Vanessa German at ARThouse, Homewood, Pittsburgh. Courtesy of the artist and Pavel Zoubok, Fine Art, NY. Photo: Brian Cohen

Vanessa German: Miracles And Glory Abound

January 27, 2019 - April 20, 2019

Temporary Exhibition Gallery

Miracles and Glory Abound explores the power of stories through Vanessa German’s assembled sculptures. The exhibition draws from both the visual and emotional concepts of the iconic painting, Washington Crossing the Delaware (currently on view in New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art) by Emanuel Leutze. German uses what she terms “power figures” to imitate Leutze’s composition and create a conversation about public memory and the rewriting of history through the lens of privilege. After closing at the FIA, Miracles and Glory Abound travels to Figge Art Museum in Davenport, Iowa, and Bates College Museum of Art in Lewiston, Maine. 

A fully illustrated catalogue accompanies the exhibition with essays from performance artist Holly Bass, art theorist Hilary Robinson, and abstract expressionist painter Danny Simmons. The catalogue is available in the FIA Museum Shop for $19.95. 

View Vanessa German's performance during the 12th Annual Community Gala here.

From the Exhibition

  • Vanessa German, American, b. 1976. oh for the healing of the blues, 2016. Mixed media assemblage. 73 x 26 x 44” (185.4 x 66 x 111.7 cm). Collection of the Figge Art Museum, Davenport; museum purchase with funds provided by the Friends of Art Acquisition Fund and Linda and J. Randolph Lewis, 2017.27.1. Courtesy of the artist and Pavel Zoubok, Fine Art, NY

  • Vanessa German, American, b. 1976. we are the animals are us, 2017. Mixed media assemblage. 81 x 48 x 36" (205.7 x 121.9 x 91.4 cm). Figge Art Museum, Davenport; museum purchase with funds provided by the Friends of Art Acquisition Fund and Linda and J. Randolph Lewis, 2017.27.2. Courtesy of the artist and Pavel Zoubok, Fine Art, NY

  • Vanessa German, American, b. 1976. No Water Cleanser, 2016. Mixed-media assemblage. 75 x 32 x 20 inches. Museum purchase with funds from the Collection Endowment, and gift of Justice and Mrs. G. Mennen Williams, by exchange, gift of Mr. Harold Frank, by exchange, 2017.53

  • Vanessa German, American, born 1976. We Go This Way; Let Us Dance, 2018. Mixed-media assemblage. 97 x 39 x 42 inches. Courtesy of the artist and Pavel Zoubok, Fine Art, NY. Photo: Heather Mull

  • Vanessa German, American, born 1976. LaQuisha Washington Crosses the Day Aware, 2018. Mixed-media assemblage. 126 x 48 x 48 inches. Courtesy of the artist and Pavel Zoubok, Fine Art, NY. Photo: Heather Mull

  • Vanessa German, American, born 1976. Prototype for Miracles and Glory Abound, 2018. Mixed-media installation. Dimensions variable. Courtesy of the artist and Pavel Zoubok, Fine Art, NY. Photo: Heather Mull