Ancestral Revolution, a solo exhibition of works by Cal Lane includes carved steel sculptures, braided tires, and assemblages made from heirloom china. The works represent highlights from a decades-long career of iconic work that has been shown in museums, public installations and private collections.
Cal Lane is well known for her exquisitely crafted steel sculptures made from objects such as oil drums, shovels and other products of the industrial era, into which she cuts elaborate, lace-like patterns with a plasma torch. Her works are a meditation on the materials and aesthetics of gender, but more broadly, they explore the weight of ancestral constructs and traditions as they relate to the objects and patterns that build modern culture.
A self-described minimalist, Lane chooses objects and materials that carry significant weight, both culturally, personally, and physically. The prevalence of lacey patterns in her steel work expresses her desire to break out of the gender norms that may feel stifling to so many individuals. Balancing the historical weight usually associated with such elements, she brings a refreshing perspective to the re-examination of patriarchal assumptions, often using humor to redefine traditions and offset expectations about materials.
At a time when binary categories of all kinds are being questioned, we are excited to share the work of an artist who has created a new sort of dialogue around age old questions of identity.
