Bridgette Mayer Gallery Presents:
All The Stars In The Sea, a solo exhibition by Rebecca Rutstein
September 3 – October 19, 2024
Artist Talk & Happy Hour: Friday, September 6, 4:45 – 8:00 PM
Philadelphia, PA – August 9, 2024. Bridgette Mayer Gallery is thrilled to announce All The Stars In The Sea, a new solo exhibition by Rebecca Rutstein. The exhibition will be on view from Tuesday, September 3 to Saturday, October 19, 2024. In celebration of this new body of work, the Gallery will host an Artist Talk with Rebecca Rutstein at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts on Friday, September 6th from 4:45 – 5:45 PM, with an opening reception at Bridgette Mayer Gallery immediately following.
All The Stars In The Sea will mark Rutstein’s tenth solo exhibition with Bridgette Mayer Gallery. The exhibition features nine brand-new, large-scale paintings, two new painting series, and a sculpture installation created from entirely environmentally-conscious materials. Rutstein’s work is celebrated for both its colorful, contemporary nature and its underlying message. With a background in science and informed by collaborations with scientists around the globe, her practice speaks to the interconnectedness of all things in the natural world. Rutstein’s new series Thirty Days will be featured in the exhibition, which she created aboard a research vessel during an expedition at sea off the coast of Mexico last April. There, Rutstein had the rare opportunity to take her third dive in a 3-manned submersible more than a mile deep to witness the churning pulse of geologic forces on the seafloor. The steel sculptural installation Flow was inspired by the very hydrothermal plumes she witnessed, and the dispersal of trace metals like iron, which flow thousands of miles from the seafloor to the surface, essential to life in both land and sea.
These experiences inform and enrich Rutstein’s desire to shed light on hidden systems in the natural world and make the invisible visible through the language of art. She states:
Grappling with our environmental crisis has become a driving force in my practice. And harnessing art to connect people with the natural world has become my life’s work. Art can be the emotional driver to create awareness and wonder, inspire empathy, and foster stewardship. In 2015 I climbed aboard a research vessel for the first time as an artist in residence. Eight expeditions later, it has been the privilege of my life to transform these humbling experiences into visual worlds that can be shared with the public.
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This exhibition was funded in part by an Individual Artist Grant from the Joseph Robert Foundation. Rutstein’s residency at sea was made possible through the generous support of the National Science Foundation's Biological Oceanography Program as well as additional support from the University of Georgia.
About the Artist
Rebecca Rutstein is a multidisciplinary artist whose practice bridges art, science and technology. For over twenty years she has created painting, sculpture, interactive installation and public art inspired by the natural world. Her work sheds light on places and processes hidden from view to foster deeper connection in the face of our climate crisis. As an artist-in-residence, Rutstein’s collaborations with scientists have taken her around the world including eight expeditions at sea and three deep-sea dives to the ocean floor in the Alvin submersible, supported by the National Science Foundation. Her work with oceanographers, ecologists, microbiologists, molecular scientists and planetary geologists give her a unique perspective and broad view of the interconnectedness of all things in the natural world.
A recipient of the Pew Fellowship in the Arts with recognition from the National Endowment for the Arts, her work has been featured on NPR, ABC, NBC, CBS, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Vice & Vogue magazines. Rutstein has exhibited both nationally and internationally in over thirty solo shows, and her work can be found in more than forty public collections including the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Georgia Museum of Art, Museum of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, National Academy of Sciences, U.S. Department of State, U.S. Consulate in Thailand, and Yale University. She has been invited to speak about her work at over forty institutions including the Barnes Foundation, National Academy of Sciences, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, MIT Media Labs, Stanford, Georgetown and Cornell Universities, and the University of Georgia where she was awarded the Delta Visiting Chair for Global Understanding. Rutstein received a Master of Fine Arts from University of Pennsylvania and a Bachelor of Fine Arts (Magna Cum Laude) from Cornell University. She is represented by the Bridgette Mayer Gallery in Philadelphia.
Exhibition information: All The Stars In The Sea will be on view from Tuesday, September 3 to Saturday, October 19, 2024 at Bridgette Mayer Gallery.
Artist Talk at PAFA
September 6th, 4:45pm - 5:45pm
118 N. Broad Street
Hamilton Auditorium
Samuel MV Hamilton Building, 1st floor
Philadelphia, PA 19102
Exhibition Reception
September 6th, 6:00pm - 8:00pm
Bridgette Mayer Gallery
709 Walnut Street, 1st Floor
Philadelphia, PA 19106
Gallery information: Bridgette Mayer Gallery is free and open to the public. We are located at 709 Walnut Street, 1st Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Gallery hours are Tuesday – Saturday, 10:00am – 5:00pm.
For more information, please contact Emma Burke at: eburke@bmayerart.com.
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