Rutgers' Zimmerli Museum Unveils Abstract Outdoor Sculpture

A 13-foot-tall work constructed of high-grade aluminum and finished with a powder coating to ensure it remains pristine is the newest outdoor sculpture at Rutgers’ Zimmerli Art Museum on Hamilton Street.

“Past is Prologue” by artist Patrick Strzelec was recently installed on the front terrace of the museum on Hamilton Street.

In “Past is Prologue,” Strzelec, who is renowned for his abstract sculptures, has created a circuit of lines that rise from the ground and curve around each other in an infinite flow.

“Patrick Strzelec has created a beautiful evocation of thought as it rises, twists, turns, and expands into a powerful idea,” said Donna Gustafson, the Zimmerli’s chief curator who coordinated the project before her retirement. “Patrick wanted to create an homage to the class that acknowledged the 1960s as a time of tumultuous change. I think he has done so.” 

The project is representative of the spirit of the Rutgers community and the Zimmerli in supporting art and culture, especially for the benefit of the broader public. 

Tom Sokolowski, who served as the Zimmerli’s director from 2017 until 2020, conceived the project in 2018. He invited Strzelec—who was a faculty member for a decade at Mason Gross School of the Arts, before retiring in 2020—to present ideas for a patio sculpture to a museum committee and the Class of 1965, which funded the commission.

Strzelec sought to design “a monument that is a song to that 1965 class. It seeks to reflect their magic, their trajectory, their innocence, the fervor to do right, that this might live with us - and on this campus - forever.”

According to the museum, the sculpture is intended to represent the bending of the circle of history. The linear cluster is a 240-foot continuous line that never intersects, but touches at strategic points - a deconstruction of the circle. The line establishes dialogues of history and individual efforts that, together, create movement and growth. It also captures the importance of gaining insight from the past, especially to avoid repeating detrimental cycles. The aerial structure that explodes into the sky encourages hope and optimism.

“Past is Prologue” is the Zimmerli’s second outdoor sculpture at the museum. It joins George Segal’s “Walking Man,” which was installed in 2015 at the northwest corner of George and Hamilton streets and made possible by the Class of 1950 in celebration of their 65th Reunion. Both sculptures are available for visitors to view any time that is convenient for them.

The new sculpture is the fourth work by Strzelec to enter the Zimmerli’s collection, preceded by the 1991 sculpture “Halo” and two untitled etchings from 1992.

The installation of “Past is Prologue” on the front terrace is an important part of ongoing improvements to the building. In 2023, the terrace, adjacent to the museum’s front entrance, was renovated with picnic tables and seasonal planters to create a unique and relaxing spot for outdoor dining or meeting with friends and colleagues. The project has been managed by Rutgers University Institutional Planning and Operations Project Services.

“We are thrilled to have been able to fulfill Tom Sokolowski’s wish to install a stunning sculpture on our front patio with the generous support of the Class of 1965. The ‘Past is Prologue’ by Patrick Strzelec is an extraordinary new addition to the museum’s collection and an exciting installation at our front entrance that can be appreciated by all who visit the Zimmerli,” said director Maura Reilly.

Strzelec lives and works in Bucks County, Pa. He received his master of fine arts degree from Mason Gross School of the Arts, and prior to his tenure at Rutgers he was the Rudolph Arnheim Lecturer in Sculpture at Harvard University. Some commissions include The Holocaust Museum in Washington, the city of Princeton, Berlin and Dickenson College, Carlisle, Pa. His work can be found in public and private collections throughout the United States and Europe.

In addition to being the 2020 recipient of the Outstanding Educator award by the International Sculpture Center, Strzelec has received awards from the Rutgers Presidential Fellowship award for teaching excellence.

He was also awarded the John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship, the Ballinskelligs Project in Ireland, the Rome Prize in Italy, the National Endowment for the Arts and numerous New Jersey State Council for the Arts grants. He has shown with the Michael Schultz Gallery in Berlin, Jay Grimm Gallery, Gary Snyder Fine Arts and Barbara Toll Fine Arts in New York City and OH&T Gallery in Boston.

Story By: Chuck O'Donnell
Photo Credit: Zimmerli Art Museum