Assembling Content | Tom Lane

TOM LANE’s Assembling Content exhibition invites us into a 35-year journey through the artist's diverse and ever-evolving artistic vision. Hosted across all three Q.arma Galleries, this compelling show offers a wide array of Lane’s provocative works, each piece drawing from his well of artistic influences and cultural commentary.

Visitors will encounter striking 6-foot-square paintings that fuse Mondrian-inspired geometry with the unexpected presence of clocks, blending precision and time in a conversation about our fleeting existence. Nearby, a reimagined Gerrit Rietveld Red and Blue Chair, transformed with Budweiser Formica, challenges the intersection of design, identity, and consumer culture. Lane’s sharp wit is also evident in his tongue-in-cheek renditions of Marcel Breuer’s early modern cantilever chairs.

Among the most captivating pieces is a bold, larger-than-life sculpture: a heart-shaped formation of red, white, and blue porcelain fists, collectively stretching to six feet, evoking power, unity, and perhaps unrest. In contrast, a massive 16-foot-long porcelain birch tree trunk suggests the natural world through the lens of Lane’s meticulous craftsmanship, a reflection on the intersection of nature, fragility, and permanence.

The most recent addition to Lane’s oeuvre is the Color Capsules series, an innovative collection of abstract wall sculptures that offer a fresh exploration of form and hue. Much of the work presented here was created in the last five years, a testament to Lane’s continued relevance and his ability to challenge and captivate audiences.

This exhibition is not merely a retrospective—it is an ongoing dialogue between the past, present, and future of an artist continually reassembling content and meaning.

About the Artist:
Tom Lane is a Hudson, Wisconsin based artist and Professor Emeritus in the Department of Art, at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. His work has been exhibited nationally and internationally. Two recent solo exhibitions; at Hunter College, NYC and the Nash Gallery, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. International venues include: the People’s Republic of China at the Central Fine Arts Academy, Beijing; and the Great China Museum, Jingdezhen. Collections include: the September 11 National Museum, New York, NY; the Weisman Art Museum, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis; the Albuquerque Museum, Albuquerque, NM; Timberwolves, Target Center, Minneapolis, MN; the Donna and Cargill MacMillan Collection, Indian Well, CA; and the Sanbao International Ceramic Art Museum, Jingdezhen City, Jiangxi Province, P.R. China.

Gallery Hours:
Saturdays and Sundays 1:00-5:00pm