Michelle Segre's 'Lost Songs of the Filament' exhibition at Derek Eller Gallery marks a glittering rebirth

Michelle Segre's exhibition 'Lost Songs of the Filament' opened at Derek Eller Gallery on June 1, 2012, running through June 30 at 615 West 27th Street in New York City. The show presents a new body of work that represents a significant departure from her earlier sculptural practice. During the 1990s, Segre was recognized for meticulously crafted wax enlargements of natural forms that combined Claes Oldenburg's Pop sensibility with Paul Thek's organic precision. While those works engaged with ecological themes shared by artists like Roxy Paine, Keith Edmier, and Alexis Rockman, they also maintained a connection to the monumental tradition of Henry Moore. The current exhibition reveals a shift toward funkier, more fantastic surrealism. These colorful sculptures incorporate twisting metals, tensioned fibers, found objects, and eccentric plaster forms. They generate an electrifying atmosphere with a slightly dangerous charm, reminiscent of the resourceful creativity in children's drawings. Some pieces incorporate literal bones from earlier sculptures, delicately encrusted as relics that function like crystal receivers attuned to alien transmissions. Despite this playful transformation, Segre maintains her crisp sculptural command throughout the exhibition. The installation view from 2012 captures this vibrant new direction in her work.