Hi Folks.
You can go ahead and start reading the excerpt called "Tony Cragg" from the Art 172 readings page-- I'll give you til a week from Monday just because I didn't assign it last Wednesday (even though it won't take long to read!) I'll show the very excellent video about Tony Cragg on Monday in addition to your work time. If you haven't responded to our last reading on this blog, please do!
Thanks
Shannon
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Tony Cragg's concept of human beings becoming intelligent and therefore objects created by a process are a reflection of this intelligence is a philosophy that paints a landscape for all materials, by way of process, to potentially be objects of art. This concept may potentially raise the question of, "Then what makes art, artwork" Is it, simple adoration or aversion of the ascetics, fabrication process, or concept? Adoration/aversion of the maker, the makers intelligence, or personal history? I think the answer these questions is that all of these aspects of an artist and their artworks are what make art exist... so it is impossible for an anyone to create without expression in one way or another. I ask myself sometimes, "What areas of art have not been explored, or what can be explored further?" And I think Cragg would agree when I say, "The answer is everything."
It was interesting to read how Tony Cragg saw the materials that he worked with. He wanted to give meaning to the materials by developing the "history, myhtology, meaning and beauty." When I think about the materials that I work with, I don't see it as developing the material itself into something, but using the material to develop or visualize an idea. Cragg also mentions this concept when he talks about having a dialouge with the material. Either way, the material plays a more important role than a lot of people realize. Cragg even studied the atmic structure of materials that he worked with so he knew what he could do with it. Working with the material is also more effective than just sitting around thinking about what to do. Playing around with the material makes it easier to develop ideas.
I think it’s very interesting to read about Tong Cragg and what he thinks of the materials he used and the process of his work. Each material has its own physical quality and the balloon around it such as its history, mythology, meaning, and beauty. And the art is in giving the thing more meaning, mythology and poetry is the art. It’s like our first project about plastic. Plastic is a material that mankind developed that has these physical qualities, which no other materials have, and a lot of associations around this material. For example, although it is light and easy to use, it is considered to be cheap or environmental friendly enough. The art we produce for this project all somehow plays with these ideas about plastic. I think it’s great to be reading about famous artist’s solution to the same problem we are working on.
According to Tony Cragg mentioned from both the video and the article, he can create his sculptures based on his own knowledge. Also, it could be based on his observation or creation before making structures ranging from ordinary to extraordinary. Besides, people can bring aspects to any object, such as seeing a crab or lobster before making an image or a similar likeness of it. Tony may do all kinds of numerous things with sculptures that make it possible, such as statues or sculptures which are formed in an irregular sphere, cone, cylinder, egg, pyramid, box (square or rectangle), and many more. Making sculptures done by Tony Cragg's work represents some sort of landscape art. Some of his works are consisting of laced patterns, filled objects, and cocooned layers whether they could be natural or artificial.
The reading on Tony Cragg was a very interesting article that discussed several topics that are relevant in sculpture today. It was interesting how Cragg approaches his materials used in his sculpture. The clay example demonstrates how the artist and the material are communicative during the making process. The nature and culture distinction is also another interesting subject that Cragg discussed. He explains the differences between the materials we use in art are separated either coming from nature or culture. Cragg outlook in sculpture as a “rare” art form gives an interesting perspective because these type of artist are building sculptures that uses a material that ordinary people use for other ‘useful’ things. However, as these artists build their sculpture, they are “attempting to make dumb material express human thoughts and emotions.” I thought that definition provided a clever and interesting example of Cragg’s approach on sculpture.
My favorite quote in this piece is the one where he talks about moving clay. How when we interact with a material is suggests things to us (shapes, symbols, emotions) and gives us ideas we never would have had by sitting at a desk and conseptualizing. That is how I work with clay. My favorite medium is metal, with metal you have to plan almost everything before (or durring) the process of making it, but I always leave room for the metal to tell me what shape it wants to take. It is like having a dialog with a material or object. You tell it what you want it to do, and it tells you what it is willing to do, it's a give and take.
