Roebling Hall is pleased to announce One Soft Infested Summer, a collection of new works by Doug Young. In his second solo exhibition at the gallery, Young’s sculptures are inspired as much by external phenomena as they are by the artist’s need to create understanding and meaning in his own life through discipline and work.

Far from saccharin, One Soft Infested Summer evokes the youthful faith that one can achieve anything as long as those moments of belief are not fleeting. This collection of works, inspired by the possibilities of nature and human ingenuity, reflect the fact that inspiration is only half the battle. For Young, the natural extension of wonder is hard work, discipline and fearlessness. Without these commitments nothing is begun or achieved.

The sculptures touch on a variety of subjects, from a recreation of a Cold War era nuclear launch center to the near ethereal inner workings of a snake. Such analytical treatment of subject matter is idealized in Young’s bat habitat, while his almost offensive use of a gorilla’s remains acts as a truce between life and material manipulation. All of Young’s pieces pay tribute to invention, and perhaps nowhere is this more obvious than in his overstated Braille wood relief describing one of his earlier landscapes. Humility and humor are pervasive in this exhibition and it brings us to the realization that when your hands are raw from work, love is not irrelevant.

Doug Young has exhibited widely in New York and Chicago. In 2001 he was awarded the Guinness Book World Record for the longest nonstop banjo performance in history—24 hours total.