“Poet of a Threatened Eden” was a comprehensive retrospective of American multidisciplinary artist Frank Hyder, presented by Bill Lowe Gallery from March 26 to April 30, 2022. This exhibition showcased works created between 1986 and 2022, featuring Hyder’s hand-carved, scored, engraved, and painted pieces on wood and other media, ranging from monumental to intimate scales.
Hyder’s art is noted for its ceremonial reverence for nature, functioning as reliquaries that facilitate emotional bonds to the natural world—a world often forgotten, ignored, and abused. His works depict organic cathedrals composed of the earth’s great forests, rivers, and mountains, spanning the Americas, Europe, and Africa. A distinctive feature of Hyder’s pieces is their enigmatic light sources, achieved through dense layering of media, conveying the rich materiality and sensuality of the organic universe and our spiritual connection to it.
The exhibition was significant as it marked Bill Lowe Gallery’s first major public event in two years, coinciding with its grand reopening following pandemic-related closures. The gallery’s commitment to reflecting Atlanta’s emergence as an epicenter of art, science, and technology was evident in this presentation, aligning with its mission to engage in a kinetic dialogue with artists and audiences both locally and globally.
Critics noted that Hyder’s immersive images were ideal for the gallery’s relaunch, highlighting the artist’s unique vision that encourages viewers to rekindle their relationship with the natural world. His works were described as more akin to visions than to traditional portraiture, aiming to enchant and re-enchant our connection with nature.
Overall, “Poet of a Threatened Eden” provided a profound exploration of humanity’s relationship with nature through Hyder’s evocative and immersive artworks, reaffirming his position as a significant figure in contemporary art.