Patrick Dougherty | James Florio: Sticks

<b>James Florio''s exquisite black-and-white photography of sixteen important sculptural projects by Patrick Dougherty across the US.<br></b><span>One of today’s most admired living sculptors, Patrick Dougherty composes with nature—</span><span>wielding saplings and sticks to build monumental structures that echo, play, and tussle with </span><span>the land. </span><span>James Florio is a Montana-based photographer focused on the built environment </span><span>and the life surrounding it. He works slowly, visiting a place repeatedly to gain a greater </span><span>understanding of it, to ultimately deliver a thoughtful and profound interpretation.<br></span><span>This project was inspired by Dougherty’s and Florio’s connection </span><span>to Tippet Rise Art Center in Fishtail, Montana, where Dougherty has crafted sculptures </span><span>from local willows, and where Florio has photographed the art and wild lands over </span><span>many years.<br></span><span>Dougherty’s first commission at Tippet Rise, </span><i>Daydreams</i><span>, was completed in 2015. He </span><span>subsequently returned to the art center in 2022 to make a companion piece for this work. </span><span>At the heart of both pieces is a nineteenth-century schoolhouse reproduction. The new </span><span>work, <i>Cursive</i> <i>Takes a Holiday</i> (2022), adds an installation of intertwining branches to the </span><span>outside of the schoolhouse, creating a series of circular spaces that visitors can step inside. </span><span>Daydreams features woven branches that connect the indoors to the outdoors.<br></span><span>In addition to thoughtful photographs, this book features i</span><span>nformation about the commission, creation, installation, and community </span><span>engagement of Dougherty''s work, along with essays about his practice, influence, and legacy.</span><p></p><p></p><p></p>