Walker Art Center Field Trip - Cherryless Spoon

The work I chose to write about is Claes Oldenburg's "Spoonbridge and Cherry" (1985-1988). It is constructed of aluminum, stainless steel, and paint and the dimensions are 354 x 618 x 162 in. Even though I have viewed this work in the past, I have never seen it without the cherry on the spoon. In discussion with a classmate about the sculpture, Kate made the comment that the 'absence' changes the work. I completely agreed with her observation. When we first approached "Spoonbridge and Cherry," we knew something was different; and then, we realized that the cherry was missing. When looking at the spoon, the viewer can see where the cherry had been previously because of the different color and surface treatment on the end of the spoon.


To see more images of the cherryless spoon, click on any of the images, or click on the following link: http://photobucket.com/steindlj_ClaesOldenburgCherrylessSpoon.


To read more about the history of Oldenburg's "Spoonbridge and Cherry," click on the following link (which will take you to the Walker Art Center's site): http://garden.walkerart.org/artwork.wac.


To read more about the cherry restoration process and how they (Walker Art Center) put the cherry back on the spoon, click on the following link (this will also take you to the Walker Art Center's site): http://blogs.walkerart.org/ecp/2009/05/01/cherry-back-on-spoon/.

Ornamentation Project - Finished

This is my finished 'Ornamentation' project for Drawing III. It was difficult to get a good photograph of the installation without a wide-angle lens, but did take pictures of it from different angles.


One thing I found interesting about this project as I collected materials was the common, reoccurring items that people forgot/left behind/lost/abandoned, such as phone chargers (hotels and vehicles), swimming suit halves (hotels and gyms), single gloves (hotels, gyms, and vehicles), hats (hotels, gyms, and vehicles), toys (hotels, gyms and vehicles), and various others. A few of the random items that were not as common include such items as a jock strap (gym), a net (vehicle), a pad of paper with a note written to the person's lover (vehicle), and others.


One thing worth mentioning that you really do not get from any of the images of this project is the smell. Lost and found items have a very distinct odor to them. During the class critique, this smell was equated with smelling "like Goodwill." However, there is a difference between buying things from Goodwill and acquiring things (via donation) from the 'lost and found.' People knowingly bring belongings to "Goodwill;" conversely, items in the 'lost & found' were unintentionally put there (i.e. these L & F items were not necessarily put here by choice).


I titled this piece "Everything but the Hooks and Thread." The only items I bought for this piece were the hooks (used to hang the items on the wall) and the thread (used to sew the various objects/things together). As discussed in the critique, the viewer may need more help understanding this installation. Thus, I am open to possible suggestions for a different title that may help steer the mind in the correct direction.


I do have many more images of the finished installation available on my photobucket page. To view more images, click on either of the images above, or click on the following link: http://photobucket.com/steindlj_finishedornamentationproject.

(Note: Ideally, I would have liked to cover the entire space with 'lost and found' items; but time didn't allow it.)