BRUCE CAHN | Woodstock Work | Cross Contemporary Art Projects

Overview

Opus 40 presents works on paper and sculptures by the late Woodstock artist Bruce Cahn (1942 - 2020). Cahn's work is known not only for his accomplished techniques but also for his powerful symbolic imagery. These artworks range from abstract mandalas that boldly chart a spiritual journey to hand-carved, figurative sculptures influenced by his teacher and colleague, Harvey Fite, the artist who created Opus 40.

About Bruce Cahn:
Born in the Bronx, Bruce Cahn led an eccentric, artistic life driven by an all-consuming desire to absorb himself into an ongoing creative process. The son of a prominent New York City caterer, Cahn spent his childhood comfortable but socially disinterested, preferring to spend time sculpting and drawing. After graduating from Horace Mann High School, Cahn studied with sculptor Harvey Fite at Bard College and José Mariano de Creeft at the Arts Students League in New York City. Bruce Cahn worked obsessively in his small apartment/studio and, later, in his Woodstock, New York cottage. Apart from a solo exhibit at the Horace Mann Fisher Gallery, Bruce Cahn avoided showing his artworks during his lifetime to avoid being distracted from his intensive art practice. In 2024, Bruce had his first international solo exhibition at Castello 925 in Venice, Italy, and this solo show at Opus 40 is his first in his adopted hometown.

About OPUS 40:
Created over four decades by visionary artist and Bard professor Harvey Fite, Opus 40 is a 6.5-acre earthwork made of finely fitted bluestone, rising out of an abandoned quarry at the foot of Overlook Mountain in Saugerties, NY. In 1978, Fite’s widow, Barbara, established the nonprofit Opus 40 Inc, opening the sculpture, along with 63 acres of meadows, walking trails, bluestone quarries, as well as the Quarryman's Museum to visitors from all over the world. Today, Opus 40 offers a diverse selection of events in a wholly unique setting that Architectural Digest has called “one of the most beguiling works of art on the entire continent.”