ARST 132 The Pile On: Intro to Multiples & Accumulation

Meets: Monday & Wednesday 01:30 PM – 4:30 PM
Location: Sculpture Classroom 063, Venturi Art Building
Instructor: Kasia Ozga
Email: kozga@oberlin.edu
Office Hours: Tuesdays 1:30 PM – 4:30 PM
Office Location: Ward Art Building, Office 111

From heaps of candy to clothes to plastic litter and organic waste, contemporary artists around the world have foregrounded the process of gathering and amassing found or constructed objects to convey specific ideas. The growth, presentation, and preservation of vast quantities of matter confronts audiences with a boundless desire for more, a critique of consumer culture, and wonder at ordinary objects in unexpected situations.

The course will include practical and theoretical components. We will develop skills in materials research, found object manipulation, casting (in plaster, hydrocal, wax, and cement fondue), and digital sculpture (Blender), while learning about artists that combine traditional processes and contemporary techniques (including technologies such as 3d scanning and printing). Artwork display, installation, and documentation will be stressed.

Students will create presentations on American and International artists that work with accumulation and will produce their own installations and performances using this technique, over the course of the semester. We will discuss ethically sourcing materials, scale, strategies for degrowth and sustainability while also studying the ethical and environmental ramifications of our food, energy, and product choices. All assignments are supplemented by art historical content delivered through lectures, readings, videos and field trips and multimedia content from related disciplines (environmental studies, consumer studies, materials science).

This course is appropriate for students who wish to understand how formal and conceptual aspects of a piece come together to make meaning in space through the lens of serial forms, and repetition. In studying and creating artworks that engage with notions of accumulation, multiplicity, and scale, we will improve our understanding of both public interaction and meaning-making.

Each week, we will introduce a new aspect of multi-media sculpture, while working on our assignments. Resources for developing additional (digital modelling) skills will also be discussed, as well as methods for supplementing traditional skills with these newer tools.

During class, the professor’s lectures will focus on the meanings conveyed by different choices involving form and content. Discussions will center on the relationship between, intention, interpretation, and creative decisions related to subject matter and materials.
Sculpture-making is a process of creation that can facilitate communication between people. My goal is to inspire students to create art objects that engage the viewer in dialogues involving technical and conceptual issues. To this end, we will also spend focused time in class discussing and critiquing students’ work in a dynamic, constructive atmosphere.

Course Objectives:

Students will learn to use decision-making processes and applied skills needed to develop ideas into works of art. Upon completion of this course, you should be able to:

  • Create personal, interesting and unique solutions to course assignments
  • Produce an original installation that explores accumulation for a white cube/gallery space
  • Produce a collective project involving casting and re-casting multiples of an original object for a classroom/gallery space.
  • Produce an original installation that explores multiples and/or accumulation while engaging with an alternative context (outdoor/environmental or alternative venue)
  • Produce a virtual artwork that deals with the accumulation in a way that would not be physically possible in physical embodied space (final artwork output as a video or series of still images)
  • Be able to explain the relationship between the forms you create and the concepts informing your work (how is accumulation different from minimalist repetition? Etc.)
  • Speak critically about your artwork and that of others. Situate your work in relation to works discusses in class and seen in other contexts.
  • Demonstrate the ability to learn from setbacks in the creative process and to evolve creatively as a project changes over time from conception through production. Apply time-management skills to plan and execute various steps towards creating finished works in a logical manner.
Expectations:

Students are required to use studio time both during and outside of class in order to improve their technical abilities while forming a personal response to the themes discussed. Expect to spend a significant amount of time outside of class preparing armatures and practicing techniques.

Finished works should address conceptual considerations and apply the skills demonstrated in class.

Students must come to class on time prepared to work on assignments and utilize scheduled studio time in an efficient manner. Assignments will be completed on assigned dates. The level and quality of participation in both class discussion and critiques impacts the final grade.

Any readings, presentations, or written assignments are to be completed on assigned dates. Attendance is stressed as the class is composed of demonstrations and studio practice. 3 late appearances count as an absence, 3 absences result in a reduced letter grade. Cell phones must be turned off before class begins, unless they are being actively used for research/ art production.

Methods:

Each class session will include demos, work time, and presentations or discussions of contemporary sculpture. In-class work time often involves explanations and projects cannot be “made up” at home. As the course progresses, a series of assignments/problems will be given to address specific aspects of the body in sculpture. Lectures, demonstrations and individual and group critiques are scheduled on a regular basis to expose students to different approaches to the body in sculpture. All students are required to attend critiques, where work in analyzed and students receive feedback from the professor and from their peers. Any late work will result in a lower grade, unless delays are cleared in advance in discussions with the professor.

