This week when I after listened to Amanda Wojick’s lecture, I have a new understanding about sculptors. Honestly, the reason why I like her lecture because that the work she showed in the class are really amazing and cool, not like the sculptors in the past. And she has her own special though about these fantastic works, thereby, her lecture attracted me most. What is sculpture? Amanda said that ‘with impressive continuity it testifies to man’s evolving sense of reality, and fulfills the recessity to express what cannot be verbalized’.
Amanda informed us two themes, the first one is the use of abstraction, the distance between abstraction and representation, and the second one is the use of/approach to materials. She tried to explain that a work is abstraction when it is based on something real. Representational art is the thing that the artist is trying to depict where abstraction is inspired by nature and has no identifiable point. The first sculptor group piece she showed in class is named ‘9 women sculpture’. I found an interesting that most of these female artists worked with different material, they few like to work with one material at all. This character is fit the second themes which Amanda said. Among these sculptors, the one which leave a deep impression on me is ‘Arch of Hysteria’ made by Louise Bourgeois. I was shocked by this piece. Because a paralyzed body is arching their back as far back as possible, it’s truth to say that this behavior should be looked at helpless and immobile. But the feeling which I had is powerful, really powerful. I can’t reached the distance between abstraction and representation from this piece, but this little golden body contains an enormous amount of energy, it seemed like that if arch a little bit more, it will be hysteria. From an unprofessional point, I can feel a perfect interpretation of the name of sculpture, it can be considered successful~~In fact, in Louise Bourgeois’ work, I can see the delicate soft side in women’s heart.
But from Richard Serra’s work, I think his perspective is more from men’s view. Among a lot of his abstracted work, one made a deep impression on me is ‘Snake’. It was constructed by three pieces of weatherproof steels. At first look, when I saw this piece, I just saw three weatherproof steels. But when I saw the name, I tried to use my imagination to think it as snakes. It suddenly gave me more feeling. If I walked through the steel, it will be similar like to walk through the snakes because of the sharp of steel. It’s really amazing feeling! Like the author of this piece—Richard Serra said ‘You get involved with what effect the work has physically on your body as you walk.’ Thereby, the imaginations of viewer are this piece physical effect and it’s important to evaluate the value of artworks which from the audiences.
With the same spirit is this week's reading—Just Looking by James Elkins from ‘The Object Stares Back’. One main point that James makes is that we are all hunters when it comes to our site. He explained it like that we are just looking for everything and instead of hunting for the things what we actually looking for. Like when I watched the sculpture work the professor showed in class, at first look, I always think that: wow, it’s shinning, or it’s strange piece~My eyes would always stop at the surface of the work at first look, and there is no real in-depth knowledge to feel works. But like he stated, “ In thinking about these things, it is important not to become too enraptured with the idea that seeing is desire, because it tends to split seeing into the ordinary occurrences of life, when we behave as if seeing could be disinterested and passionless, and the reflective moments, when we become archaeologists of our desires.” Like when you went shopping, you said you like this clothes. But why? You must think it in psychology space and physical space, and then you may find the real reason why you like this piece. Moving to a wider theme, the connection between the theme of James and this week lecture is like the connection between looking sculpture in the physical space and viewing it on the screen. After Tyrras guided us to leave the lecture and view a piece on campus, I have a different feeling I never had before. This experience was special and interesting to know that the sculpture as an actual and touched physical thing instead of just an abstract image on a screen. Like the sculpture before Lilis Hall, I passed here everyday, but I never stop and watched it. When I looked it carefully today, I think that like Tyrras said it like a window which is same as my first opinion. And then I found that this big windows was made up by millions of small aluminium, only one end of them was fixed, the other end can keep swinging when wind passed. Listening to it carefully, I can hear some fantastic sound like the wind chimes. Then, suddenly, I felt the world around me become colorful. I think this is a magic of enjoying sculpture in the physical space. Tyrras said something which shocked me yesterday. She mentioned that she thought looking was a passive process, that it was just something that you do. We think, we feel, we understand…so many things are thought, felt, and reacted to when looking. Elkins described looking as hunting, it is really a kind of hunting!
This art work is from Antony Gormley. His best known works include the is this piece 'Angel of the North'.It is a steel sculpture of an angel, with wings. The wings themselves are not planar, but are angled 3.5º forward, which Gormley used to create "a sense of embrace". Aftet I saw it in the psychology space, I think that :I sometimes look a hole bored in the room, nothing happens, but gradually there is sunshine, come in through the window as, and then the dark corner of the room, will suddenly be sunshine, renders the Golden brilliant luster ... Meeting during that time I thought, no matter how boring life, will also have a certain corner, one in the morning, was illuminated by love ...
No comments:
Post a Comment