Erik Bergrin fiber sculpture at Morris Museum

By Chadd ScottJanuary 27, 2022January 18, 20220 Comments

Erik Bergrin, Dissolution 8 – Emptiness (Detail), 2020, 73” X 33” X 20”, Various materials, Photo courtesy of the artist.

The Morris Museum in Morristown, New Jersey presents a fiber sculpture installation by artist Erik Bergrin which will be on view from January 28 – July 10, 2022.

Erik Bergrin: The 8 Dissolutions is a fiber-sculpture installation by New York City-based artist and costume maker Erik Bergrin. A student of Buddhist philosophy, Bergrin explores the transience of the human body and the eternity of the mind in this new collection of work.

The exhibition takes its name from the eight dissolutions, a Tibetan Buddhist meditation practice that visualizes one’s mortality in the recurring cycle of death and rebirth on the path to enlightenment. The costumes are entirely handsewn, made from fabrics created by Erik Bergrin using traditional techniques such as weaving and felting, as well as grown from unusual materials such as seaweed, fermented tea, and crystallizations. Some include integrated drums and rattles.

A video monitor documents a performance with the costumes making musical sounds with each movement, revealing the multidisciplinary nature of Bergrin’s artistic approach.

The exhibition is curated by the Morris Museum’s Ronald T. Labaco, Director of Exhibitions and Collections/Chief Curator, and Michelle Graves, Curatorial Assistant.

About the Morris Museum

Founded in 1913, the Morris Museum is an award-winning, multifaceted arts and cultural institution serving the public through its exhibitions and performances, which strive to interpret the past and discover the future through art, sound, and motion.

The Museum is home to the historic and internationally significant Murtogh D. Guinness Collection of Mechanical Musical Instruments and Automata.

The Museum’s Bickford Theatre is a 312-seat performing-arts facility, offering unique programming in film, jazz, and live performance through its innovative series, Live Arts.

As New Jersey’s only Smithsonian Affiliate, it launched Spark!Lab, a dynamic, Smithsonian-created learning space which will inspire young visitors to create, collaborate, and innovate.