An anniversary exhibition that celebrates Forrest Myers’ prolific career as a visionary artist and 50 years since the installation of The Wall.
Born in California in 1941, artist Forrest Myers moved to NYC in the early 1960s and began creating large-scale sculptures and cutting-edge work that merged art and science. Museums that have added his artworks in their permanent collections include the Smithsonian Institution’s Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, the Metropolitan Museum, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, among many others. One of his most famous installations is The Wall. Completed in 1973, this minimalist work is still NYC’s largest public sculpture and an important landmark for art lovers. In 2023, a special exhibition held at the Catskill Art Space (formerly Catskill Art Society) gallery in Livingston Manor, celebrated not only the 50th anniversary of The Wall, but also the decades-spanning career of one of America’s most inspiring artists.
Held between June 24 and August 26, 2023, the exhibition extended across three gallery spaces on the first floor of the CAS building on Main Street, Livingston Manor, NY. Additionally, the sculptor created a site-specific installation that adorned the building’s facade. The T-shaped beam protruded from the exterior wall, giving a nod to The Wall which also covers a wall of a building located on the corner of Broadway and Houston Street, NYC.
Inside the art gallery, the art show brought together an array of the artist’s creations. The earliest work, Woofer and Tweeter (Laser with Speaker and Mirror, 1963) is an innovative laser-light installation created at the iconic restaurant and bar Max’s Kansas City. Other early works include metal paintings with overlapping geometric shapes and two-dimensional forms in relief. The exhibition also featured a series of furniture crafted from industrial materials, including I-beam Table and Chairs (2007), No Evil Bench (2007), Pink Chair (1993), and Love Bench (2007). Finally, on the second floor of the gallery, visitors could also admire a recently renovated art space which houses works from James Turrell and Sol LeWitt, on long-term view at CAS. Photographs © Catskill Art Space.
