A Revolution in Wood: The Bresler Collection

A Revolution in Wood celebrates the gift of sixty-six pieces of turned and carved wood to the Renwick Gallery by the distinguished collectors Fleur and Charles Bresler. Illustrated in lavish detail, works by this country’s best-known wood artists highlight the growing sophistication of American craft’s youngest medium. The collection includes masterpieces by the field’s pioneers—David Ellsworth, William Hunter, Mark and Melvin Lindquist, and several others—as well as compelling recent works created with new techniques.

A wide-ranging essay by Renwick Curator Nicholas R. Bell examines contemporary wood art’s historical roots and its rapid growth since the 1970s. An interview with Fleur Bresler by former Renwick Curator-in-Charge Ken Trapp highlights her dedication to wood and to the artists she considers family. The final section “Wood Art at the Renwick Gallery” illustrates in color more than two hundred works by more than one hundred artists, making this premier public collection available in print for the first time.