Mother Goose in ThinkSpace

The “geometry gallery” in ThinkSpace features changing displays of natural and handcrafted objects that provide strong visual representations of spatial thinking, highlighting shapes in everyday life and the designed environment. Discover the newest installation: scenes from favorite Mother Goose rhymes hand-carved from blocks of wood, complemented by colorful images from picture book illustrations.

The pieces are selections from Hey Diddle Diddle!, a larger display created by Dan Elkins and George Alexandre and previously exhibited in the Museum’s atrium walkway and lobby. Elkins and Alexandre were members of The Splinter Group, a local association of retired craftspeople who were active woodcarvers; Dan Elkins also created the circus carvings in the Museum’s stairwell.

“These wood carvings are a great example of spatial thinking because they involve working from 2-D images or illustrations of nursery rhymes and creating 3-D representations,” said Exhibits Director Robin Meisner. “And carving itself involves taking a simple block of wood, envisioning the final product and using a variety of tools to transform that block into a sculpted piece.”

The carvings will be on display for the next few months – take a peek to see Jack jump over a candlestick, a cow jump over the moon, and more!