Crystals in Art: Ancient to Today
October 12, 2019 - January 6, 2020
Crystals in Art: Ancient to Today is the first exhibition of its kind to explore the connections between crystal and art throughout the world, spanning history and geography. The exhibition includes a selection of works and specimens from Ancient Egypt up to the present day and addresses broader recurring themes in the history of crystals such as science and religion, art and medicine, aesthetic beauty and transformation, and more.
This is the first time that Crystal Bridges has explored a show examining crystal, and the museum is expanding past American art in this exhibition to understand a more full story of crystal and the various roles the element played throughout the course of history. This expansive focus also allows the museum to showcase these works of art in Arkansas, the only location in North America where large-scale mining of quartz crystals takes place.
Crystals in Art is co-curated by Joachim Pissarro, director of the Hunter College Galleries and Bershad Professor of Art History at Hunter College, and Lauren Haynes, curator of contemporary art at Crystal Bridges and curator of visual arts at the Momentary.
The scope of this exhibition ranges from ancient objects from Egypt, Rome, China, and more, to contemporary artworks created in the past few years, with featured artists such as Andy Warhol, Marina Abramovic, Ai Weiwei, Alexis Arnold, Olafur Eliasson, Cindy Sherman, and more. The exhibition features artworks of all sizes, from tiny crystal sculptures to large-scale installations.
Sponsored By
James Dyke & Helen Porter
Blakeman’s Fine Jewelry, Frank and Pat Bailey, Marybeth and Micky Mayfield, Morris Foundation, Inc.,
Kyle, Maury and Finn Peterson, and JT and Imelda Rose.
Anthony James, Portal Icosohedron, 2019, steel, glass, LED Lights. Anthony James Studio.
