The
Wexner Center for the Arts is The Ohio State University’s multidisciplinary, international laboratory for the exploration and advancement of
contemporary artAn art gallery or art museum is a building or space for the exhibition of art, usually visual art.Museums can be public or private, but what distinguishes a museum is the ownership of a collection...
. Through exhibitions, screenings, performances, artist residencies, and educational programs, the Wexner Center acts as a forum where established and emerging artists can test ideas and where diverse audiences can participate in cultural experiences that enhance understanding of the art of our time. In its programs, the Wexner Center balances a commitment to experimentation with a commitment to traditions of innovation and affirms the university’s mission of
educationEducation in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
,
researchResearch can be defined as the scientific search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, to establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories, usually using a scientific method...
, and community service. The Wexner Center opened in November 1989, named in honor of the father of
Limited BrandsLimited Brands is an American apparel company based in Columbus, Ohio. In 2009 it reported 9.04 billion dollars in revenue for the last fiscal year.-History:...
founder Leslie Wexner, who was a major donor to the Center.
Architecture
The Wexner Center's building was designed by architects
Peter EisenmanPeter Eisenman is an American architect. Eisenman's professional work is often referred to as formalist, deconstructive, late avant-garde, late or high modernist, etc...
of New York and the late Richard Trott of Columbus with
landscape architectA landscape architect is a person involved in the planning, design and sometimes direction of a landscape, garden, or distinct space. The professional practice is known as landscape architecture....
Laurie OlinLaurie Olin is an American landscape architect. He has worked on everything from private residences to large public parks. Olin grew up in Alaska, and earned his degree in Architecture from the University of Washington, in Seattle where he was mentored under Richard Haag. After graduating he...
of Philadelphia.
The Wexner Center was the first major public building to be designed by Eisenman, previously known primarily as a teacher and theorist. He has gone on to design and build a number of other major projects including the
Greater Columbus Convention Centerthumb|right|300px|Front entrance to the Greater Columbus Convention Center in [[Downtown Columbus|Downtown]] [[Columbus, Ohio]].The Greater Columbus Convention Center is a convention center located in downtown Columbus, Ohio, United States, along the east side of High Street.The convention center...
.
The design includes a large, white metal grid meant to suggest
scaffoldingScaffolding is a temporary structure used to support people and material in the construction or repair of buildings and other large structures. It is usually a modular system of metal pipes or tubes, although it can be from other materials...
, to give the building a sense of incompleteness in tune with the architect's
deconstructivistDeconstructivism is a development of postmodern architecture that began in the late 1980s. It is characterized by ideas of fragmentation, an interest in manipulating ideas of a structure's surface or skin, non-rectilinear shapes which serve to distort and dislocate some of the elements of...
tastes. Eisenman also took note of the mismatched street grids of the OSU campus and the city of
ColumbusColumbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
, which vary by 12.25 degrees, and designed the Wexner Center to alternate which grids it followed. The result was a building of sometimes questionable functionality, but admitted architectural interest.
Included in the Wexner Center space are a film and video theater, a performance space, a film and video post production studio, a bookstore, café, and 12,000 square feet (1,100 m²) of galleries.
In November 2005, the Wexner Center reopened after a three-year renovation. The renovation originally enlisted the help of a local firm, then switched to
ArupArup is a global professional services firm headquartered in London, United Kingdom which provides engineering, design, planning, project management and consulting services for all aspects of the built environment. The firm is present in Africa, the Americas, Australasia, East Asia, Europe and the...
. In addition to the building envelope, the scope of renovation includes
HVACHVAC refers to technology of indoor or automotive environmental comfort. HVAC system design is a major subdiscipline of mechanical engineering, based on the principles of thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and heat transfer...
, lighting, electrical, plumbing, fire protection systems. The renovation works had a minimum impact on the original architectural design while improving environmental, daylight and climate control.
With the restoration of the center as a whole, the bookstore, film and video theater, and café sections were all revamped, equipment and layout-wise.
Normal admission price for the galleries is $5, although students get in free and there are a number of ways to get a discount. Thursday evenings and the first Sunday of every month are free to everyone.
Exhibitions
Wexner Center exhibitions feature the art and ideas of an international array of contemporary artists.
