Contrapposto by Benjamin Entner
New Exhibit
Opening Reception - Sept. 5 / 5-7 pm
The Westwood | 167 Genesee St, Utica, NY
Located below the Street Corner Urban Market
Sept. 5 - Oct. 24
Free and Open to the Public
BIO:
Benjamin Entner has an MFA in Sculpture from Syracuse University and a BA in Renaissance and Medieval Studies from the University of Albany. His work shows regularly in both national and international venues including Artprize at the Grand Rapids Art Museum in Grand Rapids, MI; Hallwalls Contemporary Art Center in Buffalo, NY: and The Contemporary Arts Center in Las Vegas, NV. His work has been commissioned for the Hancock International Airport in Syracuse, NY and the Soap Factory in Minneapolis, MN. Entner was a Semi-Finalist for the Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition 2016, at the National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, in Washington, DC and he has been a resident at SculptureSpace in Utica, NY. Entner is also an Associate Professor of Art History & Sculpture at the State University of New York College at Oswego. Entner is currently in-waiting for the MacArthur Genius Grant. It has been a long wait.
Artist Statement:
My body of work, seen as a whole, is diverse. It is a mix of influences from toys, to sea life, to architecture, to fire, to children's literature, and more. Most often I create works that are led by my love of Classical and Renaissance history and visual culture. However, I am always motivated to create an object, installation, or experience that is accessible to as wide an audience as possible. I do this by playing with scale, humour, and unexpected juxtapositions of material, content, or form. My goal is to, within the gravitas of the art space, inspire childlike nostalgia and wonder.
In this new series, Contrapposto, I have composed a series of three-dimensional collages that are, in essence, collisions of unrelated objects: Classical Statuary exploding/imploding with marine invertebrates and other organic material and organisms. My goal is to create compositions or characters that feel alluring, nostalgic, and otherworldly.
Benjamin Entner has an MFA in Sculpture from Syracuse University and a BA in Renaissance and Medieval Studies from the University of Albany. His work shows regularly in both national and international venues including Artprize at the Grand Rapids Art Museum in Grand Rapids, MI; Hallwalls Contemporary Art Center in Buffalo, NY: and The Contemporary Arts Center in Las Vegas, NV. His work has been commissioned for the Hancock International Airport in Syracuse, NY and the Soap Factory in Minneapolis, MN. Entner was a Semi-Finalist for the Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition 2016, at the National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, in Washington, DC and he has been a resident at SculptureSpace in Utica, NY. Entner is also an Associate Professor of Art History & Sculpture at the State University of New York College at Oswego. Entner is currently in-waiting for the MacArthur Genius Grant. It has been a long wait.
Artist Statement:
My body of work, seen as a whole, is diverse. It is a mix of influences from toys, to sea life, to architecture, to fire, to children's literature, and more. Most often I create works that are led by my love of Classical and Renaissance history and visual culture. However, I am always motivated to create an object, installation, or experience that is accessible to as wide an audience as possible. I do this by playing with scale, humour, and unexpected juxtapositions of material, content, or form. My goal is to, within the gravitas of the art space, inspire childlike nostalgia and wonder.
In this new series, Contrapposto, I have composed a series of three-dimensional collages that are, in essence, collisions of unrelated objects: Classical Statuary exploding/imploding with marine invertebrates and other organic material and organisms. My goal is to create compositions or characters that feel alluring, nostalgic, and otherworldly.
Open to the public at The Westwood
Mon.–Sat., 8 a.m.–8 p.m. | Sun. 10 a.m.–6 p.m.
Located below the Street Corner Urban Market
