• Ursula von Rydingsvard, Collar with Dots, 2008; Cedar and pigment, 9 ft. 7 in. x 11 ft. 5 in. x 7 ½ in.; © Ursula von Rydingsvard, Courtesy of Galerie Lelong & Co.; Photo by Carlos Avendaño
  • Ursula von Rydingsvard, SCRATCH II, 2015; Cedar and graphite, 10 ft. 1 in. x 6 ft. 3 in. x 4 ft. 11 in.; © Ursula von Rydingsvard, Courtesy of Galerie Lelong & Co.; Photo by Carlos Avendaño
  • Ursula von Rydingsvard, Ocean Floor, 1996; Cedar, graphite, and cow intestines, 3 x 13 x 11 ft.; © Ursula von Rydingsvard, Courtesy of Galerie Lelong & Co.; Photo by Carlos Avendaño
  • Ursula von Rydingsvard, For Natasha, 2015; Cedar and graphite, 9 ft. 1 in. x 6 ft. 7 in. x 3 ft. 6 in.; © Ursula von Rydingsvard, Courtesy of Galerie Lelong & Co.; Photo by Michael Bodycomb
  • Ursula von Rydingsvard, Zakopane, 1987; Cedar and paint, 11 ft. 6 in. x 22 ft. x 3 ft.; © Ursula von Rydingsvard, Courtesy of Galerie Lelong & Co.; Photo by Carlos Avendaño
  • Ursula von Rydingsvard, little nothings, 2000–15; Items including cedar objects, drawings on paper, copper wires, photographs, tools, threads, and lace, dimensions variable; © Ursula von Rydingsvard, Courtesy of Galerie Lelong & Co.; Photo by Carlos Avendaño
  • Ursula von Rydingsvard marking cedar, 2007; © Ursula von Rydingsvard, Courtesy of Galerie Lelong & Co.; Photo by Zonder Titel
  • Ursula von Rydingsvard applying graphite through perforated plastic on for Staś (2011–17); © Ursula von Rydingsvard, Courtesy of Galerie Lelong & Co.; Photo by Morgan Daly
  • Ursula von Rydingsvard [center] surrounded by studio assistants [left to right: Morgan Daly, Sean Weeks-Earp, Ted Wade Springer, and Francisco Ruben Muñoz] in front of Bowl with Folds (1998–99), Detroit, 2017; © Ursula von Rydingsvard, Courtesy of Galerie Lelong & Co.; Photo by Kevin Silary
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Ursula von Rydingsvard:
The Contour of Feeling

News - 18/04/2019

This landmark exhibition of monumental sculptures by Ursula von Rydingsvard (b. 1942, Deensen, Germany) illuminates the process by which the artist gives outward visual form to her ideas and emotions. Expressive cedar sculptures are accompanied by poetic explorations in paper pulp, leather, linen, and other organic materials. With an emphasis on her work since 2000, The Contour of Feeling marks the most ambitious presentation of von Rydingsvard’s art in the United States, and her first solo exhibition in Washington, D.C.

The daughter of a woodcutter from a long line of peasant farmers, von Rydingsvard spent several of her early years in the wooden barracks of refugee camps in Germany at the end of World War II. Her works offer subtle hints of biographical, religious, or cultural references, while deliberately remaining abstract and evocative.

Each of the large-scale sculptures involves a labor-intensive, yet intuitive, process that can take nearly a year to complete. Wearing safety gear and wielding heavy machinery, von Rydingsvard and her team saw, slice, stack, glue, and mark the works with graphite before assembling their final forms. Towering vertical structures, sprawling floor-based works, and expansive wall constructions inspire awe and introspection. *

*Source : nmwa.org

The Contour of Feeling
On view March 22–July 28, 2019
National Museum of Women in the Arts
1250 New York Ave NW
Washington, D.C. 20005