23 April - 29 October, 2023
Sean Scully
'SMALLER THAN SKY'
The Exhibition
Sean Scully took over the grounds and historic interiors of Houghton Hall in Norfolk for an exhibition showcasing the full range of the artist’s sculpture. In the Hall and Contemporary Gallery, the artist also showed a significant group of paintings and works on paper.
Several new works were included in the exhibition, such as stacks made of sandstone, wood, glass, and marble. The sculptures ranged in scale from small maquettes to monumental open structures in steel, such as "Crate of Air," and a new "Wall of Light" sculpture, constructed from locally sourced limestone. The exhibition showcased Scully’s outdoor sculptures in dialogue with works in other media. It also included a selection of paintings and works on paper made over the past few years but with key reference to works from earlier in Scully’s career. These works were displayed in the grand rooms of the house and in the North Colonnade and the Contemporary Gallery.
Sean Scully's concern for the environment and his focus on nature were reflected in the title of the exhibition. An important component was his book, Endangered Sky, a collaboration with the poet Kelly Grovier, focusing on the plight of bird life, memorialising those already extinct and those which were close to it. The book was launched at Houghton and was shown in vitrines as part of the exhibition.
About the Artist
Hailing from Dublin, Sean Scully rose to prominence as a painter in the early 1970s, forging a distinct form of abstraction throughout the decade. His artistic journey shifted away from the geometric purity of minimalism, embracing expressive, multi-layered abstract painting. The body of work that earned him global recognition features coloured bars and horizontal beams, some adorned with inset or relief elements.
Establishing himself in New York during the mid-1970s, Scully currently resides and works in both New York and several European cities, including London. Widely acclaimed for his watercolours, drawings, pastels, and prints, as well as his photography, he has garnered significant attention for his critically acclaimed sculptures over the past two decades. Notable among them is the monumental "Opulent Ascension," installed at San Giorgio Maggiore for the 2019 Venice Biennale, attracting over 360,000 visitors. More recently, "Oak Stacks," crafted from historic local Danish timber, stood in Bertel Thorvaldsen’s Square, Copenhagen, marking the start of the city’s 2023 designation as the World Capital of Architecture. Scully's exhibitions span the globe, and his work is held in esteemed collections of major museums and galleries worldwide.
Acknowledgements
The exhibition was curated by Sean Rainbird, an esteemed art historian and museum director, who previously served as the Director of the National Gallery of Ireland (2012-2022) and held the position of Senior Curator at Tate.
Organised by the Houghton Arts Foundation, with support from Lisson Gallery and Thaddaeus Ropac gallery, and key assistance from the artist and his studio, this remarkable showcase is made possible. A comprehensive illustrated catalogue featuring a text by Sean Rainbird accompanied the exhibition.
“England, as we’ve seen from the fabulous paintings by constable, is a country very informed by the sky. People talked about the sky all the time. They talked about the weather, or the clouds, the wet. So, it was a source of inspiration. When you put sculptures outside, you are aware that the sky is illuminating them and conditioning how they look. Whatever you put out there is always humbled by the bigness of the sky.”
Sean Scully 2023
