Sculpture Studio Spring 2012

Project 3: Site, Place, and Installation
ARTIST RESEARCH

Anthony Goldsworthy

Much of Anthony Goldsworthy’s work focuses on nature and objects found in nature. Unlike some other site-specific artists, Goldsworthy uses completely natural materials in their original environment. Due to his work in nature, Goldsworthy’s works are temporary, and mainly exist through photographs. His works explore the colors and the ephemeral qualities of nature.
            Born in England, Anthony Goldsworthy is a land artist uses the environment and explores the dialogue between man and nature. His works not only speak about the environment, but they are the environment, in the sense that his materials come directly from nature. The background of his materials is an important quality of his work. There are beautiful and astounding properties to the raw materials that nature provides him. If these materials were artificial, it wouldn’t come across the same. He is embracing the vibrant colors and the naturally interesting shapes that nature has created. The dialogue between man and nature in this instance is a coexistence between man and nature. It is built off of the idea that man and nature can inhabit one another, and man can alter and work with nature, ad not against it.

            Goldsworthy not only stresses the final result, but ends up drawing attention to the means by which he arrived at the final result. The act of assembling his artworks is the actual interaction between man and nature. In Goldsworthy’s case, there is a direct relationship between his materials and the location of his work.

           The relationship with nature gives his work such beautiful form and shape and color. His concentration on form should not be overlooked. His dome like forms he creates out of stone add a sort of natural monument feel to the environment. These are part of his Cairns project, and he creates these rock formations, which are placed in areas of significance. With these pieces, he uses only stones and balances and places them on top of each other with out any adhesive or techniques to directly connect them. His use of just the environment and its products allows for him to directly draw on the land, such as in Nature as Material.

           Goldsworthy pays attention to the surrounding environment as well, having the leaves in the pond emulate the trees above. His sculptures have a tendency to have a direct correlation, due to the fact that, in this instance, the leaves in the pond are the same as the ones growing on the trees. He takes what is in an environment, and through the interaction between him (man) and nature, he rearranges the order with careful concentration on the shape and form, and then returns them to their environment.

           Some of his works even cross over into the territory of kinetic sculptures. His piece, Winter Harvest, is a bunch of leaves woven together, and then placed in a pond. The grasses interacted with the pond, moving as the current was carried by the wind. He tied some of the leaves down with long thorns so they wouldn’t wander too far, but still would move along with every ripple.  Eventually, the piece sunk beneath the water, over a gradual period of time, disappearing forever.

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Sites:

http://d-sites.net/english/goldsworthy.htm
http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1610464,00.html
http://www.kon.org/urc/v9/interconnected-through-art/binkly.pdf
http://www.goldsworthy.cc.gla.ac.uk/extracts/

Andrea Zittel

            Andrea Zittel creates her spaces, and most of her work is focused around construction. She creates spaces in which she can “create an experience” out of,” which is important in her intention.

            One of her structures, “Indy Island” is fully inhabitable, and creates a new space on top of the water. The outside is reminiscent of a stoned, eroded by the tide, and sits neatly on top of a lake. The inside still hold the round interior and includes a living space. The goal of this sculpture was to investigate the different needs of a human being.  The inside is inhabited by different residents who modify the living space according to their individual needs and “host” the public viewing of this work.

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            Zittel has a whimsical nature which is exhibited in some of her structures. Her piece A-Z cellular compartment is reminiscent of a child’s play place.

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It is an apartment complex set up in different interconnected chambers. It is essentially multi level, but in order to pass between chambers, the inhabitant must crawl around in some cases.

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Sites:

http://www.zittel.org/

http://www.art21.org/artists/andrea-zittel

http://www.artnet.com/magazineus/features/saltz/saltz2-6-06_detail.asp?picnum=1