Art 308: Sculpture Studio

Monica Milstead

Project 2- Kinetics and Interactiviy
ANALYSIS

When artwork must directly engage the audience, the work must have some cue that holds out an invitation in order to say that is okay for the viewer to touch, walk in, or otherwise alter or become part of the space.
Traditionally an artwork is meant to be looked at. In the realm of traditional painting and sculpture and traditional gallery or museum behavior, the audience is meant to be just that. A spectator, not a participant. It is the valued nature of these objects that creates that impression: signs that say do not touch, ropes or boundaries that hold the viewer back from engaging directly with a piece.
And so in constructing a piece that is to be interactive, the artist must know how to engage with the viewer and eliminate that uncertainty of whether or not the viewer is allowed to enter or touch. For example, in “Green Light Corridor” Bruce Nauman has done so by creating familiar settings (halls) lit by eerie, unfamiliar things (neon lights) in order to lure the viewer into experiencing them.

"Green Light Corridor" (1970)

After making sure that the viewer is aware of the level of interactivity, the artist must also be aware of how the viewer may be affected by the work. I have been looking at artists who construct spatial environments which the viewer is meant to explore. Works by Nauman and Richard Serra end up being automatically interactive because they are larger than the viewer. Physically they enact a presence upon the viewer that already alters the viewer’s perception and mental state. These structures are active on the passive viewer, and the viewer responds by actively engaging and exploring these spaces. Interactivity here is brought to the forefront by the aspect of entering and being affected by a setting that the artist has made. Each element that the artist may include will have a physical and psychological effect, especially if the setting completely encompasses the viewer’s body.