Sarasota's Marie Selby Gardens pairs artwork with nature in latest exhibit

'The Nature of Movement' at Selby Gardens

Selby Gardens is hosting a special exhibition series that pairs artwork with the beauty of nature as the artist's works are a part of the gardens and even help to showcase some of the special bromeliads and other plants.

SARASOTA, Fla. - The Marie Selby Botanical Gardens features 45-acres of bayfront gardens and natural space full of ornamental flora at their Spanish Point Campus. They also have a 15-acre site in the downtown Sarasota area to bring some of that beauty into the city.

It's at that second campus where Selby Gardens is hosting a special exhibition series that pairs artwork with the beauty of nature as the artist's works are a part of the gardens and even help to showcase some of the special bromeliads and other plants.

Marie Selby Gardens

What they're saying:

"So, it's an immersive experience, and we're excited to feature the art of Alexander Calder. And the title of the show is The Nature of Movement," Jennifer Rominiecki, president and CEO of Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, said. "And basically, we have original artworks by Calder on view in our museum, and then Selby Gardens' horticulture team has designed these horticultural vignettes inspired by Calder's principles and his artwork."

This is part of the 10th anniversary of the annual Jean and Alfred Goldstein Exhibition Series. The Calder artwork is on display in connection to the natural settings of the botanical garden.

"We chose to focus on Alexander Calder because a lot of his abstract forms truly resonate with nature," Rominiecki said. "Calder was quite fascinated with the circus, and arrived at the kinetic movement of his mobiles through study of the Ringling Circus."

Sarasota is also the home of the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, which also houses the circus museum, so the connection was an easy one to make.

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"Sarasota's cultural narrative has always been focused on the Ringling Circus, being the winter quarters of Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus," Rominiecki said. "So, we looked at the nature connection, of course, and then the Sarasota connection through the circus, and felt, 'Well, yes,' this is an exhibit we should do here."

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Local perspective:

Getting back to the basics, the venue is a vibrant garden, and art like this works with the natural look of the gardens and enhances what nature has already made beautiful.

"Well, I think that we will open visitors' eyes to the fact that Alexander Calder was, in fact, inspired by nature," Rominiecki said. "A lot of people don't realize that, and you know, that's what we're trying to do here at Selby Gardens: really build the connection to the natural world."

Mobiles and other colorful art appear all over the gardens with a nod to the movement and suspension Calder appreciated from the circus.

"Calder studied the circus aerialists, and so, suspending our plants, just as Calder suspended his artwork, there's a real alignment there," Rominiecki said.

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What's next:

To learn more about Marie Selby Botanical Gardens and to plan a visit, visit their website here.

The Alexander Calder: The Nature of Movement exhibit will be available for viewing through May 31 at the downtown Sarasota campus at 1534 Mound St.