Teresita Fernández (American, b.1968)
Hover, 2001/2023
Aluminum plate, paint 55 x 263 x 2.25 in.
Teresita Fernández’s work is characterized by an interest in perception and psychology. Her immersive, sculptural installations and monumental public projects are often inspired by landscapes, natural phenomena, and historical references.
In 2001, Debevoise & Plimpton commissioned Fernández to create a site-specific work for its 33rd-floor cafeteria at 919 Third Avenue. The laser-cut plastic sculpture remained on site for the next 21 years. By late 2022, it was evident that the work needed refabrication with higher-grade materials to ensure its longevity. The artist remade the work in aluminum plate, keeping the reflective metallic finish on its face, with a bright orange treatment on the back to create a soft, diffused glow. Its organic looping pattern is meant to suggest hanging vines, icicles, and other organic matter. The work changes subtly throughout the day as the light varies with the weather and the movement of the sun.
Fernández is a MacArthur Foundation Fellow and the recipient of numerous awards, including a Creative Capital Award; Guggenheim Fellowship; Louis Comfort Tiffany Biennial Award; American Academy of Rome Fellowship (AFAAR); and a National Endowment for the Arts Individual Artist’s Grant in Visual Arts. In 2011, she was appointed by President Barack Obama to serve on the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts. She is the first Latina to serve on the 100-year-old federal panel, which advises the president and Congress on national matters of design and aesthetics.
Fernández’s work can be found in the permanent collection of most major national and international museums. Her monumental sculpture Fata Morgana was installed in Madison Square Park from June 2015 through January 2016, and her site-specific sculpture Paradise Parados is permanently installed at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.
More information on Teresita Fernández can be found here:
https://www.lehmannmaupin.com/artists/teresita-fernandez/biography