Spring Break
Spectacular Sculpture
by Aaron Finegold
Arts | 3/13/07
Posted online at 11:04 PM EST on 3/12/07
Students of the sculpture studio art classes this semester displayed their dynamic and imaginative work in the Dreitzer Art Gallery. Work from Prof. Tory Fair's (FA) "Implicating the Body in Sculpture" and Prof. Christopher Abrams' (FA) "Sculpture in the New Media," classes, as well as all the work from 3-D design classes, is currently on exhibit. The shapes, colors and statements of their work are technically impressive and artistically astounding.
Arianna Baum-Hommes '09 created a piece with both a deft attention to the human form and a statement of ideology that is thought-provoking, perhaps even visionary. The work involves four white hands. Two dressed in pagoda sleeves emerge from a wall; over the left one are white stars over a blue background. The right one is made of red and white stripes. From each hand's thumb and index finger hangs a thin white string that descends toward the ground, yet falls just short of the second pair of hands, which are installed on the floor.
The hands themselves are frighteningly realistic, their gestures unbelievably human. Their skin tone makes them look phantomlike and sickly, serving as a striking and effective contrast to the bold patriotic colors and patterns depicted on the sleeves. That dichotomy, combined with the marionette-like setup, is vague: Is the American government a puppeteer or the puppet of blind jingoism?
But the artist made serious aesthetic considerations in addition to symbolic ones: The eye is drawn to several points along one linear path to sustain emphasis, especially important given that comprehending the piece in one glance is impossible. The strings, which are not visible from afar, are a pleasant surprise once close-up and serve as a map, guiding the eye and creating movement.
Fair's "3-D Design" class worked to create wire heads, which were all very well done, but one of the pieces was especially innovative and beautiful. It involved a wire face and skull connected by a hierarchy of concentric circles. The hair and camera film inside the head, however, formed spirals. Despite its tremendous variety, the piece still maintained unity and balance through its variation of concentrated and relaxed (open and bunched) areas, as well as through structural variations and changes in medium. The film and the wire are about the same color, a coppery-brown tone, but the severe differences in texture and width make the piece work in a varied, yet highly balanced way.
Arianna Baum-Hommes '09 created a piece with both a deft attention to the human form and a statement of ideology that is thought-provoking, perhaps even visionary. The work involves four white hands. Two dressed in pagoda sleeves emerge from a wall; over the left one are white stars over a blue background. The right one is made of red and white stripes. From each hand's thumb and index finger hangs a thin white string that descends toward the ground, yet falls just short of the second pair of hands, which are installed on the floor.
The hands themselves are frighteningly realistic, their gestures unbelievably human. Their skin tone makes them look phantomlike and sickly, serving as a striking and effective contrast to the bold patriotic colors and patterns depicted on the sleeves. That dichotomy, combined with the marionette-like setup, is vague: Is the American government a puppeteer or the puppet of blind jingoism?
But the artist made serious aesthetic considerations in addition to symbolic ones: The eye is drawn to several points along one linear path to sustain emphasis, especially important given that comprehending the piece in one glance is impossible. The strings, which are not visible from afar, are a pleasant surprise once close-up and serve as a map, guiding the eye and creating movement.
Fair's "3-D Design" class worked to create wire heads, which were all very well done, but one of the pieces was especially innovative and beautiful. It involved a wire face and skull connected by a hierarchy of concentric circles. The hair and camera film inside the head, however, formed spirals. Despite its tremendous variety, the piece still maintained unity and balance through its variation of concentrated and relaxed (open and bunched) areas, as well as through structural variations and changes in medium. The film and the wire are about the same color, a coppery-brown tone, but the severe differences in texture and width make the piece work in a varied, yet highly balanced way.
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