CAMBRIDGE, MA — To mark the 50th anniversary of the MIT Center for Advanced Visual Studies (CAVS), the MIT Museum opened on February 15th an exhibition presenting a historical overview through selected works by CAVS research fellows, students and professors. Installations and videos at the Compton Gallery along the main corridor of MIT are the works of more than 30 past and current research fellows.
On view are time-specific works by Research Fellows and Directors, Gyorgy Kepes, Otto Piene and Dan Dailey, celebrating 50 years after the Center’s Opening by Kepes in 1967/68. In addition, a photo exhibit can be seen as of March 21st at the museum’s Kurtz Gallery: Kepes Photographs, MIT Years 1946-1985.
Glass has always been Dailey’s medium, using industrial processes to realize his vision. While collaborating with the Research Lab for Electronics at MIT, he focused on developing technical knowledge and recently prototypes for his thick light bulb sculptures. He defines them as ‘glowing elements inside a curved lens-like mass.’
CAVS was a bold experiment connecting artists with forefronts of science and engineering. New artistic media and methods, as well as scales of expression for expanding audiences were pioneered at CAVS through the art-driven, interdisciplinary collaborations that became its hallmark.
The Museum’s exhibition includes art installations at multiple sites within the Museum and in its Compton Gallery. Holograms, light art, and inflatable sculptures reflect the wide range of CAVS artistic explorations and achievements that changed the social standards of art. The exhibition will remain open throughout 2018.