Julian Voss-Andreae’s new monumental public sculpture "Thalia" was unveiled near the Chapel of St. Edward the Confessor at Casady School
There is a particular thrill in recognizing an artist’s work before the rest of the world has fully caught up — not as speculation, but as conviction. Every serious collector knows the feeling: looking back at an artist’s career and wishing one had paid closer attention earlier.
That is one of the reasons Julian Voss-Andreae’s new installation at Casady School in Oklahoma City feels especially meaningful to us. Casady has a history of collecting with vision. Years before Jaume Plensa became a familiar name in major public and private collections around the world, the school brought his sculpture Marrakech’s Soul to its campus. That instinct has clearly stood the test of time.
Now, Casady has commissioned Julian to create a major new sculpture for the same campus — a permanent outdoor work installed near the Chapel of St. Edward the Confessor. For those who already know Julian’s work, this placement feels like a natural next chapter. For those still discovering him, it is a reminder that important careers are often built quietly at first: through serious commissions, thoughtful collectors, and works that continue to deepen with time.
Julian Voss-Andreae’s work often brings together three ideas that have shaped his career: the human figure, quantum physics, and human rights. This new sculpture is a beautiful convergence of all three.
At first, the figure appears almost solid: a young girl seated quietly with her books. But as you move around the work, the body begins to shift, open, and at certain angles nearly disappear. In that sense, the sculpture is not fully understood from a single viewpoint. It unfolds in four dimensions: the three-dimensional form itself, and the time it takes for the viewer to walk around it and watch it change. It is one of Julian’s signature visual ideas — a reminder that what we perceive as solid matter is far less fixed than it appears. The sculpture moves between presence and absence, form and transparency.
The subject gives that idea a deeper human meaning. The figure is not heroic in the traditional sense; she is simply reading. In that quiet gesture, Julian connects the wonder of human existence with one of its most essential rights: education. The result is a work that feels both intellectually ambitious and deeply humane — a meditation on what we are made of, what we are capable of, and what every child should be given the chance to become.
For HOHMANN, the installation is an important moment in Julian’s ongoing career. It places his work in a setting where art is not decorative afterthought, but part of the daily life of a school — seen by students, faculty, families, and visitors as they move through the campus.
We are grateful to Casady School for recognizing the significance of Julian’s work and for giving this sculpture such a thoughtful permanent home.