“The joy of being at Storm King is the joy of being outside,” says artist Mark Dion, whose Follies, a series of highly diverse structures from a glass menagerie to a truck that serves as a mobile laboratory, are scattered throughout the Hudson River Valley art center’s 500 rolling acres. For the exhibition, on view through November 11, Dion intentionally set his creations within different parts of the landscape. For instance, The Dandy Rococo is a hunting blind clad in wetland reeds sited on a small peninsula overlooking Storm King’s ponds. Grotto of the Sleeping Bear is a stone-and-tree branch cave built into a natural concavity in a wooded area to look as if it had always been there.
“Mark’s practice is about humans’ relationship to the natural world,” says Storm King senior curator Nora Lawrence. “It’s a perfect connection to show his work here.” Located 60 miles north of New York City, Storm King has seen its visitorship triple over the last decade, due in part to the area’s growing popularity among artists, and as a weekend retreat. Dion himself left Manhattan behind a few months ago to move nearby. He also sourced many of the objects that populate his follies, including tableware, cigar boxes, and antlers, from local vintage stores. “A big part of my process is shopping,” he says. “I can’t delegate that.”
You have 0 complimentary articles remaining.
Unlimited access + premium benefits for as low as $1.99/month.