Initial Reaction
Looking at the sculpture “For Handel” by Mark di Suvero, the first thing that struck us is its size. It is one of the largest sculptures on campus, and it is hard to miss because of its bright red color. These two factors inform us of one of the purposes of the sculpture – it was made to be seen. What we first thought of when we saw it was that it looked like it belonged in a big city like Philadelphia, or New York. From there we begin to wonder what the artist wanted to convey so loudly with his art. What is his message, inspiration, or purpose? The forms in the sculpture are all created from large pieces of I–beam steel, welded and bolted together. We think this is kind of ironic because when you see big pieces of steel you think of gray and business, not really showing emotion but then it’s covered in bright red paint that evokes passion and very childlike feelings. At first glance it appears light and birdlike, because of its elevated position, the mass is dependent on the three ground supports. When you look closer, it becomes evident how heavy the piece really is, and that large equipment must have been necessary when it was erected there. The forms are very abstract, yet also highly intentional in nature. It is characterized by jagged and angular lines throughout, and the shadows that form inside of the beams add complexity to the appearance. Overall it is a very cohesive piece of work, although abstract enough that we cannot determine the artist’s purpose simply by looking at it.
Research
“For Handel” (1975)
The sculpture is located in the lawn in front of Western’s Performing Arts Center, cluing the viewer in to this piece’s connection to music. According to the Western Front, “For Handel” was created in dedication to the German baroque composer George Frederic Handel.
Mark di Suvero began creating sculptures at UC Santa Barbara, and flourished under the guidance of Robert Thomas. Di Suvero used scrap from construction jobs and created works using wood, metal and other scraps. He was involved in a near-fatal elevator accident in 1960, and was able to walk on his own after four years of recovery. He has had studios in Petaluma CA as well as New York City, and is considered an abstract expressionist sculptor.
Di Suvero is also known for many other similar works, including “Iroquois” (1983), “The Calling” (1982), Snowplow (1968) and many others.
The sculpture was created in 1975, and is part of the abstract expressionist art sculpture movement, represented heavily in Di Suvero’s angular, asymmetric forms.
Current research casts little light on this piece, however according to the Western Front, there was originally a swing hanging under the sculpture, that viewers could physically swing on. Rumor has it someone got hurt playing on the swing, and it was taken down. Additionally, it has been claimed that following this, Di Suvero painted his piece red and disowned it.
Reflection
“For Handel”, to most Western students, is just “the big red sculpture”. That’s without any knowledge about its history or creator. Knowing who the sculptor is as a person, the hardships they have endured, and that they kept on creating gives us added respect for the art. It also helps to know that the sculpture was created in the name of a musician, and is in front of the performing arts center for a reason. When you add in the other historical aspects of this piece, it fills many knowledge gaps that you may not know you had, and begs even more questions. Who paid for the piece? Why did di Suvero choose the WWU campus? What is di Suvero’s planning process with sculptures this size?
Although we still have many questions, the information available on the internet and through WWU resources gave us more appreciation for this piece. It is something you can ponder when you pass the sculpture on campus.
Created by: Sophie Cade – Text and Research, Jason Yeh – Photography, Eli Selch – Text and Research
Additional Sources:
https://westerntoday.wwu.edu/sites/westerntoday.wwu.edu/files/WINDOW-Virginia-Wright-12-12-1974.jp
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_di_Suvero
http://www.westernfrontonline.net/blogs/archives/article_86efcbf4-ad37-11e2-842b-001a4bcf6878.html
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