FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Sept. 27, 2005

CONTACT: Nora Wendl, (515) 271-1994, nora.wendl@drake.edu;
Lisa Lacher, (515) 271-3119, lisa.lacher@drake.edu

SOUTH AFRICAN SCULPTOR LOOKS AT FALLEN MONUMENTS, SOCIETY

South African-born sculptor Ledelle Moe will present her most recently completed collection of work, “Memorial (Collapse)” at Drake University’s Anderson Gallery. The exhibit opens with a reception from 5 to 7 p.m. and gallery talk at 5:30 p.m., Friday, Oct. 7. Both the opening reception and the exhibition are free and open to the public. The exhibit runs through Nov. 4.

Moe’s pieces take the form of steel and concrete heads that look as if they’ve tumbled from some grand monument that has crumbled and collapsed either through natural entropy or destructive force.

The work draws from the 2001 collapse of the World Trade Center towers in New York City, and the willful destruction of religious statues of Hindu gods in Indian and political statues in the Middle East.

“The same themes that we as a culture are continually confronted with – permanence, impermanence, strength and vulnerability – are continually explored in Moe’s work,” said Nora Wendl, Anderson Gallery director. “Her language is the monumental scale and her vocabulary is drawn from the fragmented human form.”

In just the past few years, Moe has received significant attention in the arts. In 2002, she was the recipient of a Joan Mitchell Award, and her work has been reviewed favorably in The New York Times.

“Memorial (Collapse)” will be supplemented by a gallery talk, public programs, a lecture the night before the opening and educational gallery guides. At 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 6 (following the Friends of Drake Arts’ Open House), Moe will reveal insights into the process of her large-scale sculpting. The session will be held in Room 336 of the Harmon Fine Arts Center.
The Anderson Gallery is located in the Harmon Fine Arts Center, at 25th Street and Carpenter Avenue in Des Moines. Gallery hours are noon to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. For images of the work or further information about the exhibition and gallery, call (515) 271-1994, send an e-mail message to nora.wendl@drake.edu or visit www.drake.edu/andersongallery.

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