Gravity-defying abstract sculptures are part of Kenneth Snelson's 'Equal Forces' exhibit

Cheryl Morey, South Bend Tribune
·1 min read
"Brooklyn Bridge," a 1980 gelatin silver print by Kenneth Snelson (American, 1927-2016), is one of the works that will be featured in the exhibit “Equal Forces: The Sculpture and Photography of Kenneth Snelson” from March 19 to July 7, 2024, at the University of Notre Dame's Raclin Murphy Museum of Art.
"Brooklyn Bridge," a 1980 gelatin silver print by Kenneth Snelson (American, 1927-2016), is one of the works that will be featured in the exhibit “Equal Forces: The Sculpture and Photography of Kenneth Snelson” from March 19 to July 7, 2024, at the University of Notre Dame's Raclin Murphy Museum of Art.

SOUTH BEND — The exhibit “Equal Forces: The Sculpture and Photography of Kenneth Snelson” opens March 19 and continues through July 7 at the University of Notre Dame’s Raclin Murphy Museum of Art.

The first museum exhibition since Snelson’s death in 2016, “Equal Forces” celebrates a legacy gift from the artist’s family containing 43 sculptures and 67 photographs. The gift represents the largest repository of Snelson’s work in the world and establishes the Kenneth Snelson Collection at the University of Notre Dame.

An internationally renowned artist, Snelson (American, 1927-2016) is best known for his gravity-defying abstractsculptures.

An early interest in optics, engineering and photography led him to attend Black Mountain College in North Carolina where he studied with Josef Albers and became an assistant of Buckminster Fuller, an architect and futurist best known for developing the geodesic dome.

Kenneth Snelson (American, 1927-2016) stands with his "Four Way Tower," a 1963 anodized aluminum and stainless steel cable sculptured. It is one of the works that will be featured in the exhibit “Equal Forces: The Sculpture and Photography of Kenneth Snelson” from March 19 to July 7, 2024, at the University of Notre Dame's Raclin Murphy Museum of Art.

Snelson was fascinated by physical forces in three-dimensional space and invented a structural system known astensegrity, combining principles of tension and structural integrity. His unique sculptural works are composed of rigid components, such as metal pipes with flexible cables, suspended and arranged in a way that makes the seemingly weightless structures appear to float.

“Equal Forces” spans Snelson’s entire career, including sculpture from the late 1940s when he was a student to global projects in the early 20th century and experimental photography from the 1970s through the 1990s in the United States, Europe and Japan.

“E.C. Tower Model,” a 1981 anodized aluminum and stainless steel cable sculpture by Kenneth Snelson (American, 1927-2016), is one of the works that will be featured in the exhibit “Equal Forces: The Sculpture and Photography of Kenneth Snelson” from March 19 to July 7, 2024, at the University of Notre Dame's Raclin Murphy Museum of Art.
“E.C. Tower Model,” a 1981 anodized aluminum and stainless steel cable sculpture by Kenneth Snelson (American, 1927-2016), is one of the works that will be featured in the exhibit “Equal Forces: The Sculpture and Photography of Kenneth Snelson” from March 19 to July 7, 2024, at the University of Notre Dame's Raclin Murphy Museum of Art.

Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays, 10 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Thursdays and noon to 5 p.m.Saturdays and Sunday.

Admission is free.

For more information, call 574-631–5466 or visit raclinmurphymuseum.nd.edu.

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: 'Equal Forces' exhibit opens at Notre Dame's Raclin Murphy Museum