The way Tony Cragg uses biology to understand a material, art, and the world itself is also intreging. How he looks at the celular structure of things before working with an idea or material. The message that runs through most of his art about how we are obsessed with making matter into objects, but in the end we are left with houses full of meaningless objects. That is a powerful message.
One of my favorite sculptures
http://www.clubdistretti.it/il_club/Progetti/jpg_progetti/chairs/tony_cragg.jpg
Tony Cragg is a very talented modern sculptor with a twisted mind of an adolescent scared of everything modern; he uses to references his works to the origins of the Universe, mixing and misusing terms from physics and mathematics to explain why and how he came up with the elegant and sensual figures that he brings out of his somber mind to show the world. He is trying to recreate a primordial reality from modern objects, simultaneously seeing the elements of chaos in the organized world around us and trying to reproduce the mental model of a modern human being where everything is an artifact, where the whole world has gradually become (in the eyes of beholder) an instrument for changing itself, under the control of the super-reality represented in our collective subconscious. Looking at his figures, one feels that this is what we mean by changing the world around us, this is how things would be if we actually had the full power over matter; and in his writings he implies that this is not a fruit of logical thinking but a subliminal reflection of the Universe's laws in our minds - the way we feel them in our heart.
Cragg said, "The rate at which objects are produced increases; complementary to production is consumption. ... With no chance of understanding the making processes because we specialise, specialise in the production, but not in the consumption." This statement stands out in his work especially with his use of bottles and mass produced objects. This forces a moment of thought where you need to look at the object in a process oriented manner by either renewing its form or masking it with other similar forms. Craggs work pushes the use of shapes in objects as it relates to the the gestalt's in our everyday life.
I don't inparticuarlly agree with the archeology side of his work in manner in which he displays these objects are not contextually presented in a museum like matter. Nor do I agree with the comments by Kenneth Baker on Craggs work being Surrealist since it does not push abnormality. It is hard to achieve surrealism today.
Tony Cragg is an artist who works in sculpture. He has a very abstract way of thinking that shows through to his work. He believes in natural materials, but he also thinks of everything as natural because it all came from somewhere. He likes to do sculpture because not many people do it and other people are more interested in designing items that are useful. He doesn't believe in any religion and keeps an open mind. He tries to visualize things that are hard for humans to imagine. He is a free thinker.
Catherine
While reading this article I found that I wasn’t very interested in what (I think was) the art critics or art enthusiast had to say (forgive me if I am wrong). Try and imagine someone speaking in a monotonous voice saying, “Cragg’s ‘omnivorous’ approach to materials and processes represents, perhaps…” bla bla bla… it about puts you to sleep. However I found what Tony Cragg had to say was really insightful. I picked out a few sections that stood out to me and they are...
“… it is an attempt to make dumb material express human thoughts and emotions. It is the attempt not just to project intelligence into material but also to use material to think with. Sculptures are often and at their best not just the result of an artist taking a material, for example a piece of stone or lump of clay, out of its normal environment and forcing it into a form which expresses a preformulated notion, but rather the result of a dialogue between the material and the artist. The material finds itself in a few form and the sculptor finds himself with new content and new meaning.”
“Take for example a lump of clay which could be found a hundred metres from here ad two metres under the ground. When I move the clay moves, I look at it, think about it and move again and see certain things suggested, then I move again and it moves again and so a dialogue starts- a dialogue with a dumb lump of clay.”
I respect Tony Cragg’s overall look at art. Researching the details of it origins and learning more about the material’s “Balloon of association.” I now have a better understanding of the balloons of associations with ancient and “traditional” mediums. They have existed in our culture for so long that they have acquired many contexts. And he places good emphasis on the essence or character of a work of art. Art takes average and ordinary material and gives it human emotion and a soul.
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