Ecological Art - Essay Example

Ecological Art is a worldwide art movement, the philosophy of which is based on ecological awareness, the harmonic co-existence of human beings and nature. It is a revitalizing movement in terms of materials used in works of art, which are in many cases, recycled and natural at the same time. Most of them emphasize the beauty of nature as a masterpiece, but one which is as fragile and vulnerable as our own life (Bianco, 1999). Environmental (ecological art) has gradually switched from raising environmental and ecological awareness, recycling materials etc, to attempting to improve or restore the damage caused by humans (Wikipedia, Environmental Art). From this perspective Lynne Hull is an interesting artist, whose works are worth analyzing. Hull’s works do not only serve an aesthetic purpose, they are also meant to store food, water or shelter to the habitat. On her official website, Hull explains in her statement that her “sculpture and installations provide shelter, food, water or space for wildlife, as eco-atonement for their loss of habitat to human encroachment… Most artworks function in the temporal gap between the time reclamation of damaged sites begins and the time nature recovers” (Hull, 2000). This is an important commitment the artist makes, both as an artist and as person, who is ecologically aware. Art, which in most cases serves only aesthetic purpose, becomes not only practical – it becomes immediately useful. Hull works from the belief that her artist creativity can be applied to everyday urgent situations society can be facing today (Hull, 2000). Works of this artist include creation of dwellings for the fauna. Three works of her have been selected for analysis: Grandmother Tree, Scatter (part of Hydroglyph series), and Island I. All three works are intended to provide habitat or water for wildlife. Grandmother tree Hull’s sculpture called Grandmother Tree can be viewed from an artistic point of view and a practical one. Artistically, this work can be classified as a sculpture. It is located in Pine Bluffs, Wyoming. The 20’ sculpture was created in 1991 and the artist used latex paint and wood to create it. It was made out of a dry tree, with extra branches removed and some additional branches attached to the trunk. The title of the sculpture deserves special attention, because in it, the artist made reference to the themes of motherhood, continuation of life and death. A grandmother tree is a tree, which is very old, well respected by others for giving life to new generations. In case with this particular piece, the fact that it is dry and dead, can underline its ‘grandmotherhood’ as the tree is no longer alive. However, it still continues to give life by sheltering birds and for that reason it deserves respect and it’s name 'grandmother tree'. Even though the sculpture very slightly resembles a work of art, its title and the symbolism it contains, retain a strong artistic component. From a practical approach, the tree is made of tree snags, which provides cavities and roosting areas for birds. It has just several branches attached to the trunk, yet this is enough for the birds to nest and have offspring. This contributes to the artist's idea of temporal atonement of damage caused to nature. Scatter The sculpture called “Scatter” is located in Near Moab, Utah, and was created in 1987. This piece of art stands out from Hull’s work, since this is a trans-species work; the artist herself stated that her focus was on trans-species art, sculptures which make contributions to wildlife habitat (Krug, 2001). Scatter is a part of Hull’s “Desert Hydroglyph” series, which are images of animals, carved in desert rock. This work ha an artistic value as well, for two main reasons: 1) it resembles three swimming dolphins that have jumped out of the water (as opposed to simply making the basin round or rectangle) 2) it is symbolic that this sculpture, representing dolphins and water is located in the desert. The practical component of this sculpture is also quite imminent: series of hydroglyphs are meant to hold water from runoff rain and snowmelt for the wildlife sustenance. They hold up to 5 gallons of rain or snowmelt. Another aspect of this creation is that it is not a random installation – all her works are designed with help of wildlife biologists and zoologists. Those works are subsequently monitored by zoologists in order to verify they are being used (Krug, 2001). Island 1 Her sculpture called Island 1 is the third piece of art under analysis. This composition is made of wood, latex paint and wire mesh. The sculpture is decorated and painted in bright colors, which is meant to attract attention, both of animals and humans. The sculpture is set afloat and is intended for waterfowl and a number of other species: turtles, water birds and songbirds, intervertebrates and amphibians (Hull, 2000). Such sculptures are called “Life Rafts”, and the question as to why this composition was called “an island” is rather obvious. Hull claims that such works make up the essence for her creation because she is "in search of a new compact between the species who share the planet. In search of a life with reduced impact on the other species who so enrich our time on this planet" (Krug, 2001). Robert Smithson Unlike Hull, whose works were intended to have practical value and were meant to improve environment, Robert Smithson appears to be a proponent of pure art, i.e. art with little or no practical value. Smithson is mostly known for his experiments with art forms, ideas, materials. He was taking art beyond its conventional forms and was daring and provocative in his search. His art was not limited to only one form of art, genre or material; it included drawings, photo, films, essays, sculptures as well as earthworks. The three works selected for analysis are Spiral Hill (1971), Amarillo Ramp (1973) as well as his controversial and most famous earthwork Spiral Jetty (1970). Spiral Hill (1971) is one of the monumental works by Smithson, located in Emmen, Holland. At first this sculpture was created for temporary use, however it was so much liked by the local people that they voted to keep it. The hill is located in a reclaimed quarry and is made of earth, black, topsoil and white sand (Smithson, 1999). The hill in itself is a three dimensional sculpture with a counter-clockwise spiral. Along the “thread” of the spiral there is white sand applied over topsoil – a symbol for destruction. During last two years of his life Smithson was exploring ways of how art could be a mediator between technology and ecology/nature. For that reason an old quarry was selected as a site for the sculpture. During last several years of life Smithson was seeking cooperation with mining companies offering his services as an artist-consultant for land