Harmon, Strasburg to discuss their art installations on March 24
Staff Report
The Wildling Museum of Art and Nature is pleased to announce its March virtual program “Art Through the Window: A Conversation with Holli Harmon & Nicole Strasburg,” taking place Wednesday, March 24, from 4 to 5 p.m.
Artists Holli Harmon and Nicole Strasburg are the creative force behind the Wildling’s two new art installations designed specifically to be viewed from the outside-in during its mandated COVID-19 closure. In their upcoming presentation, the two will discuss their process and the work that went on behind-the-scenes while creating these site-specific installations.
“I plan to focus on how an artist uses materials to express and communicate a story,” Harmon says. “We’ll look at what an art installation entails — and how we got to this point.”
Harmon will give attendees insight into how she moved from painting to building three dimensional clouds and planting live kokedama plants in the course of her work.
The museum’s new immersive Tower Gallery installation “Holli Harmon: The Nature of Clouds” centers around a Norfolk Island Pine tree floating beneath bright blue, cumulus cloud-filled skies. Large chandelier crystals hang suspended by invisible thread from ceiling to floor in a brilliant rain shower as plants are suspended throughout at varying heights. These plants – made up of kokedama moss balls – are planted with coleus, spider plants and various succulents. Centered beneath the suspended crystals and plants are three weathered eucalyptus tree stumps, their faces covered with mirrors to reflect back the sky and patterns above. The exhibition will be on view through fall 2021.
Accompanying the new Tower Gallery exhibition is a window art installation titled “Wintering: A Fox Tale” by Strasburg. The series of papercut fox silhouettes was specially designed by Strasburg to bring joy and wonder to passersby during the museum’s extended closure. The public is invited to enjoy the works — which are illuminated at night — through spring 2021.
Both Harmon and Strasburg generously donated their time to the Wildling Museum in a joint effort to find creative ways to bring visibility to the museum while continuing to inspire and engage audiences during the ongoing COVID-19 restrictions on indoor museums.
The suggested donation for this virtual event is $5. To register and learn more, visit: www.wildlingmuseum.org/news/2021-art-through-the-window.
Please email info@wildlingmuseum.org or call (805) 686-8315 with any questions.
The Wildling Museum’s ongoing Zoom programming is sponsored by Montecito Bank & Trust.
