In 1977 a fire destroyed a vast body of Martin Puryear’s sculpture, as well as many of the artist’s worldly possessions. Resulting in what he called “a period of grieving followed by an incredible lightness and freedom” the event proved pivotal in directing the artist’s subsequent work. One year later, Puryear began a series of sculptures around the themes of movement and shelter. Sanctuary embodies what he described as “mobility with a kind of escapism, of survival through flight.” The sculpture appears to be in a state of arrested motion. This whimsical and sophisticated work reconciles a longing for stability with a need for change. By pairing the wild tree saplings with a carefully fashioned shelter, Puryear celebrated the beauty of wood in both its natural and refined states.
Date
Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.
A. James Speyer and Anne Rorimer, 74th American Exhibition, exh. cat. (Chicago: Art Institute of Chicago, 1982), 7, 39, cat. 47.
Kynaston McShine, An International Survey of Recent Painting and Sculpture, exh. cat. (New York: Museum of Modern Art, 1984), 259 (ill.).
Hugh M. Davies, Helaine Posner, Martin Puryear, exh. cat. (Amherst: University Gallery, University of Massachusetts at Amherst, 1984), 30 (ill.).
Deven K. Golden, Patricia Fuller, and Judith Russi Kirshner, Martin Puryear: Public and Personal, exh. cat. (Chicago: Chicago Public Library and Department of Cultural Affairs, 1987), 10, 18, 29 (ill.).
Ann Lee Morgan, “Martin Puryear: Sculpture as Elemental Expression,” New Art Examiner 14, no. 9 (May 1987): 28.
Colin Westerbeck, “Martin Puryear: Chicago Public Library Cultural Council,” Artforum 25 (May 1987): 154.
Susan Krane, Structure to Resemblance: Work by Eight American Sculptors, exh. cat. (Buffalo, NY: Albright-Knox Art Gallery, 1987), 40 (ill.), 43, 61, cat. 20.
Neal Benezra, Robert Storr, and James N. Wood, Martin Puryear, exh. cat. (Chicago: Art Institute of Chicago, 1991), 30, 84, 85 (color ill.), 136, cat. 17, 145, 148, 150-151.
Robert Hughes, “Delight in a Shaping hand,” Time, Mar. 2, 1992, 62.
Michael Brenson and Enrique Juncosa, Martin Puryear, exh. cat. (Madrid: Fundación “La Caixa,” 1997), 22 (color ill.), fig. 6, as Santuario / Sanctuary.
Susan F. Rossen, “Introduction,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 24, 2 (1999), 141.
John Elderfield, Michael Auping, Elizabeth Reede, Richard J. Powell, and Jennifer Field, Martin Puryear, exh. cat. (New York: Museum of Modern Art, 2007), 25-26, 130 (color ill.), 165, cat. 16, 175.
Bryan J. Wolf, “Up/Down in Two Sculptures by Martin Puryear,” American Art 25, no. 1 (2011): 22, 23 (color ill.), 24.
Mark Pascale and Ruth Fine, Martin Puryear: Multiple Dimensions, exh. cat. (Chicago: Art Institute of Chicago, 2015), 10, 84, 85 (color ill.).
Antawan Byrd, Elvira Dyangani Ose, Adom Getachew, Matthew S.Witkovsky, KJ Abudu, Project a Black Planet: The Art and Culture of Panafrica, exh. cat. (Chicago: Art Institute of Chicago, 2024), 148, fig. 201 (color ill.).
Art Institute of Chicago, 74th American Exhibition, June 12–Aug. 1, 1982, cat. 47.
New York, Museum of Modern Art, International Survey of Recent Painting and Sculpture, May 17–Aug. 19, 1984, no cat. no.
Chicago, Chicago Public Library Cultural Center, Martin Puryear: Public and Personal, Feb. 7¬–Apr. 4, 1987, no cat. no.
Buffalo, NY, Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Structure to Resemblance: Work by Eight American Sculptors, June 12–Aug. 23, 1987, cat. 20.
Art Institute of Chicago, Martin Puryear, Nov. 2, 1991–Jan. 5, 1992, cat. 17; Washington D.C., Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution, Feb. 5-May 10, 1992; Los Angeles, The Museum of Contemporary Art, July 26–Oct. 4, 1992; Philadelphia Museum of Art, Nov. 8, 1992–Jan. 3, 1993.
New York, The Museum of Modern Art, Puryear, Nov. 4, 2007–Jan. 14, 2008, cat. 16; Fort Worth, Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, Feb. 24–May 18, 2008, Washington D.C., National Gallery of Art, Smithsonian Institution, June 22–Sept. 28, 2008; San Francisco, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Nov. 8, 2008–Jan, 25, 2009.
New York, Morgan Library and Museum, Martin Puryear: Multiple Dimensions, Oct. 9, 2015–Jan. 10, 2016, cat. 41; Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5–May 1, 2016; Washington D.C.,
Smithsonian Institution. American Art Museum, May 26–Sept. 4, 2016.
Art Institute of Chicago, Project a Black Planet: The Art and Culture of Panafrica, Dec. 15, 2024–Mar. 30, 2025, no cat. no.; Barcelona, Museu d’Art Contemporani, Nov. 5, 2025–Apr. 6, 2026; London, Barbican Centre for Arts and Conferences, June 10–Sept. 6, 2026; Brussels,
The artist; sold through Young Hoffman Gallery, Chicago, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Dec. 20, 1982.
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