Sculpture Studio Spring 2012

Project 3: Site, Place, and Installation
ANALYSIS

Site-specific art is art contingent on one major element: the location of the piece.  The artwork’s existence is dependent on the space in which it exists.  This space may be tangible, like the human body, it may be public, like a playground or memorial, and it may integrate community members in its conception, like a community mural.  Site-specific work can be found in and outside a gallery space, but, when it is transported to another space, its meaning will be altered. 

The meaning of a piece of art is incredibly correlated to the location or placement of that piece.  One example that we have discussed in class a few times is Michelangelo’s sculpture, “David.”  Currently, the idealized male form carved from marble is on exhibition at Galleria dell’Accademia in Florence, Italy. Inside a gallery space, the sculpture is physically and conceptually elevated.  The language of the space transforms how the viewer interacts with the piece, transforms how the viewer believes he or she should interact with the piece.  But when visitors to the town hall in Florence see the replica of “David,” where the piece originally stood, it’s meaning takes on very different tones. The statue represents the biblical hero, David, the most famous underdog.  Placed outside of Florence’s town hall, “David” faces Rome, signifying Florence’s strength as a city-state, and as a warning to those who might question that power. The physical aspects of “David’s” form, the idealized and artist qualities of the piece are what viewers in the gallery, but in the streets of Florence, outside a political building, “David” is representative of much greater ideals.  Not only does the difference in physical placement call on this difference, but the accessibility of the two locations also harks differences in interpretation.  The pedestrian is the viewer outside the town hall, while the relationship between a gallery visitor and the piece of art is much more defined—one pays to enter the gallery, expects to see this piece, and is instructed socially how to interact with it.  We are quiet in galleries, we walk around the art, we do not touch the art, we take pictures of the art, and then we move on to the next piece of art.  Whereas there are no security guards outside of Florence’s town hall to keep pedestrians from climbing on the replica of Michelangelo’s famous sculpture.

Site-specific art has the benefit of incorporating yet another element into its creation: the location.  But there are some possible drawbacks from installing a site-specific piece.  One might be that while the artist may have control over his or her art, he or she does not have control over the space, usually.  If the piece is installed outside, the artist must take weather and the elements into consideration.  If the piece is installed in a public space, and is physically accessible—much site-specific art is also interactive, the artist must consider how those who interact with the piece will treat it.  I recently installed a piece on the St. Mary’s campus in a public space.  This piece was to be used by pedestrians, but I was incredibly anxious of vandalism or general misuse of the structure.  It took a while for me to come to terms with the fact that once I had installed the piece in a public space, it was no longer my art, but the community’s, that any interaction with it was exactly what I had hoped for; I could not tell people who to use the art, how to experience it—that was up to the individual.

Site-specific art can bring communities together, like murals, memorials, and even playgrounds in parks.  Through creating art that is dependent on the space it belongs in and to, the artist allows the viewer to experience a space, possibly one he or she has known for years, in a different way.  Experiencing something unexpected, something new, maybe even something inspiring, from art that incorporates its space can allow for very stimulating art.