‘Holy Cross exhibit a collaboration between artist and astronaut'

Worcester Telegram & Gazette

The Worcester Telegram & Gazette recently paid a visit to the College of the Holy Cross campus to take a look at “Our Fragile Home,” the featured exhibit  in the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Art Gallery. The concept for the collection took seed in 1990 while artist Pat Musick listened to five astronauts—one of which was her husband, Jerry Carr—describe their experience of looking down on Earth from space at a United Nations celebration of Earth Day. In their discussion, Musick noticed they were all explaining the same thing, using  common words to describe Earth: “fragile, beauty, protect, sustain, nurture, steward, harmony, balance.”

“For 20 years, Musick mulled over the experience, trying to find a satisfying concept to render the realization in artistic terms,” reports Diane Severin. “A few years ago, it came to her: visualize the Earth as ‘fragile’ and ‘strong.’ Using these ideas as a foothold, she created the collection 'Our Fragile Home' primarily from natural materials to call attention to the Earth's environmental peril.” This exhibit, a collaboration between Musick and Carr, addresses a range of themes, including man-made pollution and deforestation, sustenance and protection.

"Our Fragile Home" will be on view through July 25 in the Cantor Gallery. The gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Related Information

This is a “Holy Cross in the News” item by Evangelia Stefanakos.