The galleries are open Tuesday, Wednesday, and Sunday from 11 AM to 6 PM and Thursday, Friday, and Saturday from 11 AM to 8 PM. The galleries are closed on Mondays and between exhibitions.
Notable Exhibitions include:
Chris Marker: Silent Movie, Julie Taymor: Playing With Fire, Shirin Neshat: Two Installations, Suite Fantastique, As Painting: Division and Displacement, Mood River, Pier Paolo Calzolari, Part Object Part Sculpture, Twice Untitled and Other Pictures (looking back)Louise Lawler, Chris Marker
Staring Back, William Wegman:
Funney/Strange, Andy Warhol:
Other Voices, Other Rooms, William Forsythe:
Transfigurations
Film/Video Theater
The Wexner Center's Film/Video Theater is known for films that are new and different, rare and classic, or just too edgy for the multiplex. They have a year-round festival of independent filmmaking, international cinema, new documentaries, and classics. Many times, films are proceeded by visiting filmmakers discussing their works.
The media arts department presents more than 180 films and videos annually in all formats and genres; hosts visiting filmmakers year-round; operates the Art & Technology studio, an AVID-based media center for over a dozen artist residencies annually; programs The Box, the Center’s video projection space; and organizes gallery-based exhibitions involving moving image media. The department was given the “Outstanding Organization” Award from NAMAC, the National Alliance for Media Arts and Culture, in 2002
Performing arts
The events of the International Performing Arts Series for Families bring innovative live theater to young people and family audiences, as well as performing for school groups throughout the Columbus community.
Creative residency and commissioning projects for artists include: Bill T. Jones, Anne Bogart and the SITI Company, Big Art Group, Ann Hamilton (in collaboration with Meg Stuart and subsequently with Meredith Monk), Improbable Theatre, Bebe Miller, The Builders Association, Akram Khan, Elizabeth Streb, Eiko and Koma, The Wooster Group, Savion Glover, Urban Bush Women, Anthony Davis, Richard Maxwell, da da kamera, Mark Morris, Young Jean Lee's Theater Company, and Kronos Quartet.
The Wexner Prize
The Wexner Prize recognizes an artist whose work reflects exceptional innovation and the highest standards of artistic quality and integrity. Most recently, visionary filmmaker Spike Lee received the Wexner Prize in 2008.
The prize includes a $50,000 award and an engraved commemorative sculpture designed by renowned artist Jim Dine in 1991. Programs at the Wexner Center explore the prize recipient's career and thought.
Past winners include: Film and theater director Peter Brook (1992), Choreographer Merce Cunningham and composer John Cage (1993), Artist Bruce Nauman (1994), Choreographer and filmmaker Yvonne Rainer (1995),Filmmaker Martin Scorsese (1996/97), Painter Gerhard Richter (1998), Sculptor Louise Bourgeois (1999), Artist Robert Rauschenberg (2000), Architect Renzo Piano (2001), Choreographer William Forsythe (2002), Designer Issey Miyake (2004), Choreographer Bill T. Jones (2005), and Filmmaker Spike Lee (2008).
Artist Residencies
Residencies at the Wexner Center offer support to artists and often provide opportunities for interaction with the Ohio State community and the public at large. They are an essential part of the Wex's mandate to be a creative research laboratory for all the arts.
Wexner Center Residency Awards are their most substantial and high-profile residencies. They are given annually in the main program areas—performing arts, media arts (film/video), and visual arts—with some projects extending over two or more years. Residency Award recipients for 2008-09 are choreographer William Forsythe, filmmaker Guy Maddin, and innovative theater groups Young Jean Lee's Theater Company and Improbable theater group.
Other artists participating in exhibitions and performances also may receive commissions and often engage in residency activities—workshops, master classes, and discussion sessions with students or the community—during their time at the center. In addition, about 20 visiting filmmakers and video artists from around the world are invited to use the facilities of the Art & Technology studio and editing suite each year.
Wexner Center Residency Award recipients include:
Performing Arts: Young Jean Lee's Theater Company, The Builders Association, da da kamera,
Twyla TharpTwyla Tharp is an American dancer and choreographer, who lives and works in New York City.-Early years:Tharp was born in 1941 on a farm in Portland, Indiana, and was named after Twila Thornburg, the "Pig Princess" of the 89th Annual Muncie Fair in Indiana.she spend hours working on it to help her...
