overview
Lesson1 | Summary
Activity Pages
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lesson 1 | describing the
real
activity | the language of abstraction
The work of artists Arturo Herrera, Susan
Rothenberg, and Hiroshi Sugimoto
relate to the idea of abstraction in unique ways. Through the mediums
of collage, painting, and photography these artists appropriate
recognizable imagery and abstract it to create unique visual images
with particular aesthetic vocabularies and styles.
Referring to his photographic series “Seascapes”
Hiroshi Sugimoto says that his subject
matter—water and air—is “the most abstract theme.”
View images from this series and discuss his statement. What do
you think he means? Can a photograph that captures real space
and time be abstract? How? If you did not know the titles of these
works, could you identify their subject matter? How are his photographs
of the ocean different from other photographs or snapshots of
the same subject matter? What different purposes might these images
serve?
Susan Rothenberg’s paintings since
the 1990s reflect her move from New York to New Mexico, her adoption
of oil painting, and her new-found interest in using the memory
of observed and experienced events (a riding accident, a near-fatal
bee sting, walking the dog, a game of poker or dominoes) as an armature
for creating a painting. These scenes, excerpted from daily life,
whether highlighting an untoward event or a moment of remembrance,
come to life through Rothenberg’s thickly layered and nervous
brushwork representing not a complete narrative but fragmented elements
and imagery from her memories. “I’m not really a less
is more person, but I figure a hand on a table suggests a human
being. I don’t want to get too literal about things. I want
the viewer to be able to do the work too.” Rothenberg says:
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“I can’t use the word
‘abstraction.’ I’m a very literal-minded
person. I know my paintings. I know this isn’t a real
figure, because it doesn’t have any arms. At one point
it had hands in the pockets without arms attached. And I thought,
‘Well, are you doing a figure or are you doing this
presence? You’re doing the presence.’ So I let
go of whatever I needed to, and I kept what I wanted. And
I do a lot of that in making painting. I edit. “Is that
doing anything for me? Is that carrying its weight in that
part of the canvas?” And if it’s not, it’s
scraped out.” |
View images of Rothenberg’s paintings such as “Dominos-Hot”
and “Red
Studio.” How does she describe specific events
and images through her paintings? What inspires these images and
how do they combine “literal” or abstract and realistic
imagery?
Arturo Herrera creates collages, work
on paper, sculpture, relief, wall painting, photography, and felt
wall hangings. His work taps into the viewer’s unconscious,
often intertwining fragments of cartoon characters with abstract
shapes and partially obscured images that evoke memory and recollection.
Using techniques of fragmentation, splicing, and re-contextualization,
Herrera’s work is provocative and open-ended. For his collages
he uses found images from cartoons, coloring books, and fairy
tales, combining fragments of Disney-like characters to make work
that borders between figuration and abstraction. Use the links
above to view Herrera’s Artwork
Survey and read his interview transcript describing
his process and interest in abstraction. Herrera says, “I
think there’s still potential for abstraction to become
a viable language of…visual communication. And the same
thing with collage…I think we need to explore what else
they could do.” Discuss Herrera’s statement and ask
students to identify the recognizable imagery as well as the abstract
or non-representational imagery in his work. Do you think he has
created “a viable language of visual communication?”
Why or why not?
Based on their discussions about abstraction and visual imagery,
have students create their own visual language using abstract
shapes and colors. Have students design a series of arbitrary
or symbolically designed shapes that are differentiated by color
using pencil and colored pencil or marker. Encourage students
to find shapes in their surroundings or to make up unique shapes
from their imagination. For each shape, have students assign a
related word—an adjective, noun, or verb that will be used
to create a visual and textual narrative or story. Have students
create at least 25 shapes with accompanying words. Make multiple
copies of each shape and cut them out. Have students create a
short narrative or story in an abstract or realistic style using
the words they have selected—adding prepositions, conjunctions,
and adverbs if they are needed or wanted. Once they have created
their story, have students create an accompanying composition
with the shapes that reflects the story and can be read as both
a visual and text-based narrative.
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