Art for Art's Sake
James Surls' Rice exhibit praised, but some students feel shut out
"Ten Standing Bronze Flowers," 2008, by James SurlsPhoto by Jeff Fitlow
Mayor Annise Parker and James SurlsPhoto by Jenny Antill
"Knot and Needle," 2007, by James SurlsPhoto by Jeff Fitlow
James Surls, "Again The Tree, Knot, Flower and Me," 2009Photo by Jeff Fitlow
James Surls, "Big Bronze Walking Eye Flower," 2008Photo by Jeff Fitlow
Sanford and Susie CrinerPhoto by Jenny Antill
James Surls with "Big Bronze Walking Eye Flower"Photo by Jenny Antill
Lea Weingarten and Marc MelcherPhoto by Jenny Antill
Nic Phillips, from left, Bruce Eames, Bill Arning and Bert LongPhoto by Jenny Antill
James Surls, "Again The Tree, Knot, Flower and Me," 2009Photo by Jenny Antill
James Surls doesn't encourage viewers of his art as much as he challenges them.
"To endeavor to untangle these sculptures is the task I lay before the viewer," Surls commanded to tour attendants of a new exhibition of seven mammoth sculptures gracing the Rice University campus. Those are striking words for a stirring exhibit, but Surls could find that his own challenge is a backlash from Rice's art students.
The nascent Rice Public Art Program builds on the university's commitment to incorporate art into its landscape and interior public spaces, thus creating a more vibrant and dynamic campus that more intimately connects Rice with the arts community in Houston and beyond. Yet at the exhibition's inauguration, there was a certain disconnect between the university's students and the exhibition's organizers.
"Art students were never informed of the new public art program or the installation of the artist's work," senior fine arts student Salome Vanwoerden said. "They just appeared overnight with no discussion."
Students, who appeared to be barred from the reception by a velvet rope, clustered around the corner of the Brochstein Pavilion attempting to sneak peeks of their president's address.
The student publication, The Rice Thresher, echoes the campus' negative reaction: "The works are divisive, and in fact, many of our staff consider them downright ugly, which is why we are so relieved this is a temporary exhibit." Concerned students noted that the works are being showcased at a time in the academic calendar when newly admitted prospective students are visiting and evaluating the school's campus.
Rice officials, however, said that students were involved in the project. Fifty students were invited to the reception that celebrated the installation, although officials were unable to confirm how many attended, and students were invited to a Surls lecture on campus.
While student reaction seemed mixed, Houston's most noted movers and shakers couldn't be more pleased to have the famous sculptor — who while currently possessing a Colorado mailing address is an iconic Houston arts figure — bring his gifts to Rice's campus. The project represents the inaugural exhibition of the new Rice Public Art Program, a campus initiative by the university to lay claim on the future of Houston's art landscape.
At a reception following an artist-guided tour, Rice President David Leebron presented Houston Mayor and Rice alumna Annise Parker.
"When I first heard of this project, I was so intrigued to learn that President Leebron shared my ideas for bringing art into unexpected places in the city of Houston," Parker said. "I'm really happy Rice is moving the Houston arts scene forward."
The seven bronze and steel outdoor sculptures perpetuate the artist's signature flower forms, diamonds and eyes. Surls explained, "I like to make art of the things we see in the natural world that are repeated over and over again like the spiral — it's in a baby's cowlick, a blowing seed, the wind."
Six of the pieces reside on the campus quadrangle between the Brochstein Pavilion and the Shepherd School of Music, with the seventh making a statement beside Rice's new BioScience Research Collaborative. A detailed map of the exhibition's layout is available at rice.edu/surls.
Because of the brilliant employment of 12-foot piers inserted below the campus grounds, Surls' organic forms seem to magically sprout from the grass — a sea change from when the collection was first displayed on New York's Park Avenue, where they were placed on pedestals and often disregarded by harried pedestrians. The display on Rice's campus — what Surls describes as a career highlight — allows visitors to contemplate the complex forms and untangle their intrinsic metaphors.
Surls has been celebrated worldwide, most notably with his two-time selection by the Whitney Biennial, yet the artist remains a Texas stalwart. Surls and his wife now maintain a mountainside studio in Colorado, but beforehand he spent 50 years in the Lone Star State, where he established what would become the Lawndale Art Center and mentored a generation of local artists at the University of Houston.
"In the '80s, James was responsible for bringing the most cutting-edge art forms to the Houston scene," his Texas gallery representative Barbara Davis remarked.
The exhibition, "MAGNIFICENT SE7EN: Houston Celebrates Surls," is presented by the Rice Public Art Program and Houston Arts Alliance, with support from the City of Houston and private donations, and will be on display through August.
