Art21: "Balance" (S6, E2)

            In this episode of Art21, the artists featured were Rackstraw Downes, Robert Mangold, and Sarah Sze, touching upon the idea of "balance."

Rackstraw Downes painting. 2012. "Balance," Art21

            Rackstraw Downes was born in Kent, England, and is often described to be a Realist Landscape painter. He doesn't precisely consider himself either of them, because to see and represent something are two acts that are culturally taught, and in terms of being a landscape painter, he said, "I don't think of myself as a Landscape Painter... I like to say I paint my environment, my surroundings... Surroundings implies that the landscape does really curve around you because I follow the curve. I see that curve also expressed this way on the canvas." As such, he sees himself as painting his surroundings and environment, all based upon a curve that is a trademark in his paintings. He feels that when you look at an artwork, you look at it through the "wandering eye," to which you look at it in parts until it forms a complete whole. Especially in terms of his "curve" compositions, our eyes do move around his work until we are able to see the "complete picture." Although many of his works convey a sense of perspective, Rackstraw isn't interested in focusing upon it, because as he said, "everything changes." However, he is fascinated with empty space and things that sound minuscule in his environment, like the markings on the floor or walls of a structure. To himself, "it looks empty, but I see fullness there. And I'd like you to see that fullness too in my painting." One work I wanted to highlight is his 110th and Broadway, Whelan’s from Sloan’s from 1980 and 1981 (pictured below). Although I understand that this isn't a landscape painting per-se, I really admired the sense of the city atmosphere. The city looks bright, and the brightness is conveyed beautifully by how the light glistens on the cars, streets, sidewalks, sky, and the people walking by. I found myself looking at this work from right to left, as the cars and people were moving toward that direction. I felt that I was physically in the city, walking around with the pedestrians walking past. The city feels welcoming and warm, all thanks to the atmosphere and empty space Rackstraw utilizes. It feels like an ideal day where you wake up and say, "it's a beautiful day, why not take a walk for a change?"

110th and Broadway, Whelan’s from Sloan’s (1980–81) Oil on canvas. 21 1/4 × 38 1/8 in. Collection of the Museum of Art, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI.

Robert Mangold working on one of his Ring Paintings. 2012. "Balance," Art21

            Robert Mangold is a Minimalist Artist from New York. When he was younger, he was very "connected" to what was happening in New York, and was influenced by the later Abstract Expressionism, after Pop Art arrived and Minimalism was coming. What fascinated him the most was that he appreciated the idea of this time as a means of "starting over." The Art21 episode highlighted one of his collections in particular, his Ring Paintings (pictured below) from 2012. His Ring Paintings consist of circular rings and vertical lines bending around them. He starts by drawing out his plans on paper before he works on canvas because he wants to see how it's going to look. For him, "they're really all tryouts. In some cases, one idea follows another, and in some cases, it doesn't. Although there isn't really a story or narrative that exist for this series, he said "it was the idea of what was missing that is in a lot of my work. It keeps coming back in one form or another. By taking away the center, that forces the viewer to step further. It's like the main course isn't there, and you're having to deal with everything around what would normally be the main course." In other words, this series was meant to be open-ended enough for the viewer to be able to decide for themselves what they want to take away from these works. Although I found these aesthetically pleasing, as the "circle" in general is a very calming, balanced shape, and I appreciate the idea of having the idea of the works be open-ended, the works all seemed very similar to one another. There was some variety in how the rings looked, for instance, there were some that were split into two halves, or how each one has its own line circling around it. Otherwise, these rings felt so similar to one another that I found it hard to grasp how I might have a different reaction to each if each one feels almost the same as the other. However, I think that is also admirable for the work, because if each felt too drastically different then the works wouldn't be able to maintain the balance or symmetry that they each seem to uphold. I like the simpleness of them; I like the openness of them. They all seem very abstract but also concrete, though their openness and their simplicity.

 

Ring Paintings (2011). Installed at The Pace Gallery, New York. Photo by Kerry Ryan McFate.

Sarah Sze Going over Plans for Still Life with Landscape (Model for a Habitat). 2012. "Balance," Art21

            Sarah Sze is an Installation artist from Boston, Massachusettes. Her sculptures come from utilizing everyday objects and combining them together into a fantastical, architectural piece. Her work is meant to balance the ideas of fantasy with ecological themes of sustainability. These ideas as ever-present in her Still Life with Landscape (Model for a Habitat) that was present in the New York Highline from June 8th 2011, to June 6th 2012 (pictured below). It began when the New York Highline was set to be demolished, but public outcry convinced the city to let it remain and turn it into a park. To Sarah, "the piece that I conceived was a kind of habitat. You have all of these birds, butterflies, insects there, and I wanted to make a location where you would observe them on the high line." The piece also plays with the idea of one-point perspective, "to trick our eyes into seeing deep space," as she puts it. She liked the idea of putting her sculpture in a place that people would have to walk through, as the "walk" serves to be the sculpture's negative space. Therefore, the viewers themselves are viewing and participating within the sculpture. I found this work to be incredibly profound in its message of conservation whilst looking abstract and pleasing to the eye. I was a bit concerned that despite the work being a habitat for the birds and wildlife on the Highline, I was worried that maybe the birds might get hurt by the sharp points of it, as the metal points jut forward and at an angle toward the sky. However, upon Art21 showcasing this work and the birds sitting by the birdhouses, I supposed the work was safe enough for the birds. Besides, I also took heed that Sarah also heavily researched the birds and wildlife of the area, making sure that it was sustainable and allowed anyone to come and utilize it. This factor alone made me appreciate the work all the more, as not only did Sarah want to make something that was aesthetically pleasing to the people, she also didn't make the work too "industrial" for the wildlife to be strayed away. The work unified both the city and animals together harmoniously, and that is what I found to be the most important aspect of this work. Despite the Highline work being in a very populated area, most of her other works utilize spaces that go unnoticed or unoccupied.  "Often, with my work, it'll be in a corner, or it'll be behind a stair, it'll be near the freight elevator, so that your experience of first is 'What is this?' For me, most interesting art always has that question in it."

Still Life with Landscape (Model for a Habitat) (2011). Stainless steel and wood. Overall dimensions: 9 × 22 × 21 ft. Commissioned by The High Line, 2011. Photo by Bill Orcutt.

* This episode was 54 minutes and 28 seconds long.*