Spring Evolutions: A Group Exhibition March 10 – May 2, 2025

Crown Point Press presents Spring Evolutions, a group exhibition showcasing artists whose work combines abstraction and geometry with images of the natural world. The results are a union of distinct features that evolve into wholly unique compositions. The blend of organic subject matter and inorganic forms produces vibrant images that emerge like new growth sprouting during the spring season. These etchings evoke the spirit of perseverance, hope and renewal that a new season promises.

In each of Richard Tuttle’s prints from Mandevilla, 1998, a set of seven color aquatints, he used small plates to emboss the paper, creating a sculptural effect. As seen in the five prints selected for the exhibition, the palette is cheerfully colorful. “These prints are an important step for me,” Tuttle said after completing the Crown Point project. “A lifting-out of a descent, leaving behind an underworld… This is a change. This is a very joyful set.” In working on the prints, Tuttle spoke about a “call and response;” the interaction is within the group of prints themselves and their geometric components. Pale pink dominates the set, whose title refers to the evergreen climbing vine with pink flowers that were in bloom when Tuttle created his etchings. “The strong has become weak, and the weak strong,” says Tuttle.

Although Particle Accelerator (2017) resembles bouquets in full bloom, artist Tom Marioni says it is the “bombardment of atoms at close to the speed of light from an accelerator.” Each colliding atom explodes into organic bursts of color that are easily mistaken for flower arrangements while the background is suffused in a pale, golden light. The permanently altered particles produce something entirely new and beautiful.

Deceptively simple, Anne Appleby’s etchings focus on the environment of her Montana property. Quaking Aspen (2012), False Iris (2012), and River (2012) are portraits of the riparian zone across from her home. The aspen tree and false iris crowd the edge of the creek along with mint, horsetail, and cottonwood trees. These plants are strong enough to cleanse the water of harmful chemicals, acting, Appleby said in 2012, “like the kidneys of the earth.” Each panel is the result of Appleby carefully observing different parts of the plant, or watching how it changes from season to season. The rectangles in each print are made up of four layered plates, the precisely formulated colors and textures peeking through to capture the essence of each natural element.

The etchings in Spring Evolutions invite the viewer to look past physical form and find new possibilities for transformation. Other artists featured in the exhibition are John Cage, Pia Fries, Shoichi Ida, Robert Kushner, Susan Middleton, David Nash, Chris Ofili, Wilson Shieh, Alyson Shotz, José Maria Sicilia, Pat Steir, and David True. The exhibition is on view March 10 – May 2, 2025. To learn more, visit crownpoint.com or the gallery in person, Monday – Friday, 9AM – 5PM.