Thomas Sayre: Four Walls

“Thomas has raised his own unique voice, which is resonant, daring to soar, complex and textured. With this remarkable exhibition, Four Walls, we celebrate the achievements of one of the best among us.”– Lawrence J. Wheeler, Director Emeritus of the NC Museum of Art

Thomas Sayre: Four Walls features new and never exhibited works by American artist Thomas Sayre (American, b. 1950). Each of the four large-scale pieces installed in Cameron Art Museum’s Hughes Wing engage the belief systems and symbols that underpin the ideals of church, nation, and creation. Made of materials that include tar, smoke, fabric gowns, gunshots, welding material, earth and fire, these works invite visitors to draw close and experience the messiness of making, and by analogy, to bear witness to the ways that life invades, entangles, and tarnishes us. Inspired by the artist’s own personal spiritual journey, Thomas Sayre: Four Walls invites visitors to contemplate their own place in the world.

Thomas Sayre designs and builds public art projects and private commissions all over the world, from North Carolina to Thailand. He is best known for his earthcastings, monumental sculptures made in and of the earth, including Gyre, on the grounds at the North Carolina Museum of Art. Sayre’s father was the dean at the National Cathedral in Washington, DC. and Sayre grew up engaging with the artisans who worked on the cathedral at an early age. This experience has shaped his work. Sayre is a founding principal of the multi-disciplinary design firm Clearscapes and has an honorary doctorate from North Carolina State University.

Sponsored in part by Robert E. Zaytoun