Expanding the field of postmodernist sculpture

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Sculpture as a form of art can trace back to prehistoric periods, where the earliest example of sculpture that has been discovered so far belong to the Aurignacian culture dated back to 35000 B.C. Sculpture itself, as an art that use both two- and three-dimensional representative or abstract forms carriers more than artistic values. The most common purpose of sculpture is in association with religions, those can be fund over the world such as colossal statues characterized ancient Greek art like the Statue of Zeus at Olympia. Buddhism also brought religious figures in sculpture to East Asia as the earliest equivalent tradition in the geographic area. Sculpture has possessed different value in form of art, social status, religious beliefs and cultural values, however, until the twentieth century, the most common form of sculpture was centered in human representation.  Think of some of the most famous sculptor and their work, for example Gian Lorenzo Bernini, his work “Apollo and Daphne” were based on ancient Greek tales that taken in human form representation and use marble as the material for sculpture, where the scale of sculpture was related directly to the human form and phenomenological experience for the body. The sculpture today, according to Rosalind Krauss has “expanded in its field”, from several perspectives.

Rosalind Krauss’s influential essay ‘Sculpture in the Expanded Field’ has discussed the definition and what sculpture had become in the last fifty years of the twentieth century. As the definition of the art and sculpture has been more elastic than ever, the design and idea that used in sculpture has been more creative and innovative than ever. Krauss has also shared two examples, in the art history that embark the transition, which were Rodin’s Gates of Hell and Balzac. Krauss has shared her observation about sculptors express their personality and creativity, in both form of representation and placement of the art. As Rodin’s work marked the “expanded field” of sculpture in the new era, it also changes the rule sets that have been defined since prehistoric period upon the tradition sculptures. Two artists will be discussed in the following essay with relation to Rosalind Krauss’s influential essay ‘Sculpture in the Expanded Field’ and their works, the two artists that would be discussed were Austrian painter, sculptor - Manfred "KILI" Kielnhofer and American artist and sculptor – Rita Mcbride.

Kielnhofer’s most famous work is called “Guardians of Time”, this work came in serious, that Kielnhofer first developed in 2006. Unlike traditional sculpture, which would created with detailed human facial and body characteristics,  Kielnhofer “Guardians of Time” continued to draw on religious and supernatural phenomena but the statues figure were covered in hooded robes and situated to mock some kind of ritual events. The sculpture has created a mysterious aura, since 2006, Kielnhofer had continued in creating and installation of those statues all over the world, as the “Guardians of Time” is a series of sculptures, Kielnhofers has placed his work in many different public places like ancient castles, parks and etc.

The “Guardians of Time” usually contains more than three human form figures in sculpture, as showed in figure 1 and 2 below, the human figure were situated different each time. Figure 1 presented ‘Guardians of Time’ that used lighting and plastic material to construct the sculpture showed at the Light Art Biennale Austria 2010, while figure 2 presented the earliest version of ‘Guardians of Time’ introduced in 2006. The lighting sculpture was postured in line and moving forth while the original sculpture was grouped together seemingly whispering with each other. The ‘Guardian of Time’ presented unique feature of sculpture in the modern era, it was a serious of design that carry the same theme. Unlike sculptures in the classical or renaissance period, sculptures in the expanded field not expanded in the themes of representation but also the medium of artistic representation.

1.   2. 1.Guardians of Time, light sculpture by Manfred Kielnhofer at the Light Art Biennale Austria 2010

2.Guardians of Time by Manfred Kielnhofer, Galerie Artpark Linz, 2006

As Rosalind Krauss argued in her influential essay ‘Sculpture in the Expanded Field’, the spectrum of sculpture has became more elastic than ever. Where sculpture has been in-door decorations that use craving as the major technique for décor purposes that eventually grows into out-door landmarks in the modern era. What Kielnhofers have done with the ‘Guardian of Time’ series was out-door artistic décor in the public sphere, especially with lighting sculptures. Sculpture in essence has connection with architecture in the past, where it was a part of a building or even a part of the architect’s design. Kielnhofer’s work coincided with Krauss’s argument that modern artists has integrated what have not be considered as component of art into their works today, for Kielnhofer’s ‘Guardian of Time’, it is a discourse of spiritual belief or even religious consideration. The work derived from Kielnhofer’s belief on some kinds of guardian watches over human kind but it was from creator’s personality and their own course of discussion of human kind’s connection with the nature.

