Arts, Community, Park Forest

The Southland Arts Scene…On The Cutting Edge at GSU


Nathan Manilow Sculpture Park
The Nathan Manilow Sculpture Park at Governors State University presents significant large-scale public art, inspiring visitors to experience Art and Nature in new and unexpected ways. (PHOTO SUPPLIED)

University Park, IL-(ENEWSPF)- Sculpted, recycled tires is the medium artist Chakaia Booker uses to craft masterpieces sought after by in-the-know curators at outdoor museums like Chicago’s Millennium Park and the new 606 downtown. But Southland residents have already had a chance to experience Booker’s work since 2014, and in a surprising setting.

When you see Booker’s tire sculptures, you might expect an urban site such as Millennium Park. But visitors to the Nathan Manilow Sculpture Park at Governors State University in south suburban University Park have already seen Booker’s impressive pieces and had a chance to meet her personally. As a featured Solo Exhibition Series artist in this museum-on-the-prairie, Booker debuted her works Serendipity, What’s Not, and Meeting Ends and attended the Park’s 2014 Carts & Cocktails fundraiser as an honored guest. As a Visiting Artist sponsored by BMO Harris Bank, she met with the University’s students and volunteer community board to talk about her art and her motivation for the works.

The Nathan Manilow Sculpture Park’s Director Geoffrey Bates is the man behind the forward-thinking exhibition series, which brought these remarkable works even before other examples made  their way to the Chicago art scene. When asked why he chose Ms. Booker’s pieces, Bates said “Chakaia Booker transforms the most mundane material – automobile tires – into large-scale artworks that challenge our sense of scale and what art might be. The way she manipulates rubber, creating textures that recall chain-mail, rising spring shoots, or even hairstyles is remarkable. She’s recognized throughout the world as a pioneer artist, having exhibited on every continent except Antartica, and we are thrilled she has agreed to extend her exhibition at the Nathan Manilow Sculpture Park.”

The Nathan Manilow Sculpture Park is open from dawn until dusk and is free to the public 365 days per year.

The Nathan Manilow Sculpture Park at Governors State University presents significant large-scale public art, inspiring visitors to experience Art and Nature in new and unexpected ways.

The Park’s annual fundraiser, Carts & Cocktails is slated for Saturday, September 10 from 2 to 5 p.m. and will feature Chicago sculptor Tony Tasset. For information, visit www.govst.edu/sculpture.


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