See Organic Abstraction: Contemporary Outdoor Sculpture at Southampton Arts Center

Creativity at the Southampton Arts Center (SAC) has hit the outdoors once again in their latest exhibition, Organic Abstraction II: Contemporary Outdoor Sculpture. Curated by Cheryl Sokolow of C Fine Art, the display examines large works by museum-collected artists across a mixture of methods and mediums. The sculptures will be on view through Oct. 7.  SAC hosted an artist reception on July 12 from 4–7 p.m. in celebration of the show’s opening and for an artist meet-and-greet.

Exhibiting artists include Alex Barrett, Bill Barrett, Kevin Barrett, John Clement, Matt Devine, Carole Eisner, Michael Enn Sirvet, Jerelyn Hanrahan, Jane Manus, Norman Mooney and Joel Perlman.

“We’re bringing together to the Hamptons a collection of artists who have been featured worldwide and are museum-collected. We’re very excited to give the community the opportunity to engage with these large-scale works and get a sense of perspective and engagement with the pieces,” Sokolow shared.

Sokolow curated Organic Abstraction for C Fine Art as part of their ongoing “Hamptons Sculpture Sights” series. Sokolow said that her aim as a curator is “to bring world-class sculpture to the community in an outdoor setting and be able to enjoy them and engage with them in the natural atmosphere.” The “Hamptons Sculpture Sights” series also includes a sister show called Uncommon Ground on display at Peconic Land Trust’s Bridge Gardens in Bridgehampton. She operated with SAC for the original Organic Abstraction display and continued to do so this year.

“It’s been great working with Christina [Mossaides Strassfield], director of Southampton Arts Center,” Sokolow said. “We’re very happy to have this kind of collaboration with them at this very important cultural institution in the Hamptons.”

As the second iteration of the Organic Abstraction series, Sokolow invites experienced art fans as well as first-time viewers to the showcase and reception.

Sokolow also curated the first presentation in 2024, and she explains, “Each time includes different artists and materials, but the theme for this show is consistent with the organic abstract work. This year, we included more works, which was exciting, so we’ve expanded the show and included more artists.”

Sokolow explains that the “exhibition is called that [Organic Abstraction] because these are abstract works, so they’re not about a narrative, they just communicate how they’re made and their physical abstracts. You can really see the process in these works. The organic is about the work having an organic quality to it, like not being particularly geometric.”

Sokolow shares that she and the team are excited to “invite the community to experience and enjoy these works, and to meet many of the artists” at the reception. She also noted that the works on display for Organic Abstraction are on sale, and a portion of the proceeds will be donated to the SAC.

To learn more about C Fine Art or the “Hamptons Sculpture Sights” series, visit their page at c-fineart.com/hamptons-sculpture-sights. To learn more about the Southampton Arts Center, visit their website at southamptonartscenter.org.