Evaluations:

Your studio projects will be assessed and critiqued through individual meetings while work is being executed, through group critiques with professors, teaching assistants, fellow peers, and invited artists, and through a final critique where you will present work that responds to initial feedback.

Grades reflect technical knowledge and creative responses to problems and assignments as demonstrated by student work.
Criteria for grading and percentages are as follows:
Sculptures (innovation, craft, concept, technical proficiency, documentation) 60%
Writing and speaking (includes presentations, critique and group discussion) 20%
Formal presentation and exhibition of work 10%
Class participation and attendance 10%

Materials:

Students should bring a sketchbook (at least 8 ½” x 11”) and pencil or pens to class. Since at least one of the projects deals with accumulations of found objects, students will be responsible for finding and sourcing a sufficient quantity of a particular object, to complete a successful project.

Fasteners (grommets, rivets, screws, nails, etc.) and clay modelling/casting tools will be provided (buckets, spatulas, sureform, mold separators, etc). Your $65 materials fee covers these as well as the costs of clay, plaster, alginate, rubber molds, etc. however, depending on the scale of individual projects, additional plaster may be needed.

Storage of Work:


Storage options are limited and students will not be allowed to house projects outside of designated and assigned areas. Many of the pieces that you will produce will take up a lot of space for a short amount of time, after which they will need to be disassembled and moved or disposed of. Please see me if you require special arrangements for a limited period of time.

Safety and Clean Facilities Policy:

Safety is a primary concern. Every assignment will have a related safety demonstrations on how to work with tools and materials. It is very important to attend these demonstrations.

After you are done working, always clean the space you have been using and leave it in the same condition in which you found it. The studio is shared by several classes and it is normal for things to need occasional repair. If you feel something isn’t working properly, if something breaks, or you need extra instruction before using a tool or machine, that’s OK. Please see me, the studio supervisor or TA and we can get things repaired, refreshed, and running again.

The Art Department requires students to maintain a safe working environment for themselves, their fellow classmates, as well as for others using art facilities. No food or drinks in the sculpture studios, no casting with hazardous materials outside of designated areas. No sawing of Styrofoam in a non ventilated area. Any spray painting or casting with solvents must take place outside near the sculpture loading bay. Wear dust masks/PPE when appropriate. Please wear work appropriate clothing including closed toed shoes.

Content Warning:

Some artworks discussed might contain subjects that aggravate past or present trauma (in the past many artists have used multiples to explore themes of conflict, war, gender-based violence, etc.). Be respectful of your peers during in-class discussions and please care for yourself as necessary. It is impossible to forecast all content that might be difficult for students to encounter. Use your best judgement, and contact me as needed.

Areas of Study:
  • Working with found objects. Material research. Logistics. Experimentation with accretion. Display (mechanical fasteners, rivets, grommets, hanging options, platforms, frames)
  • Casting
    Students will learn basic casting techniques involving alginate and plaster.
    Advanced techniques involving rubber molds will also be demonstrated. Whereas casting techniques will be shown during class, students will be expected to work on the mold making and casting of individual projects outside of class.
    Students will learn several techniques for two-part plaster molds and mother molds including the use mold separators and keys, as well as clay walls and metal shims. They will learn how to work with layers of plaster reinforced with jute or oakum/hemp (plumbing horsehair), as well as when to use wooden crossbars.
    Topics discussed include planning for larger projects, the technical division of a large mold into smaller sections, and surface preparation techniques. Students may choose to work individually or in pairs on a larger casting for their final project.
  • 3D Modelling in Blender. Digital Output in still image or video form.
Skill Sets:
  • The correct handling of tools and materials in relation to desired forms
  • The basics of presenting new work to the public in different contexts
  • Understanding sculpture fundamentals: the link between an idea and its representation, the importance of aesthetic choices, gesture, time, space, process, the end product, and audience interpretation.
Selected Artists:

Students will be asked to create short presentations on the work of the following artists:
Robert Smithson, Joseph Beuys, Eva Hesse, Giuseppe Penone, Annette Messager, Anthony Gormley, Andy Goldsworthy, Michelangelo Pistoletto, Gérard Deschamps, Marian Stępak, Christian Boltanski, Félix González-Torres, Janine Antoni, Ana Mendieta, Ernesto Neto, Chiharu Shiota, Florence Bruyas, Julia Maria López Mesa, Tara Donovan, Subodh Gupta, Anita Molinero, Ann Hamilton, Kimsooja, El Anatsui, Ibrahim Mahama, Hassan Sharif, Juan Muñoz, Vik Muniz, Andrea Mastrovito, Michel Blazy, Mona Hatoum, Tadashi Kawamata, Doris Salcedo, Motoi Yamamoto, Lara Almarcegui, Anya Gallaccio, Tejo Remy, Damien Hirst, Jeanne Susplugas, Michael Johansson, Erika Green, Shout Your Abortion (collective), Maren Hassinger, Peter Buggenhout, Ai Weiwei, Cornelia Parker, Leonardo Drew, Eva Hesse, Dario Escobar, Outsider Art (Le Palais Idéal du Facteur Cheval, Bottle Village, Watts Towers, Alabama Yard Shows)