,
Elizabeth StrebElizabeth Streb is an American choreographer, performer, and teacher of contemporary dance.-Background:Streb was born and raised in Rochester, New York and, after graduating from the dance program of State University of New York at Brockport in 1972, she was interested in experimental works and...
/
RingsideRingside is an indie rock band from Hollywood, California, originally formed in Los Angeles. They specializing in fusing indie rock with electronic beats. The band consists of Scott Thomas, who does the vocals, guitar, and keyboard, Kirk Hellie , Sandy Chila , Max Allyn , and actor Balthazar Getty...
, Mark Morris Dance Group,
The Wooster GroupThe Wooster Group is a New York City-based experimental theater company known for creating numerous original dramatic works. It gradually emerged during 1975-1980 from Richard Schechner's The Performance Group and took its name in 1980...
,
Anne Bogart-Biography:She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from Bard College in 1974, followed by a Master of Arts degree from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts in 1977. She served as Artistic Director of the Trinity Repertory Company for its 1989-90 season...
/
SITI CompanyThe SITI Company is an ensemble-based theater company whose three ongoing components are the creation of new work, the training of young theater artists, and a commitment to international collaboration....
(multiple),
ImprobableImprobable is a 2005 science fiction thriller novel by Adam Fawer, about a gambler who gains the power to predict the future. It was awarded the 2006 International Thriller Writers Award for best first novel.-Plot summary:...
(multiple),
Bill T. JonesBill T. Jones is an American artistic director, choreographer and dancer.-Early life:Jones was born in Bunnell, Florida and his family moved North as part of the Great Migration in the first half of the twentieth century. They settled in Wayland, New York, where Jones attended Wayland High School...
,
Ann CarlsonAnn Carlson is an American dancer, choreographer and performance artist whose work explores contemporary social issues. She has performed through the United States an internationally and has won a number of awards....
, Amanda Miller/Pretty Ugly Dance Company, and (collectively)
Michael CurryMichael Edward Curry is the associate head coach of the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers. He previously served as head coach of the Detroit Pistons...
, G.W. Mercier,
Donald HolderDonald Holder is an American lighting designer in theatre, opera, and dance based in New York. He has been nominated for eight Tony Awards, winning the 1998 Tony Award for Best Lighting Design as well as the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lighting Design for The Lion King. He won a second Tony in...
, and Molly Anderson (all collaborators with Julie Taymor).
Visual Arts:
William ForsytheWilliam Forsythe is an American dancer and choreographer resident in Frankfurt am Main in Hessen. He is known internationally for his work with the Ballett Frankfurt and The Forsythe Company...
,
Kerry James MarshallKerry James Marshall is an artist born in Birmingham, Alabama. He grew up in South Central Los Angeles and now lives in Chicago where he previously taught at the School of Art and Design at the University of Illinois at Chicago...
,
Zoe Leonard,
Josiah McElhenyJosiah McElheny is an artist and sculptor, primarily known for his work with glass blowing and assemblages of glass and mirrored glassed objects . He is a 2006 recipient of the MacArthur Fellows Program "genius grant"...
,
Maya LinMaya Ying Lin is an American artist who is known for her work in sculpture and landscape art. She is the designer of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.-Personal life:...
,
Ann HamiltonAnn Hamilton is a contemporary American artist best known for her installations, textile art, and sculptures, but is also active in the fields of photography, printmaking, video, and video installation....
,
Barbara KrugerBarbara Kruger is an American conceptual artist. Much of her work consists of black-and-white photographs overlaid with declarative captions—in white-on-red Futura Bold Oblique or Helvetica Ultra Condensed...
,
Lorna SimpsonLorna Simpson is an African American artist and photographer who made her name in the 1980s and 1990s with artworks such as Guarded Conditions and Square Deal. Her work often portrays black women combined with text to express contemporary society's relationship with race, ethnicity and sex...
,
Barbara BloomBarbara Bloom is an American writer and TV programming executive. She earned a bachelor of science degree in theater from Skidmore College.-Career:...
