hours before the opening

February 24, 2009. The Lace Futures Exhibition in The Kanbar Center Presentation Space at Philadelphia University.

line... static... line

One of Marcia's students explores the possibility of lacing the structure with split film. Our objective is to create a surface we can project animated graphics on. The original wire sculpture was twice this size but material flex made it unwieldy at that size so we scaled it down. Though the lacing is interesting, the piece is becoming more of an object and less about a line traveling through space.


When I see yellow caution tapes, I find that I am not looking at what they are protecting or what they are wrapped around. It is the path of the line itself that is most interesting as it ricochets from one point of attachment to another.



So I started thinking that the problem with our piece was that there was no real conversation between the wire rod structure and the tape that was on it. The tape is thin and when you wrap it around the rod you can take it to any other point on the frame, and that's the problem. If the tape were much thicker, like the caution tape, it would wrap around the rod and come off at an angle that reflects the angle at which it had approached that piece of rod.


So that let me to realize that the frame we built is just a bit of static. The line approaches the piece, is scrambled back and forth like "cat's cradle" and eventually escapes the piece as a line again. The eye will see the line. The frame does its job in redirection but it basically invisible.
At last we are drawing lines in space. Marcia was out looking for appropriate tape material today. We will have to lace it in place at the exhibition, as an installation, but we will do some experiments tomorrow.



The line shown in these photos has been drawn in place but the real thing should give much the same effect. The plan in the entry below already shows a new version of the string figure sculpture with the tape wrapping around a column, scrambling through the wire rod frame and then racing off across the floor.

Overhead table lighting

Eric prototypes our simple overhead reflector. It is held aloft on a threaded rod and large washers top and bottome keep the parts square to each other. The rod will be painted black so that the bowl above will appear to float over the table.

The idea came to me when thinking about an Olympic Games T shirt I did years ago.

Hy demo's lace from laces...

table based display system

The long tables act as display panels when stood on end. The inset legs lock in the extended position and allow the table to be secure in an upright and slightly leaned back position. They mimic the position of the project panels supported by the laser cut foam core stands I have designed to slide into the edge of the table.

Hy

wire entry piece

a maquette for "cat's cradle," an entry piece for the exhibit. My wire hanger idea (bottom) is translated into a full size string figure by Frank and I in my studio. We intend to use split film to wrap the open form and create surfaces onto which will be projected a loop of animated graphics. Final form (top) is now ready to be translated into a 13ft x 8ft x 4ft piece in 3/8 inch wire rod.

Budda and the doiley

lace is also about what is, and what is not, to be touched, which brings to mind Grandma Beckie's Doilies. Doilies are small, hand made, crocheted lace mats. While very beautiful and intricate, they were usually made to protect the surface they covered. They also are sometimes referred to as antimacassars because they were supposed to prevent macassar, a hair oil, from transferring to, and ruining furniture upholstery. In my Grandma's apartment, all of the chairs, the sofa, and small side table were covered with doilies. The only thing in the apartment that I remember my cousins and I were allowed to come in direct contact with was the small wooden Budda my Uncle Dave have brought back from his military service in WWII. The doilies gave me an idea for a chair which would have only doilies for arms and backrest. I imagined an uncomfortable stool would sit within the wire frame.

birdsnest lace

the birdsnest stadium in Beijing by Herzog & de Meuron, is a beautiful piece of architectural lace. My own sculpture has often been about creating a sketch in space. This has a times led me to create support structures that would allow for the intricacy of the work, its undercuts and overlaps, and yet come free of the work with the ease of the magician snapping the tablecloth free of the table setting. One such experiment shown below was simply a string or thread, run through white glue and wrapped around a foam ball. After the glue has set, the ball is submerged in acetone and the foam is dissolved, leaving the sphere of thread. When I did see the birdsnest stadium I first drew it in my favorite medium, wire. The later, applied the string and foam technique.