Hollis Hammonds’ ‘The Great Turning’ Art Exhibition Continues Through Sept. 20 in Abilene
“The Great Turning: We Gather, We Grow, We Tend, by Hammonds + West,” features work by Hammonds, associate professor in the Visualization program; and sound and text by Austin-based poet Sasha West.
An exhibition of drawings, sculptures and installations by Hollis Hammonds, M.F.A., continues through Sept. 20 at the Grace Museum in Abilene.
“The Great Turning: We Gather, We Grow, We Tend, by Hammonds + West,” features work by Hammonds, associate professor in the Visualization program; and sound and text by Austin-based poet Sasha West.
The artists take a deep dive into the “transformative potential of art within our fragile ecosystem,” Hammonds said.
“By integrating visual art and poetry, we offer a hopeful perspective on navigating and reshaping environmental challenges,” she said. “The work invites viewers to engage in a reflective and empowering space where boundaries between past and future, loss and renewal are reimagined.”
The exhibition was planned for more than a year, Hammonds said, and reflects hundreds of hours of drawing and collaboration. She describes the work as a nature-filled space of twisting live oaks, green roofs and native Texas plants.
This is Hammonds’ first semester at Texas A&M. She spent the past 18 years at St. Edward’s University as a professor of art, and 10 years as chair of the Department of Visual Studies. This fall she will teach courses in Drawing for Visualization and Graduate Studio.
Hammonds said she hopes the exhibition invites visitors to pause, reflect and imagine, and to “consider both the fragility and resilience of our environment.”
“My hope is that the work sparks contemplation about our individual roles in climate change,” she said. “While also offering a vision of restoration and hope, and a glimpse of the future forest we might still create together.”