As Kielnhofer’s use lighting as a source of material in his work, as Krauss characterized the expanded field as the domain of art in postmodernism that possess two features, one of the feature is the individual practice and personality showed in artist’s works and the other has to do with the question of medium. Light emerged as a new medium and form of art presentation in late 20^th century, the collaboration of light and sculpture has presented the involvement of sculpture in terms of space, material, technology and ideas in a boarder spectrum in the artistic field. As sculpture could be extraordinary presentation for festive celebration or it can also be everyday, sculpture as an art subject does not tied with architecture, mimesis, or commemorative representation any longer in the expanded field.

Rita McBride’s works has complex operation, McBride has taken her conceptual approach to historical reference combined with expanded practice of sculpture in her work. As the expansion in the art work gradually taken place in the late 20^th century, McBride has experienced the time that sculpture and other art forms been redefined, those changes have also been captured in her work with different representation. Where as sculpture is also contains subjects of architecture, McBride has intertwined her ideas with episodes in the history of modern architecture into a referential dialogue.

Most of McBride’s works hinged in two different perspectives, the first perspective is what Krauss defined as “negative condition–a kind of sitelessness, or homelessness, an absolute loss of place”, where McBride has explored the logic of sculpture in her own way and made connections with sculpture’s historical function served as monument’s commemorates. McBride’s elaboration on sculpture’s historical function took it into transition with modernity. McBride’s work, along with Krauss’s argument was defined as sculptural in terms of art categories, which is not architecture, but her work also carries the sense of architectural along. From Krauss’ essay that sculpture “had entered a categorical no-man’s land” during 1960s, where sculpture artists has became “pure maker”, that the design of sculpture has became “was in the landscape that was not landscape” or “on or in front of the building that was not the building”. McBride’s notable work, Mae West, which is a 170-foot high sculpture and Munich’s public transit system trains are going through the sculpture on daily basis. Sculpture as a form of art could been never as interactive as today, since both human and transportation means can pass through the actual work, Mae West has taken in form similar to historical monument but built with carbon fiber reinforced polymer into a hyperboloid revolution. The Mae West project of McBride not only challenged traditional material used in public assumed dimension of sculpture again but also taken in the sense of futuristic aesthetic in the sculpture work. As Krauss argued, where sculpture has been kneaded, stretched and twisted in an extraordinary demonstration of elasticity, it also showed how the understanding of art could expand to include almost anything.

 McBride’s’ practice was also linked with the redefinition of architecture, furniture and interior design. McBride’s Explorer exhibition at WIELS has presented a dialogue between architecture and design in sculpture, also revealed how architecture and sculpture can inform and measures on another. McBride had several series of works that were inspired by the built environment around her, including air conditioning units, pipes, skylights, telephone boxes, that she transformed into art pieces. Her work had reintroduced those already known items in different materials or scales to explore the functionality and formation of existing items. Her work has presented a discourse on the functionalism and surrealism in consistency of her approach and vision, where her work series including White Elephants (From 1999 to 2015), Managers and Minimanagers (From 2003 to 2004), and Vents (2010) have consistent presentation of the furniture and home appliance as subject of manipulation.

As McBride’s work combined with installation, lighting, miniatures and large scales, her other famous work has offered a new option for postmodernism artists while posed challenge to traditional understanding of sculpture in a different form, the work is Arena (1997­-ongoing). Arena used a kind of modular bleacher system, it has been installed in many different hosting institutions and also can be used for various discussions and performances organized by the host institution. What was suggested by the project of Arena is modular unit mass production in the installation project that can be installed into different configuration where it was still virtually the same artwork. Arena was developed during the time where viewer’s participation was important to sculpture than the art objectives; despite the potential of modular reproduction, Arena also provides a template for programs and events in the host institution. The idea of modular and designed with parts that can easily assembled and disassembled not only suggested possibility of mass-production but also flat-packing as the cornerstones of the modern design industry. Arena is a generative device, it was not simply one displayed art but connection that provided to visitors and host institution with the spaces. As it can be assembled into different configuration, it also offered different experiences to each institution at their conveniences.

As the term of sculpture has been pulled and stretched for many year, the vanguards of aesthetic ideology continue to evolved. New idea has overtly performed in contrast to historicism and traditions that made the new more familiar than ever, with gradually shift from the past. Manfred Kielnhofer and Rita McBride as two postmodernism artist that received influences from expanded filed of art and sculpture has presented their work in the way that considerably different. Their work has reflected the idea that Rosalind Krauss discussed in her influential essay ‘Sculpture in the Expanded Field’, that sculpture has more connection and boarder spectrum than ever, and the idea of sculpture has become more elastic with twists from artist’s self-representation.

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