University of North Texas
Alicia Eggert
Alicia Eggert with her light sculpture, "This Present Moment," 2019-2020 (Ed. #2 of 3)
The latest acquisition of the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C., comes from right here in North Texas.
The museum recently acquired “This Present Moment,” a neon light sculpture by Alicia Eggert, an associate professor and coordinator for the sculpture program at the UNT College of Visual Arts and Design. The piece will debut at the Renwick Gallery as part of the museum’s 50th anniversary exhibition in 2022.
“The Smithsonian is a very respected institution around the world, and I’m thrilled to have my first acquisition be a museum of such caliber,” she said in a statement.
"This Present Moment" cycles through two statements written in neon pink — "this present moment used to be the unimaginable future” and “this moment used to be the future" — before shutting off completely for a period of time. The phrase comes from the book The Clock of the Long Now by Stewart Brand, editor of the Whole Earth Catalogue and president of the board of directors of the Long Now Foundation, a nonprofit that promotes long-term thinking within a society that's constantly moving at a fast pace.
"My goal is always to say something that feels really meaningful but is always relevant — something that will be true today and 1,000 years from now," Eggert said in a statement. "These statements from Brand are always true, but they mean different things at different times, and their meanings can vary from person to person."
Eggert is no stranger to exhibitions at major museums. Her work has been displayed all over the world, from the CAFA Art Museum in Beijing to the Triennale Design Museum in Milan. Recently, she participated in the immersive parking garage exhibit, Area 3, led by Dallas-based art organization AURORA; Eggert has also created a commissioned artwork at IBM’s new office space in Coppell.
"This Present Moment" is the second in a series of neon sculptures by Eggert. The first went on display as part of Eggert’s 2019 solo exhibition during her Institute for the Advancement of the Arts fellowship in Portugal; the second was fabricated with the help of Amy Enlow and UNT alumni Austin Lewis, Jaelyn Kotzur, Paolo Tamez-Buccino, and Teresa Larrabee.
Eggert will also be writing an essay for the exhibition catalog at the curator's request.
“Having my work in a museum was unimaginable to me for a long time," Eggert said. "The idea that it’s going to be cared for and be viewed by people for generations to come is such an incredible thing."
