Ola Wlusek is interested in sight. Not from the medical perspective—Wlusek is the Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at The Ringling—but rather a creative one. How does art change, shift or even enforce how people see the world and their place in it? Such is the focus of The Ringling’s ongoing exhibition As Earth is to Sky: Selections from the Gift of Murray Bring and Kathleen Bring and The Ringling Collection of Modern & Contemporary Art.  The exhibition, curated by Wluskek, marks the second installment of 22 abstract and minimalist artworks gifted to The Ringling by Murray and Kathleen Delaney Bring. As Earth is to Sky takes these works, a combination of sculpture and works in paper and panel, and employs them to highlight the expressive possibilities of abstraction. “Across the exhibition, visitors will encounter works in steel, bronze, copper, wood and mixed media that explore balance, movement, texture and spatial presence,” says Wlusek. “Some works assert a strong physical weight and architectural sensibility, while others feel more intimate, organic or quietly contemplative.”

As Earth is to Sky is anchored by a sculpture from renowned American sculptor Beverly Pepper. Diamond Sentinel II (1981-1989), is a 12-foot cast iron sculpture from Pepper’s Moline Makers series. The monolith, striking in its singularity, sets the thematic tones for As Earth is to Sky. The pieces shown all function to create a dialogue between spaces, exploring the dichotomy of gravity and openness, of darkness and light, of solid ground and the sky. “The exhibition brings together works from The Ringling’s collection that explore abstraction as a way of responding to the world, whether through scale, surface, color, geometry or gesture, revealing how artists use form to engage ideas of presence, perception and environment,” says Wlusek. 

The title of the exhibition itself is taken from a 1975 essay by art historian Edward F. Fry on Pepper’s practice and artistic identity. “The phrase is intentionally poetic, evoking a sense of balance and reciprocity, between what is grounded and what transcends. In the context of the exhibition, the title reflects the enduring dialogue between sculpture and environment, material presence and imaginative reach,” says Wlusek. “It also signals the ways abstract and minimalist works can be both physically rooted and conceptually expansive.”

The abstract sculptural aspect of As Earth is to Sky also includes works from sculptors Bryan Hunt (b. 1947), John Van Alstine (b. 1952), Mark Di Suvero (b. 1933) and  Yuriko Yamaguchi (b. 1948). These works—created from bronze, steel, wood and copper—delineate how abstract sculpture can carry historical and emotional weight, Wlusek attests. “Van Alstine combines industrial steel with stone, bronze and wood to explore balance, tension, and metaphor, creating works that evoke endurance, memory and the interplay between natural and human-made forces,” says Wlusek. “Hunt draws on history and place, distilling figures such as Christopher Columbus and Queen Isabella into simplified, poetic forms that reflect themes of journey, ambition and legacy. Di Suvero brings a dynamic, kinetic sensibility to the exhibition, transforming industrial materials into expressive structures that engage movement, gravity and space and echo the gestural energy of Abstract Expressionism.”

Rounding out As Earth is to Sky are works on paper and panel from Robin Rose (b. 1946) and Robert Stackhouse (b. 1942). Both Rose and Stackhouse are artists with connections to Florida—Rose was born in Ocala and earned degrees from Florida State University.  Specializing in encaustic painting, or hot wax painting, Rose uses a heated wax medium to which colored pigments have been added, that, in Wlusek’s words, “explore technological innovation and archaeological discovery, revealing subtle shifts of color, depth and texture.” Stackhouse, who graduated with a bachelor’s degree from the University of South Florida in 1965, is known particularly for his boat and maritime inspired sculptures, drawings and prints. “Both artists engage deeply with process and material, transforming familiar subjects into immersive visual experiences,” says Wlusek.  SRQ  As Earth is to Sky, November 15, 2025-January 9, 2028, The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, 5401 Bay Shore Rd, Sarasota, 941-359-5700, ringling.org