"Vivarium" by John Powers (opening reception)

About the exhibition: In the 2nd century B.C. Egyptian King Ptolemy II of Philadelphus commissioned a Greek architect to build a floating statue of his late wife whom he had declared a deity. The suspended sculpture was designed with an iron core and was to be dependent on the overall setting of magnetic forces embedded within the roof and the walls of a purpose-built chamber to achieve its symbolic weightlessness. Inspired by both the imagery and symbolism of this kinetic gesture, Vivarium is an installation featuring video, sound and sculptural components that seeks to conjure a sympathetic moment of ascension, mystery, peace and the otherworldly grounded in the physicality of the present.

****** Due to COVID, food/drink/socializing during the opening reception will take place outdoors; visitors may have a quiet experience with the installation inside the gallery. Masks required indoors. ******

John Douglas Powers received his MFA in sculpture (with distinction) from The University of Georgia and a BA in art history from Vanderbilt University. He currently lives in Knoxville, TN and is Professor of Sculpture and Time-Based Art at the University of Tennessee.

Powers’s work has been featured in The New York Times, World Sculpture News, Sculpture Magazine, Art Forum, The Huffington Post, Art in America, The Boston Globe and on CBS News Sunday Morning. He is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, the Virginia A. Groot Foundation Award, a Joan Mitchell Foundation MFA Grant as well as a Southeastern College Art Conference Individual Artist Fellowship. His work has been exhibited at venues including Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, The Hunter Museum of American Art, The MIT Museum, The Mariana Kistler Beach Museum of Art, The Huntsville Museum of Art, The Wiregrass Museum of Art, The Alexander Brest Museum, The Masur Museum, The Gadsden Museum of Art, Jonathan Ferrara Gallery, Brenda Taylor Gallery, The Vero Beach Museum of Art, and Cue Art Foundation.

Vinegar Contemporary is a space showcasing artists who are working in emerging and experimental art forms, and art that pushes the boundaries of its medium. This may include installation, video, new media, performance, ephemeral objects, etc. Recognizing that these forms of creative practice are often under-supported due to logistical or market concerns, we offer this space as an opportunity to celebrate projects that elude commercialization and inspire conversation. Vinegar Contemporary is a place for artists to experiment, take risks, and challenge themselves and their audiences.

Vinegar is an artist-run, women-led nonprofit contemporary art organization in Birmingham, Alabama. Vinegar champions artists. We facilitate the creation and experience of contemporary art, infusing it into communities to support, challenge, and enrich our collective consciousness.