Robleto visits April 10 for a FREE talk; internationally-renowned book designer Boom speaks April 12 as part of CAD series.
Mint Museum Uptown will host two speakers of national and international importance next week: Texas-based artist Dario Robleto and Amsterdam-based graphic designer Irma Boom.
Robleto will visit Tuesday, April 10 for a free event from 7-9 p.m. His seven-foot-tall, five-foot-wide wreath-shaped sculpture Defiant Gardens is the most recent gift to The Mint Museum’s permanent collection made possible through the generosity of the Mint Museum Auxiliary. The Mint Museum was home to Robleto’s first solo museum exhibition in 1999.
Robleto’s poetic work of art incorporates paper pulp made from American soldier’s letters, Victorian hair flowers braided by war widows, dried flowers from various battlefields, and even tiny carrier-pigeon message capsules, recycled and re-contextualized to evoke the power of memory and history in wartime. The 39-year-old artist plans to discuss Defiant Gardens, his distinctive way of working, and the inspiration and body of work that led to its creation.
“Dario Robleto is one of the most sought-after young American artists working today,” said Brad Thomas, curator of contemporary art at the Mint. “His conceptually-based, labor-intensive works convey an intimacy and elegance that reveals much about his own personal history and that of popular culture.”
Boom will visit on Thursday April 12 at 7 p.m. as part of the museum’s Contemporary Architecture + Design (CAD) series. The event costs $10 for non-members and $5 for members and includes a light reception (visit mintmuseum.org and click on “Calendar” to register). Boom, who specializes in book-making and incorporates the sense of touch into all of her books, won the 2007 Gold Medal at the Leipzig Book Fair for “The Most Beautiful Book in the World” for “Sheila Hicks: Weaving as Metaphor,” published by Yale University Press.
Boom is currently collaborating with Annie Carlano, the Mint’s director of craft + design, on a book about Hicks’ work Mega Footprint Near the Hutch, a monumental work recently installed in the atrium of Mint Museum Uptown thanks to a gift from Target Corp. Boom plans to share her work methods and perspective on contemporary book design. “Amsterdam is considered the center of contemporary design, and Irma Boom is considered the hottest book designer on the planet,” said Carlano.
Both events are being held at Mint Museum Uptown at Levine Center for the Arts, 500 South Tryon Street.