Face-to-face: Meijer Gardens’ “BUSTED” exhibit revolutionizes the way we see our shared humanity

Enter any of the three galleries in Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park’s latest exhibition and you’ll be greeted by dozens of faces staring back – some serious, some playful, some alluringly veiled. BUSTED: Contemporary Sculpture Busts may draw from a classic form, but what you see from the 16 featured artists is far from traditional.

This isn't about rigid emperors or saints; it's about us, all of us.

Curated by Suzanne Ramljak, vice president of collections and curatorial affairs, BUSTED offers visitors a rare, intimate encounter during a time when our well-documented loneliness epidemic persists. 

Courtesy of the artist(from left to right) Elia Alba. Bust (Simone), Bust (Yumi & Paul), Bust (Michael), all 2009.

“This show is designed for people,” Ramljak says. “It’s about people. And there’s certainly someone for everyone in this group – all from the waist up, mind you.”
At a time when identity politics, AI avatars, and selfies dominate the cultural landscape, the bust—a sculpture depicting the head and torso—has emerged as a pressing area of investigation at Busted.

“I've had a file on this idea for years,” Ramljak says. “But something’s happening now. Identity, visibility, representation—these are no longer sidebar conversations in art. They're central.”

Cracking open the tradition

Featuring pieces crafted from a range of materials, including rose-gold-plated brass, salvaged wood, silicone, porcelain, and holography, BUSTED truly lives up to its name. 

Courtesy of the artistMichael Ferris Jr. Nora (detail), 2021.

“As the exhibition title suggests, contemporary artists have cracked open this ancient tradition,” says Ramljak. “They’re activating a critical dialogue about who we are, how we are remembered, and the ways in which bodies carry meaning.”

Artists such as Salvador Jiménez-Flores (a graduate of Kendall College of Art and Design) and Layo Bright craft captivating self-portraits that ditch the trappings of centuries-old imagery, instead weaving together vibrant botanical and cultural elements from their Mexican and Nigerian roots, respectively. 

Courtesy of the artistElise Siegel. rough edges, 2015 – 2023.

“They’re re-embedding their identities into their work,” Ramljak says. “It’s not just about their likeness—it’s about their culture, their stories, their future.”

Others, such as Paul McCarthy, bring humor and critique to the table. His latex bust, topped with a distorted Guggenheim Museum design that resembles a headpiece, is a mix of art-world satire and provocative grotesquerie. Meanwhile, Michael Ferris Jr.’s massive busts—crafted from found wood and featuring colorful inlays—turn discarded materials into vibrant personal tributes to loved ones, a theme (once again) that's all too familiar to social media users who share similar assemblages. 

“Michael Ferris Jr. is turning trash into treasure,” Ramljak says. “And he’s doing it through a tradition rooted in his Lebanese heritage.”

A gallery organized like a mixtape of humanity

With Busted, Ramljak divided the work into three main themes. The first, Personal Pantheon, shines a light on everyday heroes like friends, family, and mentors, rather than famous people or royalty. Clothing Culture examines how materials can convey stories—things like plastic grocery bags, fine textiles, or polished brass hardware, each one revealing a piece of our culture. And Recasting History encourages viewers to rethink the stories we're used to, even adding Muppets and fictional characters to the list of cultural icons.

(from right to left) Salvador Jimenez-Flores. Nopal Espacial/Space Cactus (detail), 2019. Courtesy of the artist. Layo Bright. Luffa Acutangula (Loofah), 2019. From the collection of Daniel Nguyen, MD, MBA.

She says this structure reflects how we navigate the world, switching between personal memories, cultural experiences, and historical context. 

“Each piece is a conversation,” Ramljak says. “And together, they form a kind of cocktail party of perspectives.”

Accessibility as artistic value

But the exhibition isn’t just about intellectual connections or high art theory. It’s also about accessibility, literally and figuratively.

Artist Barry X Ball (second from right) with guests in front of his Hester Diamond (2015 – 2024), from BUSTED: Contemporary Sculpture Busts’ opening reception.

For the first time, Meijer Gardens has placed special signs at a child's height and translated complex themes into simplified language to better engage more visitors. The exhibition even lowered some pedestals so young visitors can see the busts face-to-face. An "Exhibition Youth Guide" further encourages participation, expanding on the opportunity to foster greater intellectual curiosity among young viewers.

“This is a show where kids don’t have to look up and feel left out,” Ramljak says. “They can meet these faces on their own level. The bust format, like the selfie, is inherently familiar. It’s how we see ourselves.”

It's not just the height that makes this exhibition accessible. The diverse range of subjects—spanning from friends and colleagues to occasional pop culture characters like Kermit the Frog of The Muppet Show fame—demonstrates a deliberately inclusive, radical approach to curation where the viewer is called in, not out.  

“There’s a democracy to this exhibition,” Ramljak says. “Not just in who is represented, but in how.”

Seeing ourselves in sculpture

At a time when digital avatars and instant impressions dominate, BUSTED offers viewers something genuinely human: the experience of looking into someone's face ... without the annoying pop-ups that constantly disrupt our view digitally. 

“The bust is the most concentrated surrogate for the individual,” Ramljak says about the power of the face to reveal social clues. “It gives you the core—our faces carry so much of the survival information we use to read each other.”

Unlike a flat image, a sculpture demands time from us – time to experience and appreciate its unique qualities, which BUSTED has in abundance, so please set aside extra time to take it all in.

“You can stare as long as you want,” Ramljak says. “This exhibition invites you to study, to reflect, to connect.”

As part of Meijer Gardens’ 30th anniversary year, BUSTED complements both its globally significant exhibition David Smith: The Nature of Sculpture (Fall/Winter 2024-25) and the upcoming Jaume Plensa: A New Humanism (Fall 2025).

“David Smith showed us the breadth of modern sculpture,” Ramljak says. “And Jaume Plensa's career survey will explore his views on the human condition. BUSTED lives right in the middle—it's about everyone.”

To learn more about BUSTED: Contemporary Sculpture Busts at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park and its related events, visit this website.

Photos courtesy of Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park and Rapid Growth's Tommy Allen.