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The Wild, Weird And Wonderful Mr. Sloan

Photography Christopher Nelson & courtesy of The Halsey Institute of Contemporary ArtPhotos 20Issue AUGUST 2020
Artist Nick Cave’s sculptural Soundsuits exemplify the whimsical, somewhat off-kilter conceptual art that Sloan is drawn to. “It’s not what you expect to find in the middle of historic Charleston,” he says.Mark Sloan arrived at the Halsey Gallery in 1994 and has since transformed it into an acclaimed Institute for Contemporary Art. The Aldwyth show (pictured here) was the first in HICA’s expanded facility—and one of his favorites.The Halsey now fronts Calhoun Street, welcoming visitors as well as the college community.Nick Cave’s Soundsuits in the “Call and Response: Africa to America” exhibit in 2010The 2019 Katrina Andry exhibition, “Over There and Here is Me and Me,” explored gentrification.In January, Alabama artist Butch Anthony presented “Inside/Out,” showcasing his folk art-influenced assemblages and found objects from his cabinet of curiosities.The 2018 immersive exhibition by German artists Böler & Orendt featured a “makeshift transdimensional stopover camp” in which extinct animals offered songs of forgiveness to humans.Sloan at work in his office, where a faux boulder hangs on a rusty chain over his head. “It helps me concentrate,” he says.Motoi Yamamoto’s 2012 “Return to the Sea: Saltworks” was the premiere of a major traveling exhibition for the contemporary Japanese artist.Clemson Architecture Center students built the custom viewing platform, from which visitors could watch Yamamoto at work.At the end of the exhibition, the artist swept the salt away.Lunar photo ops are a highlight of the Halsey’s annual Moon Party.Taiko Charleston drummers perform at one of many unique Halsey openingsSloan has tapped artists, arts advocates, and philanthropists to serve on the Halsey Advisory Board.Erwin Redl’s “Rational Exuberance” in 2016 included a centerpiece light installation exploring scale, repetition, and patterns.In 2013, for “Rebound: Dissections & Excavations In Book Art,” New York-based artist Long-Bin Chen dazzled viewers with sculpture and a Zen garden at the adjacent Addleston Library, all carved from books.For the 2017 installation “The Tide is High” Aurora Robson transformed plastic refuse, including detergent bottles, into dramatic mobile-like sculpture.Sloan at the opening with Halsey supporters Courtenay Cone and Pam FischetteChinese artist Jennifer Wen Ma presented “Cry Joy Park—Gardens of Dark and Light” to coincide with Spoleto Festival USA in 2019. With elaborate installations of cut paper, the artist juxtaposed a utopia and dystopia in an immersive sensory experience. Like many Halsey shows, Sloan curated multidisciplinary collaborations around the work, including local contemporary dancers.The Wild, Weird And Wonderful Mr. Sloan

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