Individual projects:

Students are encouraged to consult individually with the instructor regarding project ideas during class. Finished pieces may be temporary or permanent. Each project can build on or depart from previous projects. Students will be expected to document their work via digital photography during the phases of project development. Finished pieces should also be documented following critique in class.

References:

There is no textbook for the class, however on some weeks, I may require students to read certain articles in preparation for in class discussions. I can also recommend books to students on artists and areas of sculpture that would provide useful departures, on a case-by-case basis, during individual critiques.

A selection of relevant books is available on reserve for students at the Art library. In advance of certain class sessions, students will be asked to complete short readings about relevant topics (exhibition reviews, papers in academic journals, artist interviews) that will be discussed in a collective manner.

Texts may include:
Rosalyn Krauss, Passages in Modern Sculpture
Walter Benjamin, Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction
Benjamin Buchloh, Michael Asher and the Conclusion of Modernist Sculpture
James E. Young, The Counter-Monument
Phaidon Press, Vitamin 3D: New Perspectives in Sculpture and Installation
Peter Rubino, Sculpting the Figure in Clay
Anna Moszynska, Sculpture Now
Political Art & accumulation: https://hyperallergic.com/432824/thousands-of-shoes-capitol-hill-political-art/
Take Me (I’m Yours) (Exhibition curated by Hans Ulrich Obrist and Christian Boltanski)

Project Assignments / Schedule:

The class meets 2 days/week. Each class session lasts for 3 hours and requires 3-6 hours of work outside of class.

Project 1: 09/07, 09/12, 09/14, 09/21 (project due date in Fisher Hall Exhibition Space)
Museum + Independent work week: 09/26 + 09/28

Project 2: 10/03, 10/05, 10/10, 10/12
Casting demos on 09/19 and 10/03
*Body Casting with dancers on Saturday 10/08
In-Class work time on 10/10 and 10/12
Projects due 10/24 New deadline: 10/31 artworks shown in the sculpture room, 063

Project 3: 10/26, 10/31, 11/02, 11/07, 11/09, 11/14, 11/16
Choose either to work with multiples OR accumulations. Begin you project with site selection and then design your artwork in relation to your location.
Finished works will be presented on-site on 11/21.
* Works presented after that date or off-campus need to be WELL documented and presented in class as documentation of the installation.

Project 4: 11/28, 11/30, 12/05, 12/07
Rendered works should be presented on 12/12.

Final Class: 12/12

Project 1

  • Produce an original installation that explores the notion of accumulation of found objects for a white cube gallery space. You can choose to work with knick-knacks, food, packaging, clothes, found wood or metal, you name it!
    You must use materials that you find for free or barter/ barter (do not spend any money).
  • Steps to project completion:
    1. Select and source a material for your installation.
    2. Choose a book on reserve at the art library to inspire your finished installation and write a half-page reflection on an artwork from the book.
    3. Produce a sketch of your installation in the Fischer Hall gallery space (1 page min 8 1/2 x 11)
    4. Technical tests/exercises with samples of the objects you are using. Produce and bring a portion/sample of your artwork for review in class.
    5. On-site installation of finished artwork
  • Project Timeline:
    1 week brainstorm/sketching.
    1 week sourcing + testing installation configurations.
    Final Installation on Sept 21st in the Fisher Hall Exhibition Space.

Project 2

  • Produce a collective project involving casting and re-casting multiples of an original object for a classroom/gallery space. Work in pairs/ threes to produce an installation for indoor display.
    Casting Demos on Sept. 19th. Explanation of different casting materials and considerations (plaster relief with clay, plaster bandage, plaster 2 part with string, shims, clay walls, alginate, silicone etc., considerations when casting an object (surface, detail, undercuts)
    Select an object to work with during the week of Oct 3rd-5th.*
  • Independent work time
    – Museum Visit on Sept. 26th with Hannah Kinney. Meet 15 minutes before class begins in the Museum Courtyard (back entrance to the Museum). Do not be late for this session as the museum is not open to the public on Mondays and you will not be able to join the group once they enter.
    – Independent Research Time on Sept. 28th. Prepare a short (5-8 minute) presentation on one of the contemporary artists in the “Selected Artists” section of the Syllabus. Use PowerPoint/a pdf/prezzi/ whatever you prefer. Give us background information on the artist and discuss a few of the artist’s significant artworks that relate to the theme of multiples and accumulations. Make sure to include technical information on the works chosen (Title, years, dimensions, materials, etc.) as well as fabrication information if you can find any!
    Cast multiples and finalize installation details from Oct. 3rd-12th .
    Final Installation Oct. 24th New deadline: 10/31

