Michael Montag: Works in Progress will be featured at Connect Gallery from Jan. 6-30. The exhibit includes bronze works from micro to life-size that deal with religious figures, children, nudes, and birds, all in varies states of completion.
During the opening reception, Jan. 15, from 5:30-9 p.m., Montag will demonstrate how he works in clay to develop new pieces. His bread and butter works are commissioned sculptures for churches, businesses and private collectors.
Working through the steps required of this type of medium after developing the piece in clay, Montag has established an elegant figurative style. The pieces vary from small tabletop sizes to two and one-half feet to seven feet in height. His dream is to realize several of these maquettes in a monumental scale via commission.
His larger works range from figurative to wildlife to abstract images that he has placed throughout the Midwest. A recent 9-foot sculpture has been installed in Lincoln, outside of the Lighthouse Building—with bronze children arranged on a stainless steel brace and covered with a cupola.
Montag says what drives his work is a “fire of dignity, truth and love. It is our quest, as students of the human masterpiece, to expose this flame and harness its uncontainable light, guiding our journey together.”
Connect Gallery, located at 3901 Leavenworth St is open Wednesday through Saturday, 11-5 p.m. and by appointment.