Past Exhibition
wildLIFE Project
Wendy Maruyama
April 15, 2018 - December 1, 2018
Recent news about the declining health of the world’s last male northern white rhino brings new urgency to Wendy Maruyama’s wildLIFE Project exhibition, opening April 15, 2018 at the Sam and Alfreda Maloof Foundation for Arts and Crafts. The exhibition, which explores the poaching of endangered species, will be on view in the Jacobs Education Center gallery, April 15 through December 1, 2018.
Maruyama worked with Houston Center for Contemporary Craft curator Elizabeth Koslowski to develop wildLIFE Project, with support from the Windgate Charitable Foundation. The exhibition comes to The Maloof after a five-city national tour, and with a timely twist: In previous installations, visitors saw the artist’s majestic eight- and twelve-foot high elephant masks made of wood and string, and related elements including a glass sarcophagus displaying ceramic elephants and a video program. For the run at The Maloof, Murayama has added a new sculpture of a life-size rhino, designed as a 3D computer model and fabricated using a robotic cutting machine.
Maruyama is thrilled with the added rhino. “I had always wanted to make one but conceived of the idea after the exhibition took off.
The idea was on hold until I visited The Maloof’s gallery and thought to myself, that is going to look really great there! “ Maruyama has been making innovative work for more than 40 years. Known at The Maloof primarily as a gifted woodworker, and for her prior leadership of San Diego State University’s premier furniture design program, she has also built her reputation as a feminist and artist who defies easy categorization.
The monumental sculptures in wildLIFE Project demand equal attention. “I think when people see the immense size of these animals, they realize with sadness man’s capabilities of killing and eradicating species for monetary gain. These animals could very well be extinct in 10 years if things don’t change. The West African Black Rhino is already extinct, and all the others are critically endangered.”
Though wildlife Project may seem to be a departure from some past exhibitions at The Maloof, it affirms the institution’s continuing exploration of issues involving sustainability and the environment, which are inextricably linked to the use and appreciation of wood as a natural resource.