Where Earth Becomes Aether is a group exhibition at Wönzimer Gallery investigating the elemental nature of art-making, constructed by earthy resources and inspired by ethereal ideas. Materials including rock, metal, graphite, minerals, textile, clay, and plants are transformed into a multifaceted range of creative gold that embodies the alchemical power of human imagination. Viewers are invited to explore the connection between the physical and emotional, the ephemeral and eternal, and the material and immaterial.

The title alludes to the ancient Greek concept of Aether, the fifth element that fills the universe beyond the terrestrial sphere, and which was believed to be the substance that made up the heavenly realm. The idea of a divine substance that connects the earthly and celestial spheres is explored in works that reflect on humanity’s unique place and status conceived and growing on Earth, but as creatures influenced and drawn toward the heavens. As the Roman poet and philosopher Lucretius wrote in “De Rerum Natura,” Aether is the “fifth body” that moves the stars and planets and connects all things in the universe. 

 Each of the thirteen featured artists employs their own unique process to alter the quotidian into the extraordinary, bringing disparate elements and influences together to achieve a transcendent synthesis. Whether working in painting, sculpture, installation, mixed media, and beyond these artists all share a visionary approach to the materials and processes that shape their practice. The exhibition is a sacred celebration of the infinite possibility that art possesses in a space Where Earth Becomes Aether.