reclamation. In this strive he wanted to create art in locations of decay and destruction (again, the sand over soil is the symbol for destruction). Amarillo Ramp (1973) Amarillo Ramp is a 140 foot in diameter partial circle going up until it reaches the height of about 15 feet. It is located in Tecovas Lake, Amarillo Texas, and conceptually fits into Smithson's philosophy of making art at the sites of devastation - the lake has dried and the sculpture is located within this artificially created lake. More so: most people find out about these sculptures from pictures and documentaries, however anyone who would physically go to visit the Ramp will inevitably climb it, gazing across the pastures, s/he would notice the “intermingling results of both a geological and human made fluvial flowing together in the valley beyond" (Graziani, 2004). Amarillo Ramp was the last work for Smithson – he died in a plane crash while surveying sites for his work. The sculpture was subsequently finalized by his widow, Nancy Holt, Richard Serra, and others, shortly after his death in 1973. In his works Smithson explored the ideas of decay and renewal, chaos and order. His earthworks have enabled him to explore and work with the chaos and order, and observe natural forces at work. It is remarkable that nearly all of his earthworks were exposed to these natural forces, as they are nearly destroyed. Spiral Jetty Spiral Jetty is Smithson's most famous creation, a counter-clockwise coiled spiral, 1,500 feet long and 15 feet wide. Jetty was built in April 1970, at Rozel Point, and is made of black basalt boulders, bulldozed into a straight line that stretches into the red waters of the Great Salt Lake where it is located. It is located just above the water level, and has its own way of disappearing and emerging out of the water when the level goes down (Danto, 2005). Creation of this monumental sculpture was driven by Smithson's desire to place his work outside the gallery and the studio. His original goal was to place work in the land rather than place it on the surface (Smithson, 1999). The inspiration to create Spiral Jetty appeared when Smithson saw a pre-Columbian Indian monument is South Ohio – the Great Serpent Mound (ibid). Besides, for Smithson this monument was an allusion to imaginary worlds; he was enamored in Borges and Blake as well as horror movies, and the dinosaur displays at American Museum of Natural History. He read the science fiction of James Graham Ballard, who compared the Salt Lake to a Sea on Mars; land formations as well as religious rituals also were a part of the inspiration (pilgrimage, which one would have to take to see the Spiral Jetty could be compared to pilgrimage to religious places) (Kimmelman, 2005). Conclusion Having reviewed some works by Lynne Hull and Robert Smithson, one can clearly see that while creating their pieces of art, these artists pursued although related, but ultimately different goals. Lynne Hull can be regarded as a truly environmental/ecological artist, for a number of reasons. Since the original purpose of environmental/ecological art was to direct the viewers’ attention to the problems of ecology and environment, it appears quite logical – both from Hull’s works and statements that her original purpose was not only to create art, but also to direct attention to the problems of ecology and environment as well as to help the habitat around the installation sites. Her works could be called “art in practice” or “applied art” because they (at least those pieces under analysis) serve and continue to serve a practical purpose. Their aesthetic value can only appreciated by the very few humans who either travel to these areas or observe wildlife. Another important aspect of her works is that they are created in cooperation with relevant experts – zoologists, biologists, wildlife observers etc. The artist doesn’t ‘forget’ about the installation immediately after it’s been completed, her sculptures are always under observation, the purpose of which is to verify if they are good for the fauna and if they are in fact being used. From this prospective Hull’s works appear to be more environmental/ecological – she openly admits that she works for the sake of improving the environment and helping birds/animals. Robert Smithson’s works appear to have a different purpose. In his works, this artist was experimenting with forms of art and ideas. While there is evidence that Smithson was exploring ways in which art can be a mediator between technology and nature, it is obvious that this was done as a part of his search and experiments. His works barely have a utilitarian value – they serve as symbols, representing themes of life and death, devastation and construction, civilization and nature etc. In other words, they serve more of an artistic/aesthetic purpose. There is no evidence that his earthworks were made in cooperation with experts (unlike Hull’s creations), likewise there is no evidence that they serve any ecological/environmental purpose. Of course, it appears that an abandoned quarry, a dried artificial lake and the Great Salt Lake are places without abundant fauna anyway; however it only proves that it was not the artist intention to improve the environment or help the habitat around the installation site. Summing up, art can be environmental and ecological, however in order to qualify as such, the artist (or his/her pieces of art) needs to either declare it or create his works with a practical purpose, e.g. to help improve ecology. From this prospective Hull’s works can be regarded as more ecological as opposed to Smithson’s earthworks. - References 1. Bianco, A., 1999. Ecological Art and Ethics, [online]. Available at: http://www.ecologicalart.org/ecartandet.html [Accessed Nov 8, 2009] 2. Danto, A., 2005. The American Sublime, [internet] 1 September. Available at http://www.thenation.com/doc/20050919/danto [Accessed Nov 10, 2009]. 3. Graziani, R., 2004. Robert Smithson and the American landscape. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 4. Hull, L., 2000. Official website , [online]. Available at http://www.eco-art.org/ [Accessed Nov 8, 2009] 5. Krug, D., 2001. Photoessays: Art and the Earth, [online]. Available at http://greenmuseum.org/c/aen/Bios/hull2.php [Accessed Nov 8, 2009] 6. Kimmelman, M. 2005. Sculpture From the Earth, but Never Limited by It, [internet] 24 June. Available at http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/24/arts/design/24kimm.html?_r=2&pagewanted=1&ei=5070&en=97cea2a283bb6762&ex=1180929600 [Accessed Nov 10, 2009]. 7. Smithson, R., 1999. Official Website, [online]. Available at http://www.robertsmithson.com/earthworks/spiral-hill_b.htm [Accessed Nov 10, 2009] 8. Wikipedia. Environmental Art, [online]. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_art [Accessed Nov 8, 2009] Read More