Cameron Art Museum to launch immersive inflatable sculpture exhibition this summer

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — A new exhibition at Cameron Art Museum is set to transform traditional ideas of sculpture into something light, interactive, and larger than life.

Fresh Air: Inflatable Sculptures opens to the public on June 19, with a member preview scheduled for June 18. The summer exhibition will fill the museum’s galleries with large-scale inflatable works, inviting visitors to experience contemporary art through movement, scale, and sensory interaction.

The exhibition features work by internationally recognized contemporary artist Nick Cave alongside Andy Warhol’s iconic Silver Clouds, an immersive installation of floating, helium-filled forms that has captivated audiences since its debut in 1966. Silver Clouds will remain on view through Sept. 26 in the museum’s Studio One Gallery.

Cave’s installation, Augment, will occupy the Hughes Wing gallery, using repurposed inflatable lawn ornaments to create a colorful, participatory environment. The piece continues Cave’s exploration of movement, visibility, and community, encouraging visitors to engage directly with the work.

In addition to Cave and Warhol, the exhibition includes pieces by contemporary artists Claire Ashley, Nicole Banowetz, Nancy Davidson, Tamar Ettun, and Momoyo Torimitsu, highlighting inflatable sculpture as an evolving and increasingly influential medium in the art world.

Museum officials say the exhibition emphasizes the temporary and ever-changing nature of these works. Made from materials such as air, fabric, and synthetic components, the sculptures shift in response to their environment and audience interaction, challenging the notion that art must be static or permanent.

Set throughout multiple gallery spaces, Fresh Air is designed as an immersive experience, allowing visitors to move through and around the installations.

“Fresh Air: Inflatable Sculptures brings a sense of energy, wonder and discovery to CAM,” said museum CEO Heather Wilson. “These works invite audiences to experience contemporary art in unexpected ways—through scale, movement, and direct interaction–making CAM a destination for the summer.”

Fresh Air: Inflatable Sculptures will be on view through September 6.