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Inspired by Dali , Lachaise , and ... Goldberg ? !

6/25/2013

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          * * * * * * 
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Rube Goldberg - photo from newspaper article at the time of Goldberg's death in 1970
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Reuben Award - designed by Goldberg and awarded to the National Cartoonist Society's Cartoonist of the Year
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* Rube Goldberg bottle stopper - figure similar to those seen in the Reuben award
      When I am asked which artists were early influences on my work as an artist, my first response is to say Salvador Dali and Gaston Lachaise. I saw Dali's 'Apparition of a Fruit Bowl' at a museum in New York while on a high school field trip in the early 1960's, and was fascinated by his ability to mesh unrelated forms and somehow have them make visual sense (or non-sense, as the case may be). As for Lachaise, I was drawn to his powerful female figures and his ability to make heavy forms appear to be seemingly weightless. But there is another artist that should be included on my list... Rube Goldberg. I appreciate his work as the cartoonist who concocted countless cock-eyed crazy inventions and gadgets, but he was also an accomplished sculptor who did serious bronze works in addition to his more humorous pieces. 
      I like to think that I can see elements that are reminiscent of Goldberg's improbable, but somehow believable, mechanisms in both my 'Chutes n' Balls' bronze sculpture and my 'Portrait of the Artist' ceramic piece. Some of the balls would never fit through some of the openings, and some chutes have no entrances, some are without exits, but both can appear to be plausible. The clambering and entangled figures in my ceramic piece 'Verticle Scrum' remind me of a crowded and compacted version of the stacked cartoon figures featured in the Reuben Award designed by Goldberg. 
     There are certainly many cartoonists who 
are also accomplished fine artists, but it was Rube Goldberg whose sense of humor, imagination, and sculpting skills combined to provide another dimension to the artistic development of a 'young-ish' Connecticut woman in the 1970's.
           * * * * * *  
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'Chutes n' Balls' ... bronze ... 11" h
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'Vertical Scrum' ... ceramic ...18 1/2" h


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'Portrait of the Artist' ... ceramic ... 18" h
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          * This Goldberg bottle stopper from the 1930's was originally painted white and came in a boxed of 4 called "Booby Corks".   
                      
              ** For additional 'Chutes' and 'Portrait' information and images - see my blog entries for 
                       9/6/12, 2/6/13, and 3/11/13, as well as the slideshow section of my website.
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360 degrees ... the Magic Number in Sculpture

6/13/2013

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'Quandry'
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'Small No.1'
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'Pole Bender'
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'Small No.2'
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'12Balls'
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'Small No.4'
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    Our backs are frequently up against the wall... that is to say, our sculptural backs. At a recent art show I was commiserating with a fellow sculptor about the fact that sculptures are sometimes put on a pedestal and pushed back against a wall at shows. This is generally done simply to facilitate the flow of viewing traffic, without regard to 360 degree view needed to fully take in the complete composition of a 3-dimensional form. This not only limits the available views of the piece, but it often causes the piece to be overlooked entirely as viewers look "past" the piece to see what is on the wall behind it. Exhibit venues have varying amounts of display area and, obviously, it is important to establish a set up that allows for optimum viewing and movement throughout the space available. If space allows it, it is certainly in the best interest of gallery and artist to provide display arrangements that optimize viewing of all work. 
     One of the reasons I work in sculptural forms is that I appreciate the opportunity to explore and become a part of the actual space in which the work exists. I can "get to the other side" - and see it! I also enjoy the process of creating a 3-dimensional composition that can provide  viewers with visual clues that lead them through the forms, surfaces, and spaces that I have created. The impression that of a piece of sculpture makes can change, slightly or dramatically, as one moves around it, providing constant revelations about the true nature of its form. 360 degree access is essential... without that, it would be like looking at a black and white photo of an Impressionist painting or reading just the first chapter of a novel - you would be missing the full experience. So, the next time you pass a sculpture...stop and see what's on the other side.
                   
           *See full views of 'Quandry', 'Pole Bender', and '12Balls' in the Sculpture section of this website.
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    Author

    Cynthia Smith, Maine artist, originally from Connecticut. Taught art at secondary level for 35 years, retired in 2004. Sculpts in bronze, wood, stone, clay & plaster. Her work can be seen at several mid-coast Maine galleries and shows.

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