The combined work of Mel Chin and Elizabeth Turk features sculptures dealing with themes of the natural world and offers fresh perspectives on vital subjects.

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., Oct. 31, 2022 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, one of the nation's premier botanic and sculpture experiences, announces the opening of the winter sculpture exhibition Double Take: Mel Chin & Elizabeth Turk, running November 18, 2022–March 26, 2023.

This exhibition presents works from these two award winners of the MacArthur Fellowship—sometimes referred to as a "genius grant"—in a variety of techniques and media, including wood, stone, aluminum, water, and sound. Chin and Turk's work selected for this exhibition focuses on sculpture dealing primarily with the natural world.

Environmental issues have been central to Mel Chin's work for many years. Most notably is his 1990 Revival Field, a pioneering project in "green remediation," which uses plants to extract toxic metals from soil. Two pieces tied to this ongoing project are included in the exhibition: Revival Field diorama and Revival Ramp etching. Themes of revival and recovery are often present in Chin's work, including many shown at Meijer Gardens.

Elizabeth Turk is also inspired by the natural world, most recently in her Tipping Point: Echoes of Extinction series that brings light to extinct and endangered birds through a series of totemic Sound Columns. These sculptures visualize the voices of lost or threatened birds. Her Evaporated River installation similarly gives form to an absence within nature, here showing the diminished water that used to flow freely through our nation's riverbeds.

Together, the art of Mel Chin and Elizabeth Turk provides new takes on important issues of the day, including environmental hazards, endangered species, memorialization, and lost or hidden histories.    

EXHIBITION PROGRAMS:

Endangered and Extinct Birds of Michigan: How We Can Help
Saturday, December 10, 11 am–12 pm
Misty Klotz, Kellogg Bird Sanctuary
In the Double Take exhibition, Mel Chin and Elizabeth Turk concentrate on an aesthetic interpretation of the loss of endangered and extinct animals, focusing in particular on birds. Join Misty Klotz, Bird Sanctuary's Outreach Coordinator, to learn which bird species are struggling in Michigan and how we can help.

Ecological Art in the Contemporary World
Saturday, January 14, 11 am–12 pm
Lily Woodruff, PhD, Associate Professor of Art History & Visual Culture at Michigan State University
Some artists use their art as a call to action in environmental issues, and some use their art to act. Join Dr. Lily Woodruff in exploring current trends in ecological art, from the Earthworks of the 1960s and '70s to the current work of Mel Chin and Elizabeth Turk.

Interpreting Media: Hidden Meanings in Non-Traditional Materials
Saturday, March 11, 11 am–12 pm
Amber Oudsema, Curator of Arts Education at Meijer Gardens and Adjunct Professor of Art History at Grand Valley State University
While the title of an artwork often provides clues for viewers to interpret, the medium can also be chosen for symbolic context. Explore some nontraditional materials used in creating works of art throughout art history, before focusing in on the works of Mel Chin and Elizabeth Turk.

A full list of exhibition activities can be found at: MeijerGardens.org/calendar Images are available here.

Double Take: Mel Chin & Elizabeth Turk is made possible by:
The Meijer Foundation, Frederik Meier Gardens & Sculpture Foundation; Botanic and Sculpture Societies of Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park; and the Michigan Arts
and Culture Council, a Partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts.

# # #

About Mel Chin
Born in Houston, Texas, Mel Chin has become known for the broad range of approaches in his art, including works requiring multidisciplinary, collaborative teamwork and those enlisting science as an aesthetic component to developing complex ideas.
Chin is one of the artists featured in the first year of the ongoing PBS series Art of the 21st Century. He is the recipient of many awards, grants, and honorary degrees, including the MacArthur Fellowship and election to The American Academy of Arts and Letters in 2021.

About Elizabeth Turk
A native Californian, Elizabeth Turk is known for marble sculpture and through ET Projects immersive art events. Currently, she splits time between a studio in Santa Ana, California, and New York City. She is a MacArthur Fellow, an Annalee & Barnett Newman Foundation recipient, and a Smithsonian Artist Fellow, among other awards.
Turk received her Master of Fine Arts from Maryland Institute College of Art, Rinehart School of Sculpture, in 1994, and her Bachelor of Arts from Scripps College, Claremont, California, in 1983.

About Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park

Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, one of the world's most significant botanic and sculpture experiences, was recently listed in the top 100 most visited museums in the world and the 30 most visited museums in the United States by The Art Newspaper, the leading global art news publication. Education programs welcome 80,000 students and guests each year. Culinary Arts & Events offerings include weddings, corporate meetings and award-winning catering. The 158-acre main campus features Michigan's largest tropical conservatory; one of the country's largest interactive children's gardens; arid and Victorian gardens with bronze sculptures by Edgar Degas and Auguste Rodin; a carnivorous plant house; outdoor gardens, including a replica 1930s-era farm garden; an eight-acre Japanese garden featuring contemporary sculpture; and a 1,900-seat outdoor Amphitheater Garden, showcasing an eclectic mix of world-renowned touring musicians each summer. The permanent collection highlights hundreds of sculptures from internationally acclaimed artists Magdalena Abakanowicz, El Anatsui, Louise Bourgeois, Alexander Calder, Mark di Suvero, Marshall Fredericks, Henry Moore, Michele Oka Donor, Beverly Pepper, Jaume Plensa, Auguste Rodin, Richard Serra, Yinka Shonibare CBE and Ai Weiwei, among others. Indoor galleries with changing sculpture exhibitions have hosted shows by Jonathan Borofsky, Edgar Degas, Jim Dine, Laura Ford, Richard Hunt, Rebecca Louise Law, Pablo Picasso, George Segal and others.

Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park promotes the enjoyment, understanding and appreciation of gardens, sculpture, the natural environment, and the arts.

Media Contact

John VanderHaagen, Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, 616-975-3180, jvanderhaagen@meijergardens.org

SOURCE Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park