New sculpture show opens at Paradise Ridge Winery

The newest outdoor sculpture exhibit at Santa Rosa’s Paradise Ridge Winery promises visitors a moving experience.

“It’s all kinetic work,” said Briona Hendren, curator for the Voigt Family Sculpture Foundation, who is overseeing installation of the show. “Each piece moves in some capacity, powered by sun, wind or human interaction.”

“Momentum,” opening Saturday, features pieces by local artists and will be in place through the summer of 2024.

The Byck family, which owns the winery, collects and displays monumental sculpture. For the past decade, the winery has partnered with the Voigt Family Sculpture Foundation to install rotating exhibits that run for a year or more in its 4-acre Marijke’s Grove.

The new show features work by artists Ned Kahn of Sebastopol, Catherine Daley of Windsor, Doug Unkrey of Healdsburg, Kristi Lucas of Santa Rosa and Mark Malmberg of Petaluma. It includes three pieces by Kahn, two by Daley and one each by the others.

Four of the five artists currently live and work in Sonoma County. Malmberg is relocating from Petaluma to Washington state, but his piece for “Momentum” was conceived and created here in Sonoma County.

Kahn has created more than 100 major art installations around the world over the last 30 years. He was the recipient of a MacArthur Foundation grant in 2003 and has installed many works of public art, including “Digitized Field” on the AT&T building in downtown Santa Rosa.

Artist, machinist and fabricator Unkrey got worldwide attention in 2018 when his 21-foot-long, 800-pound ball-peen hammer sculpture was stolen from the lawn of the Healdsburg Community Center. The metal head was recovered and the sculpture was restored.

Daley dedicated three years to the Windsor Arts Council to promote the arts in Sonoma County. She is in her fourth year as a board member for the Pacific Rim Sculptors and second year as its vice president and co-chairperson for exhibitions and events.

Lucas creates installation works that merge architectural sensibility with artistic vision.

“This show is a celebration of art, family and persistence,” Judy Voigt, co-founder of the Voigt Family Sculpture Foundation, said in a statement announcing the show.

The exhibition also marks the 90th birthday on Jan. 17 of Paradise Ridge Winery founder Walter Byck. Marijke’s Grove is named for his wife, Marijke, who died in 2006.

“We are embracing the movement and change that impact our lives, and we are celebrating two milestones: the 10th year of our collaboration with Paradise Ridge and the 90th birthday of the indefatigable Walter Byck,” Voigt said.

All outdoor sculpture shows at Paradise Ridge are free to the public, seven days a week. “Momentum” opens with a reception from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday. For more information, visit prwinery.com.

Over the past 16 years, the Voigt Family Sculpture Foundation has placed art in five Sonoma County cities and on three school campuses and at the regional airport. For more background, go to celebratesculpture.com.

You can reach Staff Writer Dan Taylor at dan.taylor@pressdemocrat.com or 707-521-5243. On Twitter @danarts.