Lee Kelly | If Trees Could Walk

October 3 - November 2, 2019

First Thursday Reception: October 3, 6 - 8 pm

Oh, if a tree could wander
     and move with foot and wings!
It would not suffer the axe blows
   and not the pain of saws!
For would the sun not wander
away in every night ?
How could at ev’ry morning
   the world be lighted up?

 – Rumi

Two new series of stainless steel artworks by renowned sculptor Lee Kelly are inspired by his musings on perseverance, transformation and enduring beauty. The exhibition title, If Trees Could Walk, references a poem by Rumi (1207-1273) about impermanence and universal connection.

The first series of sculptures feature human scale, elongated tree shapes with dynamic sprouting branches that appear like arms extended in forward motion. Kelly reiterates this kineticism by adding swirling patterns with a hand-grinder, and creating textures that allow the sculpture’s silver surfaces to reflect surrounding light at every angle. 

Abstracted figures titled Yucatan Goddess I and Yucatan Goddess II thematically connect to a place in St. John, Antigua, a location Kelly visited that had been devastated by civil war and earthquakes. Kelly was intrigued by the community’s rebuilding efforts and their dedication to recreating a sense of place, piece by piece from the broken architectural elements. The goddess sculptures on view are solidly grounded, gracefully towering totems that evoke a sense of human strength and resilience. 

Lee Kelly is one of the most revered artists in the Pacific Northwest, best known for his monumental public sculptures throughout Oregon and the surrounding region. Born in 1932 in McCall, Idaho, Lee Kelly graduated from the Museum Art School at the Portland Art Museum (now known as the Pacific Northwest College of Art, PNCA) in 1959. Kelly's long, prestigious career and prolific nature have resulted in a significant body of work which can be seen in public and private collections throughout the country, including the Portland Art Museum (Portland, OR), Stanford University (Palo Alto, CA), New Orleans Art Museum (New Orleans, LA), Seattle Art Museum (Seattle, WA) and the City of Sapporo, Japan. As one of the most recognized artists in the Northwest, his modernist sculptures are a central focus at regional institutions such as Reed College, Marylhurst University, Oregon State University, Catlin Gabel School, the Oregon Health and Sciences University and the Washington Park Rose Garden. In 2012, one of his most significant works, Memory 99, was installed in Portland's North Park blocks, at the new home of PNCA. Kelly has been exhibiting at the Elizabeth Leach Gallery since the early 1980s. In 2010, he was the subject of a major career retrospective at the Portland Art Museum.