Elaine Cameron-Weir’s work, titled A toothless grin. A STAR EXPANSION! GLOBE OF DEATH A graveyard orbit, is the result of both associative thinking and a research-driven artistic process. Her project for Storm King Art Center is inspired by the hollow spherical cages used for trick motorcycle riding—so-called globes of death. At twenty feet in diameter, and surrounded by wide fields, Cameron-Weir’s steel sphere also resembles other real and imagined structures of the present and extrapolated future, such as radio transmission towers, satellites, and other large-scale devices related to space exploration and scientific inquiry. The sphere is accompanied by a small, white military-style shelter from which a soldier might keep watch. Both the sphere and the shelter were designed to accommodate a person or people: several stunt riders can simultaneously circle each other within the tight inner orbit of the sphere, and the shelter, which fits into the bed of a pick-up truck, can house a reclining figure. While each element suggests a kind of real-world functionality, when viewed in the context of Storm King’s collection they also ask to be seen for their similarity to large-scale abstract sculpture.


Outlooks, now in its sixth year, is an exhibition series that invites one emerging or mid-career artist to engage with Storm King’s landscape and history and create a new, site-specific work to be installed on-site for a single season.

Outlooks: Elaine Cameron-Weir is made possible by generous lead support from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and the Ohnell Charitable Lead Trust. Support for exhibition-related programming is provided by generous lead support from the Mr. and Mrs. Raymond J. Horowitz Foundation for the Arts. Support is also provided by Agnes Gund, the Pierre and Tana Matisse Foundation, and the Sidney E. Frank Foundation. Artist talks are made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.

Organized by Nora Lawrence, Senior Curator, Storm King Art Center.