Project 3

  • Produce an original installation that explores multiples and/or accumulation while engaging with an alternative context (outdoor/environmental or alternative venue)
    For this project, you can choose to work with either accumulation or casting (in plaster, or wax, cement, etc.).
    Site selection, research, and documentation. Oct. 26th.
    Artwork sourcing, experimentation, and production. Oct. 31- Nov. 9th.
    On-site installation, presentation, and documentation. Nov. 14th-16th.

Project 4

  • Produce a virtual artwork that deals with the accumulation in a way that would not be physically possible in an embodied physical space (final artwork output as a video or series of still images)
    Introduction to Blender (w/ Francis Wilson). Nov 21st
    Initial sketches and concept discussion. Nov. 28th + 30th
    Artwork presentation Dec. 7th (for artworks on screens) / Dec. 12th (for physical output/video)

Each project will be developed in several stages. Students will first sketch out and elaborate ideas that will be reviewed during individual consultations with the professor. They will then physically elaborate their ideas into rough sculptures-in-progress that will be shared for feedback in small groups. Final pieces will be exhibited and critiqued in class or in a department exhibition space. Students will be evaluated on the quality of their work during each stage of project development and on their constructive contributions to their peers’ proposals and finished artworks.

Final Class / synthesis discussion on Dec. 12th!

Research Resources

Library Search Tools: Main Library and Clarence Ward Art Library

Articles & Artists Consulted during Class (with the whole group and individual students):

Week 1:
Works with foam: Ernesto Neto, Sarah Lucas, Thomas Tronel Gauthier, Annette Messager, Mari Katayama, Lee Bul, Claes Oldenburg
Strategy – action-based art: Richard Serra’s Verb List + a short video about his process: https://art21.org/watch/extended-play/richard-serra-tools-strategies-short/

Week 2:
Cutting foam with a hot wire: Katharina Grosse
Artists: Subodh Gupta, Thomas Saraceno, Jeanne Susplugas

Week 3: Art Materials

Week 4: Body Casting
– Body Casting with plaster cloth / plaster bandages/ plaster gauze: mask-making, hand

Week 5: Positive & Negative Forms / Moldmaking & Casting References
– Using Alginate: Bucket molds vs layup molds, Mixing ratio (for bucket molds, Alginate : Water :: 1:1 OR 2:3 by volume… can go up to 1:4 for larger volumes), How to mix alginate, Casting Body Parts with Alginate and Fine Casting Plaster video, bucket molds with disposable containers

– Plaster Moldmaking & Casting:

  • 1-part molds with clay fences for relief sculptures, two-part or multi-part molds with parting lines when working with undercuts.
    Mix plaster in 1 quart yogurt containers or silicone mixing bowls with a plaster-to-water ratio of 1:1.5 (by volume). Slake plaster for 3-5 min. then mix for 5 minutes (plaster takes about 20 min. to cure).
  • 2-part plaster molds are great from wax casting or slip casting for ceramics. Multi-part molds can be re-usable or they can be waste molds that are used once and then destroyed through the casting process.

– Rubber molds: Easy mold silicone putty for small objects and casting silicon/urethane rubber –> we have putty available for the class. How to mix putty.

– Cleanup: Never put plaster in the sink, wait for it to cure and then crack off debris from mixing bowls into the trash.

Weeks 6: Teamwork for Collective Projects
Working as a group on casting multiples: how to intelligently divide up the work that needs to get done and work as a team to produce a compelling artwork.
– Group brainstorming exercises to determine what you artwork will look like and what parts you need to produce.
– Work together to mix successive, small batches of plaster as you work
– Casting often requires one person to mix materials, another to prepare the artwork surface (including forming clay walls/ cups to prop the object we’re casting into position etc.), another to pour plaster and slather it to the appropriate thickness.
– Retouch cracked/broken artworks which casting each successive multiple
– Use appropriate amounts of plaster/alginate/rubber mold compound. DO not waste materials!
– Stop working 10 minuted before the end of class to clean tables, tools, and work stations
– Store work in progress out-of-the-way so other people can access the tables when class is not in session

