Label TextBetween 2021 and 2024, Arlene Shechet made a series of seven large works called Girl Group, all from welded steel, aluminum, or a combination of both. Each is painted in pastel candy colors. This work, Janice, and its companions draw upon Shechet’s previous experiments with ceramics, bringing elements of clay, a soft, malleable material into large metal sculpture. Janice and Girl Group also playfully respond to the history of monumental sculpture, which is often serious, severe, and masculine-coded. The pieces of aluminum that comprise Janice bend, fold, and roll in ways that defy reason. The artist states her works are “almost like a sewn garment, with darts and seams. They can have motion and life.” Janice is unruly and unusual, appearing almost human from some angles, but mechanical or abstract from others. Pipes, waves, and pillars project out from the central cube of the composition, creating nooks and crannies that invite the visitor to move around the sculpture. Surface treatments alternate from matte to shiny, creating variations in texture and tone that add to the way the work changes depending on the light in the gallery and the perspective of the viewer.
DimensionsOverall: 78 x 48 x 65 in., approx. 800-900 lb. (198.1 x 121.9 x 165.1 cm, 385.6 kg.)
Accession Number 2025.9
Classificationssculpture
InscriptionsA.S. ‘24 (l,r right side)
