EMILIE BRZEZINSKI
NATURAL FACT
Cherry Breezes 2015
Our dealing with sensible objects is a constant exercise in the necessary lessons of difference, of likeness, of order, of being and seeming, of progressive arrangement; of ascent from particular to general; of combination to one end of manifold forces.
Transparent Object #2 1979
- Ralph Waldo Emerson Nature has a grand design, but its manifestations unfold in imperfection and specificity. Respect for this persistent individuality in natural forms is the underpinning of my work. As I carve the trunk, I retain the essential outline and gesture of the tree, uncovering within its form a symbol of its history. The final iconic shapes enshrine this existential cycle, as well as act as metaphors for human experience. - Emilie Brzezinski
Cherry Bench II 2009
Maple Spirals 2016
Water Garden 2015
Emilie Brzezinski’s towering arrangements of twisting chainsaw hewn tree trunks exploit the modernist maxim “truth to materials” to surprisingly expressive effect. This exhibition brings together examples of her signature tableaux alongside works from earlier periods in materials such as latex and resin. Born in 1932 in Geneva, Switzerland, Emilie Benes Brzezinski immigrated to the United States during World War II, grew up in California, graduating from Wellesley College with a degree in Art History in 1953. Brzezinski began her art career in the 1970s working with a variety of media, including resins, latex, and wood fiber. Eventually, she focused on creating monumental wood sculpture, using a chainsaw and ax to carve towering forms that breathed new life into felled trunks. Brzezinski continues to work in her McLean, Virginia studio that she built in the 1980s.
The Mold as a Piece of Art 1982
Two Poplar Cores
Zig Zag 1981
Ivy Web 2016
cover: High Point 2016
2005
EMILIE BRZEZINSKI NATURAL FACT Children’s Arch 1991
EMILIE BRZEZINSKI NATURAL FACT
GEORGE MASON UNIVERSIT Y SCHOOL OF ART - AUGUST 29 - OCTOBER 7, 2016