Sculpture Studio Spring 2012

Project 3: Site, Place, and Installation
ANALYSIS

Site specific art is any artwork that is installed in certain places. The meaning of the sculpture or installation is usually related to the landscape. Artists have been known to create work using only natural resources to change the landscape and use man made materials to create a memorial or representation of an area or event. Robert Smithson’s “Spiral Jetty” is an example of an artist changing the land using only natural resources. He built the jetty to add more beauty to a land that people thought was not appealing because it had been used for industrial work in the past. He gave the landscape a new image and therefore people would be more attracted to visit the area. Maya Lin’s Vietnam War Memorial is an example of a memorial built specifically for an event. The memorial located in Washington D.C is very significant because it is the nation’s capital. The structure looks like an open wound or cut which is what the war means to the country. The location that the artist chooses plays an important role as to what they are going to build.

(Vietnam War Memorial)

Artwork that is site specific can be temporary or permanent depending on what the artists intentions were during the time it was built. An installation can be temporary depending on several factors and artist intention. A natural installation can be temporary because it could be left in place and nature will slowly deteriorate it. The artist may want to observe how nature affects the landscape and can do that by building a sculpture in a specific place and then just watching it until it starts falling apart or it’s completely gone. Another reason for which an installation could only be temporary is because of the permits that an artist gets from the location’s owners. The permanent installations are left in place because it is a memorial or because it is representing a special location such as a university or park.

The type of art that is created usually depends on what the artist has worked with previously. If they have studied architecture, they are the ones that are most likely that will be designing the memorials. They are not limited to what they have worked with during their lifetime and can try new things such as working with landscape and natural sculptures.
Site specific art can have many benefits to any place. A memorial is the most common type of site specific art and it allows people to have something to remember people that have died during certain events or that have impacted the area in some way. The artwork can also add a more appealing appearance to a place. It is important that an artist can create something to improve the land because it can change the way people view the land. The disadvantage that could be possible with site specific art is that the artwork could cause unwanted and permanent damage to the land. It could be a large hole in the landscape or part of the land was eliminated when the structure was built. The artist needs to be really careful when designing and building the sculpture.

Image:http://www.art21.org/texts/the-culture-wars-redux/essay-the-black-gash-of-shame-revisiting-the-vietnam-veterans-memorial-