Week 7: Casting Materials
You can cast plaster, wax, food stuffs, etc. however never cast resins indoors in the sculpture area due to health & safety issues (lack of ventilation).
Remember to use vaseline/ anti-adhesive / murphy oil soap/ mold separator depending on what materials you are casting with. Plaster can take various surface treatments and it can be “made to look like anything” except translucent materials.
For 1-time casting, use alginate or a plaster waste mold (that you break). For multiples, use a multi-part plaster mold, silicone putty (for small-scale objects) OR a silicone rubber mold.
* use semi-melted wax to plug holes in rubber molds and plaster molds before pouring to avoid hot wax seeping from molds.
Experiment with alternative casting materials (concrete)!

Week 8: Site-specific art discussion
Project 3: Thoughtfully engage with a specific space!
Your 3rd project will be judged on how you go beyond the accumulation/installation skills from project 1 and the casting/object multiplication skills in project 2 to produce a piece using these techniques that interacts with a site in some way.
If you want us to physically visit your artwork When it is presented (Nov. 16th), it must be on campus, in the vicinity of the art building/main street/Tappan square.
If you want to show your work in a commercial space (ex. store window, movie theater etc., contact the space’s owners to request permission for a temporary installation ASAP)

Week 9: What does “alternative context” mean to you?
Writing exercise based on site/place: On the top of you page, list the location or potential location in which you will site your artwork.

  1. List 10 words that come to mind (adjectives, themes) that you associate with the place
  2. What kind of people/public are present in the space? What time of day are people present?
  3. What kind of physical features are there that could support work / that you could present artwork on or hang artwork from?
  4. Does the space have a particular social or historical importance? To whom? In what time scale?
  5. Who does not come to the space? Who is excluded, unwelcome, or just not aware of the existence of the space?
  6. What are some “opposite” place with different uses/audiences that are diametrically opposed to your space in some way? For example a retirement home in relation to a daycare, etc…

Week 10:
Artist References: Tony Oursler, Ha Schult, Do Ho Suh, Doris Salcedo, Womanhouse (Judy Chicago and Miriam Schapiro), Alison Elizabeth Taylor, Billie Zangewa, Brigitte Zieger, J Stoner Blackwell, Janet Echelman, Agnes Hansella (macramé)

Documenting site-specific artwork: photography and presentation skills

Week 11: Digital Sculptures / Blender Tutorial with Francis!

Blender shortcuts mentioned in Demo:

  • g (move) – g + x/y/z to move along specific axis
  • s (scale) – s +x/y/z …
  • r (rotate)
  • Cmd +J (join)
  • tab – move between Object and Edit mode
  • n – see properties window
  • e – extrude (add faces/vertices extended beyond selected faces/vertices)
  • f – fill (fill in a hole or loop edge)

Hotkey Sheet PDF from CGBoost (versions 3.3)

Blender beginner tutorial (making a donut)

Thingiverse – free, downloadable STLs (can be imported as STLs into Blender and altered)

3D scanning apps:

  • KIRI engine
  • WIDAR
  • Qlone
  • Hedges

Watch The Additivist Manifesto: Video and Cookbook

Inspiration links: Jean-Michel Bihorel (floral textures), Jonathan Monaghan (floating hairy house façade), Aron Johnson (retro aesthetic), Haar (wax/cloud textures on human figures)
Landscapes: Markus Riebe, Annibale Siconolfi (cinematic), Paul Milinski (textile waterfalls), Cao Fei (utopia/dystopia), Cyril Lancelin (public art visualizations)
Collective Exhibition: Panther Modern

Artist contributions from class participants: Jacolby Satterwhite, Lil Miquela, Shana Moulton, Julian Voss Andreae, Łukasz Gąska, Metin Seven, Vincent Schwenk, Teun van der Zalm, Omeleto/ The box is full of miserable creatures, Chris Labrooy

Week 12:

Sources for existing 3D models to potentially incorporate into your projects: Makerbot Thingiverse, Gamestation (video game assets), Mixamo (3d characters), 3D Warehouse (primarily architectural / need to import STL into Blender format), Turbosquid

Lighting tutorial, Alternately, use Image-Based Lighting / HDR Image-based Lighting

Artists incorporating 3d Modelling with physical output: Leonor Caraballo (deceased) and Abou Farman, Alissia Melka-Teichroew and Jan Habraken, Stephanie Syjuco’s Particulate Matter: Things, Thingys, Thingies, Tomáš Libertíny, John Rainey

Moving the Camera

Rendering tutorial and Rendering Guide