Blog #3

This week, week four, in lecture guest speaker, Sara Rabinowitz, spoke to the class about Fibers. She began the lecture with asking us what fibers were. I found this question interesting because when I think of fibers, what comes to my mind is tiny pieces of cloth that create an even bigger final product. My thoughts were basically in sync with Sara's description because she then wrote on the board that fibers included but were not limited to working with fabrics, weaving, and the smallest components that create something larger. Although, I had an idea of what fibers were, I really had no idea what fiber art was. I was pleasantly surprised when I viewed the photographs of art work Sara showed us. I was especially impressed with the work of Claire Zeisler. The reason I was so impressed was because she was able to create free standing pieces of her art work without using any metal or wood. Did I mention her art is made entirely out of fiber? Meaning she used a tedious and intense method of complex knotting of specific fibers such as thread fibers. The detail and precision in her work was truly amazing. One that stood out in particular, as we discussed in class, was her piece was free standing, composed of all red thread fibers, fell down to the floor and also included some complex detailed shapes within the piece as a whole. It was pretty apparent that there was a strong resemblance to the female sex organ. It was a bit of a shock once it was apparent what it looked like. Another piece of work I really found incredible was "knittaplease" which is a form of graffiti in which places and things within cities are covered with knitted pieces of art. One specific example is in Mexico City an entire bus was covered in colorful knit and it was amazing to see how much effort went into covering it as well as creativity. There were many more examples that Sara Rabinowitz provided in her presentation that were very easy to appreciate as well. 


In this weeks assigned reading, it wasn't so much a specific reading but rather a few links to look over having to do with Ann Hamilton (who was included in Sara Robinowitz presentation) and Cai Guo-Qiang. Both artists are known for using fibers to create wonderful pieces of art. My favorite link having to do with Hamilton was the link titled "untitled (body object series) which incorporated objects coming out of body parts. I found the idea of combining two things one from a human being and one from a nonliving thing and making art out of it to be so intriguing. I especially like the "basket case" piece of art because it is not only funny but also so very clever seeing how the "head" on top of the body is made of wicker while the remainder of the body is normal. Cai Guo-Qiang's work fits into a whole different category entirely when it comes to using fibers and objects to create a larger form of art work. It is actually mind-blowing to look at some of the work he has created. I was really taken back by his piece titled "Inopportune". Yes, it was partly because he literally suspended cars in the air while creating the scene of a horrendous car crash. The way he used different materials to express the vivid details in order to get a true reaction out of the audience amazes me. But it was also because of how explained why he created this piece that made it that much more interesting to me. He made a great point in an interview saying, "Ever since September 11th, the idea of terrorism is always on our minds. It’s ever so present. And while car explosions have been around for a long time, they have a heightened sense of reality in our minds. "Inopportune" obviously has a direct reference to these conditions that we live in now. But making an installation that is so beautiful and mesmerizing that also borrows the image of the car bomb already has inappropriateness in it"(Spirituality, Chaos, & "Inopportune"). This quote made the piece of art work that much more interesting to me because I agree with what he is saying & I like that he still pushes the boundaries a little bit and wants somewhat of a shocked and disturbed reaction. 


The lecture and readings are clearly able to connect to each other. Ann Hamilton's piece of art labeled "Indigo Blue"that was featured in Rabinowitz presentation was more about using fibers or more specifically hundreds upon hundreds of pairs of blue jeans to create a very large piece of art work based on the location of Charleston. This piece is able to connect with the rest of her work obviously because it is all by the same person, but it is important to note that it connects due to the fact the Ann Hamilton uses every day materials in her art and incorporates it in unique ways that most people would not think of. She also finds ways to shed light of issues that you wouldn't necessarily think would be brought up through a "pile of jeans" or a disfigured body that has different objects for body parts. Hamilton, Guo-Qiang, Zeisler are all trying to tell a story with there work especially through imagery that is hard to understand at first glance. All three artists also are showing off their incredible talent through detail, complexity, and unique ideas that really haven't been expressed before using materials and fiber that most would expect to create such amazing pieces of art. 

I chose this image because I think it is incredible how fiber can create such detailed and intricate objects that end up being displayed for all to say, especially when conformed from out of the ordinary materials, such as these paper pieces of clothing that one would expect to be made out of fabric.