Next date: Sunday, February 01, 2026 | 12:00 PM to 04:30 PM
Jesse Aaron: Spirit in the Wood is an exhibition that explores the artist’s intention to release, through carving, the familiar faces of spirit, animal, and human form from within the essential and life-giving material of wood. Aaron’s sculptures once surrounded his suburban home in Gainesville, Florida, first as faces that grew on living bark, warding off evil from anyone or anything wishing his household harm, and then later as stand-alone sculptures displayed in his covered, front porch studio, inviting curious students, inquisitive curators, and interested collectors alike into his gallery. Aaron described the journey into his artistic practice as following a literal call from his God imploring him, “Jesse, carve wood.” The divine message, which came to Aaron after he sought guidance on how to care for his wife’s ailing eyesight, came through the airy calm of a 3:00 A.M. morning on July 5th, 1968, and propelled the artist with a sincerity to create that transcended the initial financial urgency. “God put the faces in the wood. Don’t bring me a piece of wood and ask me to carve something out of it. ‘Cause I won't. Don’t tell me what you want, it might not be there, you understand?” -- Jesse Aaron
Mennello Museum of American Art, 900 E. Princeton Street, Orlando, FL, 32803, View Map
900 E. Princeton Street , Orlando, FL 32803
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General Admission