Love by Robert Indiana

During my visit to New York City this past weekend I saw the Love sculpture by Robert Indiana. Although underneath construction currently, Love was just as noticeable as it would have been on the Avenue of the Americas without construction. During it's first exhibit in New York City in 1970 Love was made to bring peace during the Vietnam war. Made out Cor-ten Steel and painted red it holds a powerful meaning in the heart of the city.

Love is a large, free standing sculpture on 6th Avenue that allows the viewer to be engaged in its enormity. Corten Steel was the preferred material used to make the Love sculpture because of the protective layer that could withstand atmospheric conditions. The volumetric form that makes Love three dimensional is irregular and smooth. In addition, the precise measurements of the letters L, V and E by linear elements keeps the  sculpture proportioned equal. The vastness of Love is what draws viewers to it and appreciate the beauty within it.

Love occupies the surrounding space of the Avenue of the Americas to its entirety because it captures its audience. The space surrounding and within the sculpture allows the viewer to view it from the front or back, leaving the viewer to read Love regardless of the direction they are headed on the Avenue of the Americas. Moreover, the red color of the sculpture allows it to stand out among the hustle and bustle of New York City. The sculpture because of its color becomes instantly more expressive about Love. Due to the bright color and irrespective to the weather conditions it is expressive. The impact Love has on its viewer is truly remarkable.

Love captures its audience at first glance leaving the viewer bewildered at its enormity. The meaning Indiana presented with Love was depicted beautifully in a city that never sleeps. The materials used in addition, to the location, space and color synergistically built a sculpture that promotes peace to this day. New York City has faced many troubles in the past and deserves a sculpture that describes it in no less than four letters accurately. The meaning of Love is truly varied among each viewer that passes by. 

Roses by William Ryman

     

This year winter has seemed to outlast last year's winter leaving me in the blues. It was not until my trip to New York City this weekend that I realized spring is near. As I wandered on the streets of New York City I stumbled upon a massive sculpture of roses that were almost 25 ft in height. On Park Ave, between the streets of 57th and 67th there is a row of roses that has been installed on January 25th 2011. These gigantic rose installations by William Ryman brings to life any pedestrian or resident passing by or living there. The Roses are installed only temporarily till May and serve to be interpretive in many ways. According to Ryman, the roses symbolize romance, celebration, death and commercialism with the audience. Ryman emphasized the different perspectives of the roses and their value according to the viewer.






The free standing installation allowed the viewer to see it in different angles creating different perspectives according to the viewer. Due to the installation being surrounded by other live plants, it proved to have more of a surrealistic, Alice in Wonderland type of an effect. The assembly of the Roses was made out of mainly stainless steel and fiber glass, which allowed the installations to withstand harsh weathers. The volumetric forms of the roses vary from each rose installation. Most of them are irregular volumetric forms that are smooth on the petals of the roses however some contain thorns in the stem part of the roses. These forms are organized according to the theme of each type of rose and the presence of bugs, thorns, bees or leaves. The linear perspective however can be seen


viewing the flowers straight down Park Avenue. In addition, a linear perspective is also seen in a perpendicular manner in some parts of the installation where the rose is approximately 25 feet. Hence, creating an Alice in Wonderland kind of perspective for a viewer who is walking past the installation.






In these installations, the form and space interpenetrate because the space is the city and the form is each rose. The massive forms of roses create an illusion of belonging of the roses to the vast space on Park Avenue. Each rose is to be seen through a different perspective so as to the engage the viewer. For example, the interpretation of the Roses may vary if a viewer sees it from their balcony versus a pedestrian just walking past the Roses. In one instance, the Roses may seem miniscule while in a contrasting situation the Roses may be seem gigantic. This interpretation is further broadened by the warm colors used by the artist to depict these roses. The pink and red used to express roses and the green to depict stems and leaves shows the arrival of Spring. The colors of the installations are bright regardless of what the weather may be. On a sunny day, the Roses may be brighter as well as on a snow day. The installation may be temporary however, the optimism installed is permanent. In this process, the Roses have brought optimism to new yorkers and to tourists who travel across the world to see the Big Apple.






As a viewer from underneath the Roses, the perspective of a giant rose was phenomenal. The instantaneous happiness that arose within seconds of laying my eyes on it convinced me that spring was near. In addition, it also depicted optimism because of the the brightness of colors used by the artist. The vastness and the optimism of New York City is well depicted in these installations. The magnificence of a creation that is 'larger than life' is truly worthy of New York City.






