Prentice’s Light Sculptures Featured At Cornwall Library

Sculptor Tim Prentice works in a variety of lightweight materials, including stainless steel, wire, aluminum, and Lexan to create his distinctive works activated by the movement of the wind and natural airflow. He also makes works on a more modest scale, both wall pieces and suspended sculptures. The current show at The Cornwall Library, which is running through Aug. 17, represents a selection of his works created over the past 40 years.

Prentice explains, “In my current work in kinetic sculpture, I am trying to concentrate on the movement, rather than the object.  I take it as an article of faith that the air around us moves in ways, which are organic, whimsical, and unpredictable. I therefore assume that if I were to abdicate the design to the wind, the work would take on these same qualities.” 

Originally an architect, Prentice turned to sculpture when he moved to Cornwall and established his studio.  His architectural background is apparent as he designs sculptures with a sensitivity to their surroundings, whether they be for museums, public spaces, large corporations, or private collections.

The enchantment of this exhibit begins before you even go inside.  Walking up to the library, you are greeted outside by the shiny, magical, light movements of mobiles dangling serenely from trees, called “Rod Curtain,”  an aluminum lobster sitting caged under a tree, titled “Fred” and a sweet, wire potted cloud garden titled “Cloud Cover,” sitting atop a stone wall.  Even on a breezeless day, these glittery, whimsical creations moved as they took on the elements in their own graceful way, and while I knew Fred the caged lobster was constructed from metal, I took a step back because the breeze had him unpredictably moving toward me.  They fit so effortlessly into the landscape that it was difficult to discern whether they had simply grown there or if they had been there all along.  Hard to say, but the combination was both charming and engaging.

Floating effortlessly overhead as you enter the library is an aluminum piece entitled “Carpet,” which has an airy fluidity that made me want to languish and sway below it.  This piece has an organic energy that softly drew me into the remainder of the rooms. 

You might think that these crisp, fresh, pieces on exhibit in a library would be akin to drinking a cold martini out of a coffee mug, but this is not the case. The Cornwall Library with its airy lightness and open structure, lends itself perfectly to these creations, and the fluid curation of this exhibit adds to this effect.  These pieces fit in the space with an ease that makes them seem like a part of the building itself. This must be the architect in Mr. Prentice as it is curated with a perfect hand, an inexact precision, an artist’s eye, and a child’s whimsy. I am certain that an actual cobweb had to have been removed to accommodate the “Spider Web” piece that hung in a corner

Birds in cages, flowers in a funnel, fish overhead, it all sounds very fun, and it is, but make no mistake, these ingenious pieces possess an almost Bond-like coolness and maturity while maintaining a magical airy fineness, a combination not often found in sculpture.  You’ll want to own a piece (or two). I do. Go buy one. The works are on sale, and a percentage of the proceeds benefits The Cornwall Library’s programs.

“Gone With The Wind” is showing until Aug. 17, The Cornwall Library, 30 Pine St., Cornwall, CT, www.CornwallLibrary.org.