Nasher Sculpture Center Announces Provocations: The Architecture and Design of Heatherwick Studio

First US museum presentation of Heatherwick Studio to appear in Los Angeles and New York after inauguration in Dallas

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Jul 09, 2014, 02:07 ET

DALLAS, July 9, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Nasher Sculpture Center is pleased to present Provocations: The Architecture and Design of Heatherwick Studio from September 13, 2014 to January 4, 2015. This represents the first major museum exhibition of the work of Thomas Heatherwick and his studio in North America.

UK Pavilion, Shanghai World Expo. (PRNewsFoto/Nasher Sculpture Center)

Following presentations of the work of Renzo Piano and Foster + Partners, the Nasher Sculpture Center is especially pleased to extend its series of architecture and design exhibitions with Provocations: The Architecture and Design of Heatherwick Studio," said Nasher Director Jeremy Strick. "Thomas Heatherwick's distinctive work speaks to a unique approach; one in which innovations in form and function emerge synergistically from innovations in the way things are made. The sculptural appearance of many of his buildings and design objects springs from the concern for the process of making. This extends to the design of the exhibition itself, developed by the Heatherwick Studio. The result will be an exhibition at once dazzling, instructive, and provoking."

British designer Thomas Heatherwick has been hailed as a genius, even being called by Paul Goldberger in The New Yorker "the next Leonardo da Vinci" for the uniquely inventive nature of his work.

This exhibition, the first North American presentation by a museum of the work of Heatherwick and his studio, examines the astonishing range of Heatherwick Studio's practice by focusing on the design concepts behind early projects such as the handbag designed for Longchamp and the rotation-molded "Spun" chairs, as well as current large architectural projects in the U.K, South Africa, Abu Dhabi, Singapore, and China. Included will be such projects as the U.K. Pavilion - known as the Seed Cathedral - at the 2010 Shanghai World Expo; a distillery and visitor center for Bombay Sapphire Gin in Hampshire, England; a teaching building at Nanyang Technical University, Singapore; and a mixed use complex in Shanghai.

The studio's design of the New Bus for London recently took to the streets of the British capital, and the ceremonial lighting of its cauldron designed for the London 2012 Olympic Games was broadcast worldwide, bringing the studio to the attention of a much wider public.

Heatherwick Studio is recognized for its highly inventive approach to design, often combining novel engineering with new materials and innovative technology to create unusual, often sculptural, building forms. The project that first garnered Heatherwick international recognition was the Rolling Bridge near London's Paddington Station. Asked to design a bridge to span a small channel through which boats pass, Heatherwick realized that most drawbridges are unattractive when raised. Wanting the bridge to be as beautiful when spanning the channel as when raised for water traffic, he designed a unique mechanized structure that rolls up into a circular snail-like form.

Organized by guest curator Brooke Hodge for the Nasher Sculpture Center, the exhibition will include prototypes, large-scale models, objects, photographs, and film and video footage for a selection of projects.

"I've followed Thomas Heatherwick's work since 2003 and I believe he is one of the most brilliant designers of our time. I am thrilled to have this opportunity to bring the important work he and his studio are doing to the attention of a wider audience," said Brooke Hodge.

A special section of the exhibition, presented in the Nasher's Lower Level Gallery, will focus on the creative process that underlies all of the studio's extraordinary designs. The exhibition will travel to the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles and Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum in New York after its presentation in Dallas.

About the Nasher Sculpture Center:

Open since 2003 and located in the heart of the Dallas Arts District, the Nasher Sculpture Center is home to one of the finest collections of modern and contemporary sculptures in the world, the Raymond and Patsy Nasher Collection, featuring more than 300 masterpieces by Calder, Giacometti, Matisse, Picasso, Rodin, and more. The longtime dream of the late Raymond and Patsy Nasher, the museum was designed by world-renowned architect Renzo Piano in collaboration with landscape architect Peter Walker.

Hailed by the USA Today as one of the great sculpture gardens where art enhances nature, the roofless museum seamlessly integrates the indoor galleries with the outdoor spaces creating a museum experience unlike any other in the world. On view in the light-filled galleries and amid the landscaped grounds are rotating works from the Collection, as well as blockbuster exhibitions and one-of-a-kind installations by the most celebrated artists of our times. In addition to the indoor and outdoor gallery spaces, the Center contains an auditorium, education and research facilities, a cafe, and a store.

The Nasher brings the best of contemporary culture to Dallas through special programs designed to engage visitors, including artist talks, lecture programs, contemporary music concerts, educational classes and exclusive member events.

The Nasher Sculpture Center is open Tuesday through Sunday from 11 am to 5 pm and until 11 pm for special events, and from 10 am to 5 pm on the first Saturday of each month. Admission is $10 for adults, $7 for seniors, $5 for students, and free for members and children 12 and under, and includes access to special exhibitions. For more information, visit www.NasherSculptureCenter.org.

About Brooke Hodge:

Brooke Hodge is Deputy Director at the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum in New York City. From 2010-July 2014 she was Director of Exhibitions and Publications at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles and from 2001 to 2009 she was Curator of Architecture and Design at The Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, where she organized major exhibitions on the work of architect Frank Gehry and car designer J Mays, as well as Skin + Bones: Parallel Practices in Fashion and Architecture, a groundbreaking thematic exhibition that examined the relationship between contemporary fashion and architecture. Accompanied by a full-color scholarly catalogue, co-published by Thames and Hudson, Skin + Bones opened in Los Angeles in 2006 and traveled to museums in Tokyo and London. From 1991-2001, Hodge was Director of Exhibitions and Publications at Harvard University's Graduate School of Design, where she also held the positions of Adjunct Curator of Architecture at the Fogg Art Museum and Assistant Dean of Arts Programs at the Graduate School of Design. At Harvard, she organized numerous exhibitions of the work of architects and designers, including Gio Ponti, Zaha Hadid, theater designer and artist Robert Wilson, and fashion designer Rei Kawakubo/Comme des Garons, among others. Holding a master's degree in architectural history from the University of Virginia, Hodge writes regularly about design and architecture for Arena, The New York Times T Magazine blog, and is also a contributor to other magazines including Wallpaper* and Cultured.