,
Alexis SmithAlexis Smith was a Canadian-born stage, film, and television actress. She appeared in several major Hollywood movies in the 1940s and had a notable career on Broadway in the 1970s, winning a Tony Award in 1972.-Life and career:...
,
Shirin NeshatShirin Neshat شیرین نشاط is an Iranian visual artist who lives in New York. She is known primarily for her work in film, video and photography.-Background:Neshat's parents were upper middle-class...
, Lee Mingwei,
Greg LynnGreg Lynn is owner of the Greg Lynn FORM office, an o. Univ. Professor of architecture at University of Applied Arts Vienna, a studio professor at the UCLA School of the Arts and Architecture, and the Davenport Visiting Professor at the Yale School of Architecture. He was the winner of the Golden...
and
Fabian MarcaccioFabian Marcaccio is an Argentine born artist living and working in the United States whose trans-genre works including "Paintants" and '"Draftants" have been exhibited worldwide....
,
Hussein ChalayanHussein Chalayan MBE is a British/Turkish Cypriot fashion designer who graduated from Central Saint Martins in 1993.- Biography :...
,
Terry AllenTerry Allen may refer to:*Terry Allen , American Big Band singer*Terry Allen , American country singer and artist*Magnum T.A...
, and Softworlds.
Media Arts:
Guy MaddinGuy Maddin, OM is a Canadian screenwriter, director, cinematographer and film editor of both features and short films from Winnipeg, Manitoba...
, Jennifer Reeder, April Martin,
Yvonne RainerYvonne Rainer is an American dancer, choreographer and filmmaker, whose work in these disciplines is frequently challenging and experimental. Her work is classified as minimalist art.- Early life :...
, Jennifer Reeves, Deborah Stratman,
Phil Collins Philip David Charles "Phil" Collins, LVO is an English singer-songwriter, drummer, pianist and actor best known as a drummer and vocalist for British progressive rock group Genesis and as a solo artist....
,
Tom KalinTom Kalin is an award-winning screenwriter, film director, producer, and professor of experimental film at European Graduate School in Saas-Fee.His debut feature, Swoon, is considered an integral part of the New Queer Cinema...
, Judith Barry,
Todd HaynesTodd Haynes is an American independent film director and screenwriter. He is best known for his feature films Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story, Poison, Velvet Goldmine, Safe, and the Academy Award-nominated Far from Heaven and I'm Not There.- Style and themes :The writes that "Haynes is...
,
Julie DashJulie Dash is a United States filmmaker. She directed Daughters of the Dust, which in 1991 became the first full-length film with general theatrical release in the United States by an African American woman...
,
Isaac JulienIsaac Julien is an installation artist and filmmaker.-Biography:Julien graduated from St Martin's School of Art in 1985, where he studied painting and fine art film...
,
Tacita DeanTacita Dean is an English visual artist who works primarily in film. She is one of the Young British Artists, and was a nominee for the Turner Prize in 1998.-Life and work:...
,
Miranda JulyMiranda July is a performing artist, writer, actress and film director. Born Miranda Jennifer Grossinger, she works under the surname of "July," which can be traced to a character from a "girlzine" Miranda created with high school friend Johanna Fateman, called Snarla.- Background :Miranda...
,
Cheryl DunnCheryl Dunn is a filmmaker and photographer based in New York City. Her work is influenced by alternative urban and youth culture, documenting skaters, the homeless, musicians, graffiti, artists and their processes...
,
Rineke DijkstraRineke Dijkstra is a female Dutch photographer.-Life and work:Dijkstra concentrates on single portraits, and usually works in series, looking at groups such as adolescents, clubbers, and soldiers. Her subjects are often shown standing, facing the camera, against a minimal background...
,
Sadie BenningSadie Benning is a video maker, visual artist, and musician.She first made her name in the early 1990s as a teenage video maker from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Raised by her mother in inner-city Milwaukee, Benning left school at age 16, primarily due to the homophobia she experienced...
,
William WegmanWilliam Wegman is an artist best known for creating series of compositions involving dogs, primarily his own Weimaraners in various costumes and poses.-Life and career:...
