Robert Smithson's four works that i have chosen:
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| Glue Pour |
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| Partially Buried Woodshed |
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| Spiral Hill |
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| Spiral Jetty Chris Drury's four works that i have chosen: |
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| Stone Whirlpool |
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| Carbon Sink |
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| Flow and Time |
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| Whinnemucca Whirlwind |
The exhibition ‘Atmosphere’ will be held in GOMA Art gallery in Brisbane,
Queensland on the 27th of August 2012. As the curator I will launch
an exhibition for these two very similar artists with great works, Robert
Smithson and Chris Drury. The two artists have very similar works and they
would be meaningful to put them next to each other in the exhibition. The theme
of this exhibition is to do with earth, so the color schemes will be earth
tones and warm colors (such as reds, oranges and browns). I want the exhibition
to be eye catching when you walk in, so when an audience member enters the
exhibition, they should feel as though they are involved with the artwork and
really feel each and every element that the artists are trying to portray. These
works should be presented along a long wall, facing across from each other
(left and right), they should be in a white room because these works need to
stand out from each other and have specific differences. Drury’s works are
developed to express him and to show the world the earth is important and needs
to be known than more than just ‘the environment’. Where as Smithson shows his
works from a bird s eye view, rather than from an angle like most of Drury’s
work. They will work well together because both the artists have used earthy
tones and warm color schemes. There will be at least four or five pieces from
each artist. What will strike you the most when you walk in is how the works
stand out on the white wall because of their warm colors and earth tones.
Chris Drury’s piece ‘Carbon Sink’ is very similar to Robert Smithson’s piece ‘Spiral Jetty’. As the two pictures show
examples of how these two works relate, they are both earth works and both show
the meaning of their personal aesthetic. Both of these artists have very
similar bodies of work with the way they have used the environment as there
canvas. Both artists have used media and hands-on work to construct meaning,
because it is photography but it is created by hand. Their bodies of work were created
outside using a ‘spiral’ symbol; this shows that their works are very alike.
The photographs show that they are each taken on an angle or birds eye view. Their
techniques show that by just letting nature work it’s magic around your artwork,
you can form a beautiful piece.
Drury’s intention and subject matter of his
pieces are the changes and stages of life. This means just like a seed growing
into a flower, yet you get to see all the wonderful stages in between. He is a
land artist and all of his focus’s are about making connections (with nature
and the environment). Some of his works are laid out across the floor or set up
on the floor, in the exhibition I will have sections for Drury’s work that will
be presented on the floor. His works seem to make different connections between
occurrences in the world, specifically between; nature and culture, inner and
outer, macro and micro. It is said that he does not have a specific style nor
does he prefer one material or process over another. His works are focused on
attention and physical labor. The process of him making these pieces shows the
limitation and possibilities nature has but also the pure beauty nature can
create on its own.
Smithson’s pieces from his body of work “Earth Works” shows a variety of
different aspects from one idea. Spiral Jetty has become the most well known
work of this period. This work was created by putting the jetty in water and
let the tide come up and cover it by water, and from time to time the water
level drops and the jetty re-emerges. The materials that were involved with
this was the North shore of the Great Salt Lake in Utah and semi-permanent
installation of solid rock. Nature is the ruler of this work, it could change
any direction, form or shape and that is how Smithson got these photographs. He
was trying to achieve the artwork to mimic the shape of a natural occurring
land mass, his concept was to try and combine the idea, materials and environment
and portray how they are all interconnected. He created works for the open
expanses of deserts and industrial landscapes located outside urban cultural centers.
The exhibition will allow the audience
members to feel the elements and principles of both artists’ works. The
exhibition I will be holding will have 4 of Chris Drury’s works (Carbon Sink, Time and Flow, Winnemucca
Whirlwind and Stone Whirlpool) and there will be 4 of Robert Smithson’s
Works (Spiral Jetty, Glue pour, Spiral
Hill and Partially Buried Woodshed). These works definitely portray the
elements of line, texture, unity, color and so on. They depict these elements
and principles by the work of nature but also by both the artists setting the
pieces up and forming them to how they want the final outcome to look. The reason why the exhibition was curated was so that the artists work gets represented in a respectful and great manner. This way, both artists have the chance to set there work up in a gallery the way somebody else would like to see it (the curator and the audience members).
Bibliography:
http://chrisdrury.co.uk/carbon-sink/
http://www.robertsmithson.com/earthworks/ew.htm
http://www.kqed.org/assets/pdf/arts/programs/spark/321.pdf?trackurl=true
http://ryanhmills.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/mills-ryan.pdf
