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Williams College Museum of Art Presents
The Annual Plonsker Family Lecture in Contemporary Art
Featuring Artist Sarah Sze
October 29, 2004 at Brooks-Rogers Recital Hall, Williams College
4:00 p.m.

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Williamstown, MA—Williams College Museum of Art (WCMA) will feature acclaimed artist Sarah Sze as the Annual Plonsker Family Lecturer in Contemporary Art. The public lecture will take place on Friday, October 29, 2004 at 4:00 p.m. in Brooks-Rogers Recital Hall at Williams College and will be followed by a reception at WCMA.

Sarah Sze, known for her intricate installations made from ordinary household materials, creates original sculptures and site-specific artwork. 

Sze’s training is in architecture and painting, both of which exert their influence in her work. Sze’s art isalso conceptual, with a nod to pop, as she frequently makes use of recognizable objects, such as Q-tips, rulers, light bulbs, and Ritz crackers.  Each work appears to be in a constant state of contraction and expansion, so it comes as no surprise that installations can range from small wall pieces, to twenty foot-high, room-filling installations. 

Hanging high in the WCMA atrium is one of Sze’s untitled works from 2002.  The sculpture contains many of Sze’s signature objects, like artificial grass and flowers, a QuickGrip clamp, and a tape measure.  Despite the apparent chaos that seems to have dictated the selection of materials, Sze finds a way to create order. The artist says of her installation at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York, “The idea was that we’re always in a condition of flux. When you view anything, you’re moving, even if it’s just your eyeball. …For me sculpture is an incredible opportunity for movement.” Like the universe itself, Sze’s work appears to be in a delicate state of balance, where the slightest shift could cause the entire construction to collapse.

The Plonsker Family Lecture Series in Contemporary Art was established in 1994 by Madeleine Plonsker, Harvey Plonksker (Class of ’61) and their son, Ted Plonsker (Class of ’86), to examine current issues in contemporary art. “New art is frequently complex and misunderstood,” says WCMA’s Interim Director Marion Goethals, “this series provides our community with the opportunity to be exposed to the best minds in the arts by enabling us to bring distinguished artists like Sarah Sze. We are especially fortunate to have alumni families, like the Plonskers, whose support and generosity make programs like this possible.”

About the Artist
Sarah Sze received a B.A. from Yale University in 1991, and her M.F.A. from the School of Visual Arts, New York in 1997. Her work has been exhibited widely in major international exhibitions, such as the Whitney Biennial in New York, the Venice Biennale and the Carnegie International in Pittsburgh, as well as the Berlin and Sao Paolo Biennials.  She has had major solo exhibitions at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, the Institute of Contemporary Art in London, and the Fondation Cartier, Paris. She completed an artist-in-residence program at Atelier Calder in Saché, France in 2002 and received a John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Award in 2003.

Publicity Images Available
Publicity images of Sarah Sze’s artwork are available at www.wcma.org/press. They include Still Life with Flowers, 1999, mixed media, dimensions variable. Courtesy Marianne Boeskey Gallery.

The Williams College Museum of Art is open Tuesday through Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and on Sunday from 1 to 5 p.m. Admission is free and the museum is wheelchair accessible.

Contact: Suzanne Augugliaro, Public Relations Coordinator
413.597.3178
www.wcma.org