As Dr. Ciganko's grad assistant, I have to give 4 lectures this semester, and I'm trying to put one together on "space" - the 3D reality, not the set for Star Trek. Its for an art appreciation class for non majors, and I'm trying to organize my thoughts. I want to break down my lecture into the following parts; what space is, how we encounter space in the world, examples of space in famous works of art, and contemporary artists working with space. This is a list of things I have thought about touching on in class in no particular order:
-Banksy- a graffiti artist working in the U.K. In one work, he stencils DESIGNATED PICNIC space on the side of a dumpster in an alley, and in another stunt he tries to hang his own work in prestigious museums.
-the Vietnam War Memorial
-atmospheic perspective
-Spiral Jetty
-Claus Oldenburg
-Frank Lloyd Wright
-refridgerators. Ever watch commercials that show how new refridgerators are being redesigned to have more cubic capacity and shelf space than the ones in the past? Did you know they now can tell you the weather and tell your smart phone that you need milk? Seriously, refridgerators need internet connection now?
-high heels. Being elevated just a few inches means that I can now hit my head on kitchen cabinets that were left open. Also, I heard something about cars being designed so that the pedals are angled in ways that make easier to drive in heels, and buttons on the door are being repositioned to accomodate engagement rings.
-installation artwork
-optical illusions
-cubism
-Tilted Arc
-Tim Burton - I caught the end of Charlie and the Chocalote Factory the other day, and it struck me that the sets that he puts his characters in are distinctly his own. He pays attention to the details, and the spaces he creates are not spaces you are likely to run into on your way home from work.
-Christmas Village- there is a farm that I try to go to every year for Christmas. This farmer has the single most spectacular display of Christmas lights that exist in the known universe (I tried to post a link to the site, but I'm having trouble somehow). It takes 45 minutes to walk along the path, with Christmas lights on everything around you, and its impossible not to leave without the childlike wonder of Christmas. At any rate, you're driving along, minding your own business, and when you go over this hill, you can see the farm and it just blows your mind.
-linear perspective
-relief sculpture
-the %!*$ parking lot at Martins. I consider myself to be an intelligent person, but no matter what I do, I'm always driving so that the parking spaces are tilted away from me? It drives me up a wall.
-the ikea catalog. Ever notice that the spaces in home improvement magazines are so perfect, it looks like no one lives there? If you look at them enought, they don't look inviting, just downright creepy.
-Dexter Dalwood. He makes paintings about what he images it looks like in Mao's study, or Bill Gates' bedroom.
-How J.K. Rowling distorts space in the Harry Potter books so that to make things that Muggles understand be magical. Buildings can be bewitched so only wizards can see them, the Room of Requirement can expand to any size to accommodate what function it needs to serve. Also, people in portraits can move in and out of different pictures, thus traveling from place to place.
-ever sleep next to someone who hogs both sides of the bed?
I'd love to hear if this working list helps get you thinking about "space." I figure its way more interesting to hear about space how we navigate space in the everyday than to read about how the Italian Ren helped artists master mathematical space 400 years ago.
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