“Barbara Sorensen: Billows” at the RMA

Posted on by The Wandering Art Historian

I don’t need to tell you that 2022 has been a challenging year. If you are like me and need an occasional break from the chaos of everyday life, even for a moment, here’s my recommendation…

Make your way to the Rollins Museum of Art in Winter Park, FL and seek out the art installation by Barbara Sorensen.

Barbara Sorensen: Billows is an art installation that brings a bit of the natural world indoors to create a human-made setting that has an ironically organic (and surprisingly soothing!) feel. Constructed with hundreds of wavy, corrugated aluminum pieces, Billows invokes the softer side of nature despite the use of such a rigid material. The installation is just ambiguous enough to allow for a variety interpretations. Perhaps the viewer sees rolling clouds in the work or the white crest of a large wave. Instrumental music plays at a low level and the space is moderately lit. The gallery is unencumbered by seating, save for one bench that encourages each visitor to sit, experience the work and meditate on their relationship to the natural world.

Installation, Barbara Sorensen, (American, b. 1945), Billows, 2022, Aluminum, 28 ft x 17.5 ft 4 ft., Collection of the Artist. Photo Credit: Laney Velazquez. Courtesy of The Rollins Museum of Art.
Installation, Barbara Sorensen, (American, b. 1945), Billows, 2022, Aluminum, 28 ft x 17.5 ft 4 ft., Collection of the Artist. Photo Credit: Laney Velazquez. Courtesy of The Rollins Museum of Art.

A calm space like this is a real gift during these crazy times and I encourage you to take advantage of the opportunity. Admission to the RMA is free and the serenity you will find by experiencing this installation is an added bonus!

Barbara Sorensen: Billows is on view at the RMA until December 31st, 2022.

For more on this art installation, please visit… https://www.rollins.edu/rma/exhibitions/2022/barbara-sorensen-billows.html

For more on Barbara Sorensen, please visit… https://barbarasorensen.com/

***Installation images graciously provided by the Rollins Museum of Art.***

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I am writer and artist with a degree in art history who loves to talk to people about art. I have spent the last seven years building up The Wandering Art Historian “brand” as a way to connect with people who want to learn more about art. I give lectures and presentations and teach classes and host book club discussions with a creative or artistic connection. I also write about local artists, events, museums, and exhibitions to promote the arts in Central Florida. In 2021, I had a creative crisis. I struggled with authenticity in the art making process. I decided to make myself vulnerable and find out what a real, genuine Adrienne H. Lee artwork would look like. The process was challenging and emotional and revelatory. I learned that if necessity is the mother of invention, then authenticity is the mother of reinvention. I reinvented myself and learned an entirely new medium. The resulting artwork surprised me, and it will surprise you, too. Some people wish for a fairytale ending. For me, the fairy tale is only the beginning.