Catastrophic Molt

This installation is impacted by the transformation that occurs when we replace old ideas with new ones, deeply informed by Coit’s experience in the Antarctic. Polycarbonate, paper, and mesh wall sculptures conjure snow-covered formations; the eccentric, perforated forms of drifting icebergs; intricate patterns of lichen, waves, and stone. Colored light moves across and around the space. Shapes of darkness flex and stretch. The sculpted forms drift along the walls like wind-scattered feathers.

“Ambiguous yet allusive, the wrinkles and pleats that Coit sprays across mural surfaces provide an experience replete with echoes of the fabric of Hellenistic sculpture, the collars of Dutch portraiture, and the skirts of the even sexier French Rococo. At the same time, the work’s title demands that we think, with urgency, about climate change and the environment. Created in response to a trip taken to Antarctica just before the COVID-19 pandemic erupted and named for the dramatic feather shedding that happens to king penguins, this quiet yet explosive installation conveys meaning on a more metaphorical level as well…the beauty and magic of transcendental environments like Catastrophic Molt depend upon the undulations that track the dire state of nature under duress.” - Jennie Hirsh, from “Before and After Language: The Art of Madelin Coit”