, Sowon Kwon, Steven Bognar, Helen DeMichiel,
Iñigo Manglano-OvalleIñigo Manglano-Ovalle is an American artist.He graduated from Williams College with a BA in 1983, and from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago with an MFA in 1989....
,
Tom Poole-Playing career:Poole played for Crewe Carriage Works before joining Burslem Port Vale as an amateur in October 1897. His debut in a 1-0 home defeat by Barnsley St. Peter's in a Midland League match on 9 October 1897. The goal conceded came as Poole managed to punch an indirect free kick into his...
, Robert and Donald Kinney, Steve Fagin, Daniel Minahan,
Chris MarkerChris Marker is a French writer, photographer, documentary film director, multimedia artist and film essayist. His best known films are La jetée , A Grin Without a Cat , Sans Soleil and AK , an essay film on the Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa...
, and
Paper Tiger TelevisionPaper Tiger Television is an open media collective dedicated to raising media literacy and challenging corporate control over broadcast medium. Based in New York City, Paper Tiger was founded in 1981....
.
Artists
Many notable artists have come to speak or present their art at the Wexner Center, including
Gerhard RichterGerhard Richter is a German visual artist. Richter has simultaneously produced abstract and photorealistic painted works, as well as photographs and glass pieces, thus undermining the concept of the artist’s obligation to maintain a single cohesive style.- Biography :Gerhard Richter was born in...
,
Robert RauschenbergRobert Rauschenberg was an American artist who came to prominence in the 1950s transition from Abstract Expressionism to Pop Art. Rauschenberg is well-known for his "Combines" of the 1950s, in which non-traditional materials and objects were employed in innovative combinations...
,
Anne Bogart-Biography:She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from Bard College in 1974, followed by a Master of Arts degree from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts in 1977. She served as Artistic Director of the Trinity Repertory Company for its 1989-90 season...
,
Philip GlassPhilip Glass is an American composer. He is considered to be one of the most influential composers of the late 20th century and is widely acknowledged as a composer who has brought art music to the public .His music is often described as minimalist, along with...
, and
Julie TaymorJulie Taymor is an American director of theater, opera and film. Taymor's work has received many accolades from critics, and she has earned two Tony Awards out of four nominations, the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Costume Design, an Emmy Award and an Academy Award nomination for Original Song...
. Though most of the exhibitions in the Wexner Center are only up for a limited time, it is home to a permanent outdoor installation designed by
Maya LinMaya Ying Lin is an American artist who is known for her work in sculpture and landscape art. She is the designer of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.-Personal life:...
for the Center, entitled
Groundswell, which is composed of rolling mounds of broken glass. In 2002, the Wexner staged "Mood River," one of the most comprehensive exhibitions of industrial and commercial design staged in America, featuring artwork by
SimparchSIMPARCH is an American artist collective that was founded in Las Cruces, New Mexico in 1996. Presently this group is organized and maintained by Matthew Lynch and Steve Badgett...
,
Tony CraggTony Cragg is a British visual artist specialized in sculpture. He is currently the director of the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf.-Early life:Cragg was born in Liverpool in 1949...
, E.V. Day, designs by Peter Eisenman, Kivi Sotamaa, and
Ben van BerkelBen van Berkel is a Dutch architect. He studied architecture at the Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam, and at the Architectural Association in London, receiving the AA Diploma with Honours in 1987....
, and "products" like the Stealth Bomber, and the Redman Self-Defense Instructor suits.
Miscellaneous
Portions of the
Jodie FosterAlicia Christian "Jodie" Foster is an American actress, film director, producer as well as a former child actress....
-directed film
Little Man TateLittle Man Tate is a 1991 motion picture drama directed by and starring Jodie Foster.It tells the story of Fred Tate, a 7-year-old child prodigy who struggles to self-actualize in a social and psychological construct that largely fails to accommodate his intelligence...
were shot at the Wexner Center in 1991.
There is 12¼-degree angle (and ubiquitous multiples thereof that occur throughout the building) refers to the divergence between the city planning grid and the campus planning grid.
The center’s brick turrets make reference to the medieval-like armory building that occupied the site until the 1950s.
In the Maya Lin Sculpture
Groundswell, 43 tons of recycled auto glass were used.
External links