RHYTHM AND WHIMSY

BY RICHARD SWANSON

SPONSORED BY HOLTER MUSEUM OF ART

  • Cloud Voyager 2018 16.5” HIGH X 14.75” x 5.5” PAINTED STEEL
  • Loopity Loo 2017 14.25” H X 11” X 5.25” PAINTED STEEL
  • Portrait of the Artist 2018 15.75” H x 13.5” x 4.75” STEEL

Tour Schedule

  1. MONDAK HERITAGE CENTER February 5 – April 24, 2024
  2. THE ROBERT & GENNIE DEWEESE GALLERY – BOZEMAN HIGH SCHOOL September 9 – October 25, 2024
  3. PARIS GIBSON SQUARE MUSEUM OF ART February 7 – April 5, 2025
  4. DANFORTH MUSEUM OF ART  April 14 – June 9, 2025
  5. GLACIER ART MUSEUM September 25 – December 20, 2025
  6. MISSOULA ART MUSEUM  January 16 – April 10, 2026 

Exhibit Details

  • 16 works in painted steel
  • 16″ x 16″ x 16″ and smaller
  • Approximately 120 sq ft to 500 sq ft – vitrines not required
  • 2 crates approx 275 lbs
  • Available March 2024 – December 2026
  • Rental Fee: 6-weeks – $600, 7 – 12-weeks – $800

 Richard Swanson began this series of small-scale metal sculptures in 2013 after a decade of creating monumental public sculpture. The intimate scale of this body of work offers a level of spontaneity difficult to achieve in larger works, reflecting a freer use of color, form and line, embracing an improvisational and syncopated style of working that is as much about process and play as the final product. Swanson considers these sculptures visual poems whose colorful rhythms suggest a story or fragment of a dream. 

With a large portion of his career dedicated to large scale and public works, Swanson explores space and scale freely, using size to either envision the individual works as studies for larger pieces, or as playful poetic quips standing complete all on their own. 

Rhythm and Whimsy illustrates Swanson’s understanding of line, form, balance and rhythm to create three-dimensional line drawings that bounce brightly like jazz phrases – no hidden meanings but spontaneous and lyrical, with the interval between notes as essential as the notes themselves.