ART 308 Project 1 Research

Eva Hesse
I was initially drawn to Hesse’s work because, while still foregrounding process in many ways, it combined an interesting mixture of organic and structured elements. In class, we determined that her process was largely centered around an exploration of her materials and medium, and, as I explored her work, I tried to consider how she used each piece to investigate her material. I also tried to consider what other aspects of process were prevalent in her body of work.

The first piece of Hesse’s that I was drawn to was an earlier piece called Tomorrow’s Apples (5 in White) (1965). This piece stood out to me because it was one of the first pieces that used mixed media rather than just oil on canvas. It was one of the pieces which began her exploration of materials. This work, however, does not necessarily foreground the issue of material exploration; it simply introduces her audience to her future work, which will delve more deeply into the process of exploring her medium.

Ennead (1966) was the second piece of work that caught my eye as I searched through Hesse's work. This piece definitely foregrounds the process of exploring materials because the work is based entirely around the string involved in the piece. The string is draped and knotted along the floor and the wall, and this is the primary element of the work. It’s structure is composed entirely of the activity of the string, and the piece displays this rather explicitly. The same is true for her piece Right After (1969) which was the third piece I identified with (in fact, it was this piece which drew me to Hesse in the first place). However, I feel that Right After is a more evolved study within the same material, and it displays a better understanding of how string drapes and moves and hangs within a given space.

Tara Donovan

Tara Donovan struck me as well because she also deals heavily with process. Her explorations within process are both similar and completely different from Hesse’s work because they both deal with material experimentation in different ways. Donovan allows the material to determine the structure, and she works with any resistence the material might show rather than against it. She also deals heavily with repetition and repetition as a form of meditation. The first piece that really enticed me was untitled and made of styrofoam cups glued to the ceiling in 2003. From far away it looks something like a beehive or a pixilated cloud, but with any examination at all one can see that it is made of cups. It is also apparent that the cups squeezed and melded together in many places, and the work includes that rather than masking it. Donovan works her material to the fullest by allowing it to determine what it is and how it exists within her space, and thus her work is original and unusual in its own respect.

Her work Colony (2003) has a similar effect. It looks like a city or (obviously) an ant colony from far away, but up close it’s apparent that it’s made of pieces of pencils arranged in a specific manner. With each piece, one can see intense repetition and care within the process, and one can also observe the intense voice which the medium takes on in Donovan’s work. The fact that the material becomes clearer the closer the audience is makes the material the focal point of each piece. The goal becomes discerning the medium and the manner in which it was arranged because, while it is apparent to an extent, some of her process does remain mysterious (otherwise why would the audience be so inclined to speculate?).

Another of my personal favorites from Donovan’s body of work was Nebulous (2002) which was made of scotch tape. I love this piece because it’s so obviously scotch tape, but it’s beautiful despite the fact that it’s made of a product I use on a daily basis. She makes beautiful pieces out of what we consider to be mundane materials, and it serves many purposes to the audience. It makes me, personally, question what I normally consider to be mundane. Now, within everything, there could be a work of art preparing to form if one were inclined to work with it rather than against it. I love Donovan’s work because it finds a way-- a creative and unusual way-- of giving art back to people who may have previously found it to be untouchable in a fundamental way.

Sculpture Studio Portfolio