The different standpoints of individuals is what Ryman attempted to capture with such installations. Using sturdy materials and bright paints made the Roses sturdy enough to withstand any form of weather. The permanence of optimism was therefore planted by assembling different forms of materials together. My astonishment when looking at the Roses for the first time was identical to Alice in Wonderland. In many ways, Ryman succeeded in planting optimism to new yorkers in a dreary winter.

Cloud Gate by Anish Kapoor

During my visit to Chicago, IL in March of 2011 I decided to make the most of it, in spite of the gloomy weather that followed all weekend long. Among all the tourist attractions Chicago has to offer, one of the most pertinent in this age is the Cloud Gate. Therefore, one of the first places I visited was the Cloud Gate which is located in the heart of the Millennium Park. The Cloud Gate or “The Bean” the name given to it affectionately by locals because of the shape is a sculpture that is made out of stainless steel that is designed to resemble a droplet of liquid mercury. The sculptor, Anish Kapoor was inspired by liquid mercury when creating Cloud Gate. Cloud Gate was made out of stainless steel that weighs 110 tons, and is 33 feet by 66 feet by 42 feet with a high arch of 12 ft. The stainless steel acts as a mirror casting a reflection on the viewer and the environment. Often times, the reflection seen is of clouds this creates a gate-like appearance to the viewer.

The Cloud Gate is a free standing sculpture assembled through stainless steel with an irregular volume. The shape of Cloud Gate is shaped like a bean, which leaves the volumetric shape to be irregular but smooth. Given the irregular shape of Cloud Gate, the sculpture holds less of a linear perspective than a volumetric perspective when looked at an angle. However, when looked at as a whole, the linear perspective is seen in the form of placement when viewed aerially. The space around the free standing model depicts distortion of the viewer and their surroundings. The illusion of lack of space is observed when watching oneself in the Cloud Gate. Instantly, when I looked into the beloved Bean my reality became distorted in a circularly inclined manner. My figure seemed to be broader the closer I came to the Bean. The reflection of myself was an astonishing revelation of the artist’s intentions of perspective and reflections.

The intentions of a reflection created by stainless steel had an expressive function for the viewer. The color generated by the stainless steel changed according to the type of weather Chicago was facing. The inclement weather that I witnessed during my visit left the Cloud Gate to be dirty and stained by the weather. The leftover sleet on the sculpture left dried marks all over the sculpture forming a reflection of a dreary environment. However, on a beautiful day the sun would beam a magnificent reflection into Cloud Gate forming a more optimistic manifestation of the environment. The inner part of the beam is made of concentric circles of stainless revealing multiple images of the viewer. When looking from underneath the 12 ft arch at the very top, various images of oneself are revealed in different angles. The technique that was used to form such images was the placing of concentric circles made of stainless steel on top of each other. Anish Kapoor took several factors such as these into account to build a reflection that would allow the viewer to escape into the clouds.

Kapoor’s previous works of art as well as the Cloud Gate allow the viewer to reveal rather than create thereby allowing the viewer to make their own interpretation. Each viewer, according to Kapoor has their individual experience that is between them and Cloud Gate. For me, the revelation showed an identification of oneself in the eyes of art. The smoothness in addition to the stained steel by rain showed the imperfections of a masterpiece. Regardless of the daily cleaning of the sculpture and the semiannual cleaning, Cloud Gate still was not as shiny as it would have been on a bright sunny day. The imperfections were symbolic in matters of the public and the individualistic spirit that existed in them. Cloud Gate, on that day revealed to me that even art pieces by world renowned artists had imperfections. Imperfections that could not be foreseen and would serve to be too high maintenance if demanded to clean everyday with liquid Tide. Therefore, imperfections are a part of life and that as an individual, it was only normal to encounter such disparities.

The design based on liquid mercury allowed the designer to form a shape that would be distinctive in the world. Cloud Gate is a beautiful interpretation that reveals itself to the viewer individually. Each individual has a unique experience with it and sees a different gate that leads to different places. For me, it showed that art can have imperfections yet be magnificent at the same time. The Bean in Chicago is a gate of revelations that keeps the viewer bewildered every step of the way.