#WAMfamUNCG Play

TUESDAY, APR 28, 2020

FROM TO THE HOOP

Victor Solomon creates basketball hoops inspired by the décor of palaces and cathedrals. Recalling his youth as a mixed-race kid in East Boston, he remembers that it was on his neighborhood basketball courts that racial and ethnic distinctions disappeared. While celebrating that inclusivity, his sculptures also acknowledge economic divides between the many who aspire to basketball stardom and the few who achieve it. And, they underscore the precariousness of fame: while designed to precisely mimic actual backboards and hoops, their fragile beauty renders them unable to withstand the shock of a ball hitting them.

Victor Solomon, Church, 2019, stained glass, 24k-gold-plated hand-wrought steel, acrylic, and crystals, 10 x 4 x 4 ft. Courtesy of the artist. © Victor Solomon, photo by Geordy Pearson, courtesy of the artist.

Staff Picks

In between working from home and binging Netflix we wonder what are you PLAYING during this time of isolation? Here is what the WAM staff has been doing to pass the time.

#WAMfamUNCG.

"The Carrico family played monopoly. Melanie spent the most time in jail and she also won."

SHANE CARRICO

Preparator

"My two pastimes—crosswords and online jigsaw puzzles."

NANCY DOLL

Director

"One of my favorite games is SET. It’s called 'The Family Game of Visual Perception' and promotes observation in a fun, fast-paced way"

TERRI DOWELL-DENNIS

Associate Curator of Education

"Unearthed from the closet ca 1960s."

ANN GRIMALDI

Curator of Education

"Yahtzee, Jenga, and cards seem to be the go to games in our house!"

KRISTEN MAGOD

Special Assistant for External Affairs

"We have the most fun with the imaginary trivia games."

VALERIE MCCONNELL

Business Coordinator

"We've been playing a little pétanque before evening campfires in the backyard."

LORING MORTENSEN

PR + Communications Officer

"From the Southeast to the Southwest, the Stamey crew is battling through rounds of Scattergories remotely."

DR. EMILY STAMEY

Curator of Exhibitions

"I joined my husband and friends’ D&D game that’s now played via FaceTime!"

SUSAN TAAFFE

Preparator

"We have been playing in the woods. We have found a strong vine to swing on, so we are now clearing the path for a longer ride!"

KIM TERBUSH

We’re all missing our current exhibition, To the Hoop: Basketball and Contemporary Art. While the galleries are closed, you can take peek at the show through our viewing room or read the full exhibition catalogue online here. Printed catalogues can be purchased here.

Learn more about some of To the Hoop’s exhibiting artists in these great videos about Victor Solomon, Esmaa Mohamoud, and David Huffman.

Visitor comments for To the Hoop:

“The exhibit surpassed my expectations. As a basketball fan is was both nostalgic and novel in the most breathtaking and amazing ways.”

“The culture of basketball is so relevant and significant to this society. For it to be captured in this light of art and using art to understand the sociology of it is amazing.”

“It’s like a supernova went off in my mind!”

“I hope the Weatherspoon continues to have exhibits pushing and challenging the norms yet culturally relative.”