Artist Maya Lin returns to GR with solo exhibit at the GRAM

May Lin, “Flow,” 2009 FSC certified spruce pine and fir. (Courtesy Pace Gallery)

The artist behind the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington D.C. and “Ecliptic” in Grand Rapids’ Rosa Parks Circle returns to Grand Rapids this month for an exhibition featuring her large-scale sculpture, “Flow.”

Organized by the Grand Rapids Art Museum in collaboration with Maya Lin Studio and running from May 18 to Sept. 8, the exhibition includes two new works that focus on bodies of water in the Midwest region and illuminate  Lin’s dramatic exploration of the natural environment.

“The Grand Rapids Art Museum is thrilled to present the work of acclaimed artist Maya Lin  this summer,” said Director and CEO Dana Friis-Hansen. “Lin’s  commitment to environmentalism and the creation of stirring public spaces—including  ’Ecliptic’  in the heart of downtown Grand Rapids—supports the Museum’s initiative of raising awareness about sustainability and connecting people through art, creativity and design.” 

With  “Flow,” Lin focuses attention on the crucial role of water, both to our  region, and to global survival. Lin has created two new sculptures for the exhibition that focus directly on West Michigan.  ”Pin River – Grand River Watershed”  (2019) is an installation made of steel pins embedded directly into the wall that forms a sparkling fifteen-foot-long outline of the Grand River Watershed.  ”The Traces Left Behind (From the Great Bear Lake to the Great Lakes)” (2019) is a shimmering wall relief cast from recycled silver. In creating the work, Lin charted the span of contemporary bodies of water from the Arctic to the Great Lakes that were formed by the melting of the Laurentide Ice Shelf, which once covered much of the North American continent.

“A lot of my work has been about mapping the natural world and revealing aspects of the environment that you may not be aware of,” said Lin. “The two new works created for this show follow that interest of mine; one traces the complex watershed of the Grand River, the other takes a very recognizable mapping of the Great Lakes but adds the series of large lakes formed during the last ice age—creating a constellation-like flow of water that drifts along an invisible boundary line where the glaciers carved out these bodies of water when they retreated.”

Created in recycled silver, steel pins and common building materials, Lin conceives these sculptures with the use of charting, mapping, and scientific research to determine each work’s ultimate design, layout and structure.  Through  sculptural shape, scope and scale, Lin expands our awareness of the Great Lakes, the geological forces that created them, and their connection to other bodies of water.

“In her dramatic large-scale sculptures, Maya Lin draws attention to the natural world around us and to the forces that shape our environment,” commented GRAM Chief Curator Ron Platt. “With this exhibition, she creates opportunities for all of us to see the natural landscape in new and different ways, prompting us to consider our relationship and responsibilities to the environment.”

Maya Lin, Blue Lake Pass, 2006. Duraflake particleboard (Courtesy Pace Gallery)

The exhibition also creates connection and dialogue with  “Ecliptic,” the public park in Rosa Parks Circle created by Lin that marks its 20th anniversary next year. Water—specifically the nearby Grand River—inspired Lin’s conception of “Ecliptic.” Within the park, Lin featured water in three different forms—liquid, solid and vapor—through the park’s ice rink and amphitheater, mist fountain and table of flowing water.  In connection with the exhibition, a selection of interpretive and interactive materials about “Ecliptic” are on view for visitors interested in engaging more with Lin’s creation of the park.

Several informative programs and presentations will be presented at GRAM in conjunction with the exhibition such as an Artist Talk with Lin on Art and Environment Friday at 6 p.m. at the GRAM’s Cook Auditorium. RSVP is required. Cost is $5 for GRAM members and $15 for the public.

Lead support for  Maya Lin: Flow  is generously provided by Herman Miller Cares, Frey Foundation, Eenhoorn LLC, and Wege Foundation.

For GRAM’s hours and admission fees, call 616.831.1000 or visit artmuseumgr.org.