICAN CONTINENT. THROUGH SCOPE, SCALE, AND THE SEEMING USE OF ABSTRACTION, LIN EXPANDS OUR AWARENESS OF THE GREAT LAKES AND THEIR CONNECTION TO OTHER BODIES OF WATER AND TO THE GEOLOGICAL FORCES THAT CREATED THEM. WITH FLOW, LIN A COMMITTED ENVIRONMENTALIST, FOCUSES ATTENTION ON THE CRUCIAL ROLE OF WATER, BOTH TO OUR REGION, AND TO GLOBAL SURVIVAL. THE EXHIBITION ALSO CREATES CONNECTION AND DIALOGUE WITH ECLIPTIC, THE PUBLIC PARK IN ROSA PARKS CIRCLE CREATED BY LIN THAT MARKS ITS 20TH ANNIVERSARY NEXT YEAR. WATER - SPECIFICALLY THE NEARBY GRAND RIVER - ALSO DIRECTLY INSPIRED ECLIPTIC. WITHIN THE PARK, LIN FEATURED WATER IN THREE DIFFERENT FORMS - LIQUID, SOLID, AND VAPOR - THROUGH THE PARK'S ICE RINK AND AMPHITHEATER, MIST FOUNTAIN, AND TABLE OF FLOWING WATER. "I'VE ALWAYS BEEN FIXATED ON WATER," SAYS LIN. "MAYBE IT'S BECAUSE IT EXISTS IN MULTIPLE STATES, AND YOU CAN NEVER UNDERSTAND IT IN NATURE AS A FIXED MOMENT IN TIME."

WHO SHOT SPORTS: A PHOTOGRAPHIC HISTORY, 1843 TO THE PRESENT OCTOBER 27, 2018 - JANUARY 13, 2019 PHOTOGRAPHY AND SPORTS HAVE BEEN ENTWINED SINCE THE INVENTION OF PHOTOGRAPHY IN THE 19TH CENTURY. HOWEVER, THE ARTISTRY OF SHOOTING SPORTS HAS BEEN UNDERAPPRECIATED IN COMPARISON TO OTHER GENRES WITHIN THE MEDIUM. SPORTS ARE ALL ABOUT MOVEMENT AND MOTION, AND THIS EXHIBITION DEMONSTRATES HOW PHOTOGRAPHIC TECHNOLOGY ENABLED ITS PRACTITIONERS TO CAPTURE THE HUMAN BODY IN MOTION AS IT HAD NEVER BEEN SEEN BEFORE, ALL WITH ASTONISHING TECHNIQUE AND ARTISTRY. COMPRISING OVER 200 IMAGES IN COLOR AND BLACK-AND-WHITE FROM THE PAST 175 YEARS, WHO SHOT SPORTS: A PHOTOGRAPHIC HISTORY, 1843 TO THE PRESENT PRESENTS AN ASTONISHING DIVERSITY OF WORK BY MORE THAN 150 PHOTOGRAPHERS. THE EXHIBITION INCLUDES CLASSIC IMAGES OF LEGENDARY ATHLETES AND HISTORIC ACTION SHOTS, AS WELL AS PICTURES TAKEN BEHIND-THE-SCENES AND ON THE SIDELINES. SPORTS FAMILIAR AND UNFAMILIAR ARE REPRESENTED, IN PHOTOGRAPHS TAKEN ACROSS SIX CONTINENTS. FANS AND SPECTATORS WORLDWIDE ARE PORTRAYED, TOO, DEMONSTRATING AN ENTHUSIASM FOR SPORTS THAT TRANSCENDS NATIONAL BORDERS AND SOCIOECONOMIC LEVELS. WHO SHOT SPORTS: A PHOTOGRAPHIC HISTORY, 1843 TO THE PRESENT IS ORGANIZED BY THE BROOKLYN MUSEUM AND CURATED BY GAIL BUCKLAND, BENJAMIN MENSCHEL DISTINGUISHED VISITING PROFESSOR AT THE COOPER UNION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE AND ART.

---

---

Data for this page was sourced from XML published by IRS (public 990 form dataset) from: https://s3.amazonaws.com/irs-form-990/202022309349302707_public.xml