Sculpture Studio Spring 2012

Project 1: Process
ANALYSIS

Process art is a unique form of art. It primarily focuses on the process of making the object and not the object itself. The process art movement led many artists to explore new materials for making artwork and experimenting with traditional materials. Jackie Winsor’s “Four Corners” is a great example of process art. She used wood and hemp to make a sculpture that looks like 4 balls together. She spent about six months wrapping twine around wood blocks. The process was being repeated with no intention of making it objective. Most of the artists during the process art movement were doing the same thing as Winsor, repeating a single action to make a sculpture. Different materials would have different results.

Stacking, hanging, bending, painting, dripping, nailing are some of the processes that have been used over and over by a lot of the artists during the process movement. They repeat them for long periods of time and end up with interesting pieces. Artists have also used the earth (natural materials) to create sculptures. Ana Mendieta was one of the artists that used grass and mud to make a silhouette of her own body. It has her own way of expressing her connection with the earth. Process art has almost never been objective. Some artists will not use a model or plan to begin working. They will often just get some materials and begin a sculpture by using the materials properties. (ex. Wood can be carved. The artist may start carving until there is no wood left and the pile of wood dust is the only thing left.) Although most artists don’t make objective pieces, there are some that include objects or form to their work. Janine Antoni and Ana Mendieta are good examples of the use of objects and form. They used a silhouette of their body to begin their sculpture and use process to change its appearance. Process art has had many interpretations from different artists but they all have the same method in common; using a same process throughout the entire art piece.