Hartford’s Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art is now displaying 23 works by Connecticut-based sculptor Arthur Carter.
In promoting these works, which are presented under the heading “Arthur Carter: Mathematical Beauty,” the museum noted how the sculptor’s output “explores the proposition that mathematical logic has an innate beauty, while beauty itself conforms to mathematical logic.” The presentation of Carter’s work includes metal sculptures installed throughout the galleries and two monumental works placed outside the museum building, along with a newly commissioned film by Harry Moses titled “The Blur of Motion: Works by Arthur Carter,” which explores the artist’s process for creating works on view.
“Arthur Carter is a true Renaissance man, a real polymath whose talent and purity of vision has produced a remarkable sculptural imagination. We are delighted to present his sculpture in the context of the great works in our exceptional collection along with some of his working drawings and tools that reveal his artistic process,” said Matthew Hargraves, director of the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art.
Carter was born in New York City on Christmas Eve in 1931. Trained as a classical pianist, he continued his studies in French literature at Brown University and received his AB in 1953. After three years of service in the U.S. Coast Guard, he went on to the Amos Tuck School at Dartmouth College and received his MBA in finance in 1959. Following a 25-year career in investment banking, he started his first newspaper, the Litchfield County Times, in 1981 and six years later he founded the New York Observer.
As a sculptor, Carter began producing maquettes of wood, clay, and copper wire, which evolved into larger constructions in bronze, copper, and stainless steel. He maintains a production facility and design studio in Roxbury, Connecticut, and his work has been displayed in museums and public spaces across the country. The Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art will present his work through Jan. 14, 2024.
