SEPTEMBER 20 – NOVEMBER 3, 2019
Emily Galusha Gallery
Alexis Gregg and Tanner Coleman are AnT Sculpture and Design, LLC. Their motto is, “Changing the way people think and interact with artwork one brick sculpture at a time!” As a collaborative team creating public art and architectural ceramics with brick and tile, they have worked in China, Taiwan, South Korea, Australia, Italy, Turkey, and at numerous locations in the US. They formed their company, in 2012, after four years and nearly a dozen large-scale public art works gave them the confidence to assert their experience with a viable business plan. As a team they are as aggressive in their play as they are in their work. Traveling with an active lifestyle, they soak up culture eagerly and infuse the landscapes they engage with permanent records of their presence.
The AnT aesthetic is defined, not only by brick, but also by transforming brick into organic forms. Scrolls and patterns inform the overall visual flow of the work. As part of their rigorous process to assure their work is effective, significant, and engaging with the public who will utilize the space over time, they lovingly and heavily research the history of an area prior to conceptualizing an installation. “The concepts of our public artwork revolve around the intention to create a cultural narrative specific to the site and community where the work exists,” they explain.
Creating an installation, in a gallery, was a unique opportunity to let their minds and abilities stretch in ways beyond the public art and architectural commission realm. Exhibitions provided a platform to demonstrate feats of imagination and skill larger than a commission might allow. It was a place for this breed of maker, normally supported by private and public commissions, to potentially engage future clients’ imaginations with actualized objects. For these two months, AnT Sculpture and Design, LLC, will be bound only by the four walls of the Galusha Gallery.
They also looked forward to collaborating with the NCC community to create a permanent installation in our studios. Coleman sums up their mission by reflecting on the impact and connectivity inherent in art objects that literally shape a space: “I have been fascinated with the role art plays in relation to the viewing public. This has motivated me to create sculptures made in parts to imply interdependency and how all things are collections of parts. This applies to community.”
During the installation of their work, in complement to their concepts on community and art, small groups were welcome to visit and observe the construction and installation process.
Related Events
AnT Sculpture and Design Community Workshop
Gregg and Coleman collaborated with members of NCC’s community, during a one-day workshop, to create an installation of dynamic low-relief architectural tiles, inspired by the culture of Minnesota. Attendees learned techniques to employ in their own home, garden, or any space they wanted to liven up. The following Saturday, the work was installed at NCC.
AnT Sculpture and Design Artist Lecture
Gregg and Coleman were in conversation to relate what it is like to seek public art commissions, and create works of art that seamlessly interact with the public.