HOUSTON — Visitors to the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston can now step inside a massive, colorful art installation rather than just look at it.
“Ernesto Neto: SunForceOceanLife,” originally commissioned for the museum in 2019, reopened on Sunday. The site-specific installation is a 35-foot structure made of hand-woven paracord in bright orange, yellow, and green, suspended from the ceiling and weighing 6,000 pounds. Inside, walkable pathways are filled with hollow plastic balls reminiscent of a children’s ball pit.
Visitors must sign a waiver, leave their shoes in lockers, and wear museum-provided socks before entering. The experience challenges balance as the structure sways slightly with movement, with the highest point reaching 12 feet above the ground.
Mari Carmen Ramírez, Wortham Curator of Latin American Art, described the piece as a tribute to the life-giving forces of the sun and ocean, inspired by the crochet techniques Neto learned from his grandmother.
The installation will remain on view in Cullinan Hall of the Caroline Wiess Law Building through Monday, September 7, offering an interactive experience that engages both body and mind.
