Nasher Sculpture Center Announces Five Recent Acquisitions

The Nasher Sculpture Center has announced several recent gifts to the collection: five large-scale works by contemporary artists Jeff Gibbons, Nicolas Party, Kathleen Ryan, Arlene Shechet, and Bosco Sodi.

The works were given to the Nasher Sculpture Center by various private donors.

Jeff Gibbons is the latest artist based in Texas to join the collection, an important addition to recent acquisitions of other works by artists working in the state, such as Xxavier Edward Carter and Kristen Cochran, the Nasher Sculpture Center said.

Gibbons' work is called B.O.B.O. (Boat O.A.R. (Oceanic Auto-Reclaimer)). It is constructed using an air organ, chair, ball, mushroom, foam, digital print, tacks, matchbook, and string.

According to the Nasher Sculpture Center, the piece was acquired with support from Charles Dee Mitchell.

The gifts of Kathleen Ryan and Arlene Shechet works expand representation of women artists in the collection, while Bosco Sodi's piece is the second by the artist to enter the collection.

Kathleen Ryan's sculpture Jackie, an outsized and jewel-encrusted jack-o-lantern, is currently on view in the Nasher Store Gallery until November 28, 2021. The piece was made using azurite-malachite, lapis lazuli, agate, black onyx, breccicated jasper, moss agate, malachite, calcite, labradorite, rose quartz, smokey quartz, ching hai jade, red aventurine, carnelian, citrine, amethyst, quartz, acrylic, polystyrene, fiberglass, nails, steel pins, and wood.

Jackie was acquired with the support of the Girlfriend Fund, the Jerry & Terri Kohl Family Foundation, Alvaro and Melanie Leal, John & Jennifer Neff, and Karma, New York, the Nasher Sculpture Center said.

Arlene Shechet's sculpture, called Deep Listening, is made with glazed ceramic, wood, and paint. The Nasher Sculpture Center said the piece was a gift of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles in honor of Bonnie Pittman.

Bosco Sodi's untitled sculpture is made of clay and was a gift of the artist and Kasmin Gallery, New York, in remembrance of Paul Kasmin.

According to the Nasher Sculpture Center, Nicolas Party's sculpture TBC (Head) builds upon the original Nasher Collection's exploration of the figurative form, particularly busts.

Party's work was made using acrylic and oil on fiberglass shell and high-density polyurethane foam. The piece was acquired with support from the Green Family Art Foundatio, the Nasher Sculpture Center said.

"The gifts of these important works of sculpture to the Nasher collection are tremendous, as they each enrich the understanding of the future of sculpture while making evident the deep ties to the traditions of the past still at play in current artistic practice," Director Jeremy Strick said. "We are exceedingly grateful to the benefactors that have made these acquisitions possible, and we look forward to presenting these new works to the public."