The Queen
By: Thooyaa Gnanavel
Inspired by the works of Japanese sculptor, Ruth Asawa, I tried my hand in a mini-scale version of her simple. yet complex wire sculpturing techniques. Through a repetitive series of loops and negative space, we can create organic forms out of inorganic metallic wire. Allowing the delicate metal to shape the space around it creates a sense of surrealism, femininity, and possibility.
Nat Farbman/Time & Life Pictures, via Getty Images
The surreal silhouettes of wire sculpturing are a perfect way to visualize the spiritual quality that lay behind the works of Ruth Asawa. Asawa is a Japanese-American sculptor, whose artwork and cultural activism post-WWII, earned her a reputation as one of the most influential woman sculptors of all time. When I first encountered Asawa’s display at the Guggenheim museum, I remember being instantly drawn towards the exhibit; particularly, her grasping wire-crochet mobile structures that seem to mold and shape empty space itself. What really captured me about the works of this artist is the sheer simplicity of the materials and techniques used to achieve such complexity in the overall piece –like the bending of space-time, matter, and gravity. The use of line as a sculptural form, and negative space to outline structure were very interesting to observe and think about. When we look at Ruth Asawa’s mobile sculptures, we can’t help but feel a sense of wonder, and that is why I chose to use her as an inspiration to my sculpture.
I read in an article by Andrea Scott, of The New Yorker, that at the age of 21, Asawa took a trip to Mexico and observed the process of basket weaving. This became a primary source of inspiration and the process for her work in 1947. At this time in history, the act of weaving, acted as a domestic association and often her work was marginalized as a result. However, Asawa’s art was actually symbolizing a sense of political and spiritual modernism and positive outlook as the nation was becoming one of immigrants, post WWII. It seems that the majority of Ruth Asawa’s work emphasized the form and shape as the primary element of design. Her usage of wire loops also adds a sort of inorganic, physical, almost mathematical nature, which both contributes and clashes with her flowing, looping, organic shapes.
Asawa explains in a Smithsonian interview in 2002, that she didn’t believe that art should be an intellectual exercise, but approachable. Through her use of simple material such as wire, she really emphasizes this point. However, ironically, her work reminds me a lot of mathematics and physics, even the complexity of it, and the repeated use of patterns and loops all create a sort of intellectual complexity. You can’t help but think about the idea and concepts and creation behind the sculptures. I found the entire aesthetics and concepts behind these pieces incredibly capturing, so, after ample research and close observations of Asawa’s wire loop mobiles, I decided to try out a small-scale version.
Throughout my experimentation with Ruth Asawa’s wire looping techniques, I altered some materials and methods to more suit the nature of my work. The first step I took was to come up with an idea or concept. Ruth Asawa was not only a cultural activist, but also a leader to all women in art. She inspired and opened art programs around California to increase art education for students and especially women. I decided to stick with the role of feminism in Asawa’s work and create the form of a chess piece, specifically the queen. I chose this as the concept behind my art because, in a game of chess, the queen is often an incredibly vital and powerful piece that often helps get that checkmate. She is the most important piece, but in the game of Chess, she is still suppressed under the King. This symbolizes the role and significance of women in society. Using wire also played a huge role in emphasizing the complex, yet delicate, nature of womanhood. I decided to enclose this piece in a plexiglass box to represent the invisible trap and confinement that society, too often, places on us women.
When it comes to the form and structure of my piece, I followed Ruth Asawa’s work closely. Just as she embodies spheres and shapes within larger spherical outlines, I built a heart of golden wire and a teardrop-shaped uterus within to further emphasize feminism and the vulnerability of women. I decided to use different colored wire as opposed to Asawa’s one-toned wire sculptures to maybe add another dimension to my piece, along with a touch of variety. Overall, Ruth Asawa’s sculpturing techniques closely resonate with my work and although the materials were tricky to work with – I bled to complete this piece. Despite my fingertips having tiny holes in them, I truly enjoyed doing this project and will probably continue making wire loop structures in the future.
