Shot of Art: It is what it is

It's always a bit difficult to describe and review art that verges on the non-representational, and even more so when the work in question is sculpture. What, after all, constitutes good sculpture if the point isn't to faithfully recreate some real-life object? Lacking criteria, one tends to turn toward the emotional registers that a given piece might evoke. Though there's nothing wrong with this strategy, I've always been of the mind that the best abstract sculptures are those that stimulate the imagination.

When I look at Derrick Piens work, for instance, I don't see blobs of plaster and plywood. Walking around Peak Gallery, I catch glimpses of human anatomy — a bone cluster here, a heart valve there — or perhaps even the very building blocks of life. These sculptures may not easily reveal their nature, but the degree to which they provoke wonder is their greatest delight.

PHOTOS

It Is What It Is runs until November 13th.

Photos by Jesse Milns