THE ARTIST

Log Ramps was created by the artist Lloyd Hamrol. Hamrol was born in 1937 in San Francisco, graduated from UCLA, and currently lives in Los Angeles. He focuses on architecturally defined pieces with materials that are associated with the permanent landscape of where the piece will sit (Hamrol). Log Ramps was originally constructed in 1974 and reconstructed in 1983 and 1995.  Hamrol became well-known in the 70s for his sculpture pieces placed into landscapes. Log Ramps was his second site project and the logs were made from Douglas Fir logs and Hemlock logs (Clark-Langager).

According to the Western Gallery, he originally created this to be the participatory piece it is today. It was intended show reference to “ceremonial architecture, protecting enclosures, and the natural resources of the Northwest.” The logs are places so one can climb up and a see an imaginary circle in the center of the sculpture. It is meant to integrate the landscape of Bellingham with the trees and architecture. Although, he began creating the concepts and sketches before visiting WWU, as he wanted to present the idea of a “primitive Northwest shelter” to WWU students. In fact, originally he wanted it to be covered in sod but realized it would rot through the wood and ruin it.

THE WORK

Over the years the sculpture had to be fixed because Parks Hall was rebuilt. It was not built where we see it now, it used to be in a vacant site where Parks Hall is today. It sat there from 1974 to 1981 before that construction took place, causing it to be demolished and rebuilt. As it was replaced Hamrol wanted the piece to be on a major path on campus and he liked that it was by the Environmental Science building as it was a new and modern building at the time.  He wanted students to leave the path to go sit on his sculpture (Clark-Langager).

The book “Living Materials: A Sculptor’s Handbook” noted that this was one of many environmental sculptures that were happening during the time. This “trend” was when the artist would present a figure or multiple figures were part of the figure’s original environmental was part of the figure. The area the figure or  sculpture is in becomes the backdrop or background for the figure (Andrews, 316-318).

The era of the 1970’s was a wild ride for many. The fashion and pop culture from the 60’s had only been refined into a crazier and more colorful future. The times brought landmark changes in music, introducing music from David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, and Pink Floyd (Philips). Pop culture was evolving with the push for social progressive values, Beverly Johnson became the first black model on the cover of Vogue or any other major fashion magazine for that matter, and desegregation of schools was implemented. The 70’s was as bright as it was dark; it was time of chaos. Watergate happened and Nixon was impeached, the U.S. government was in shambles, terrorism at the Olympics, war between India and Pakistan, bombings in London, the list could go on horrifically (Graham).
To escape the world and all of its tragedies the 70’s needed art. The state the world was in played influence to art around, including Lloyd Hamrol’s Log Ramps. The culture of the 1970’s had an undoubtable hippie style to it, and along with it came a new found love for the environment – the term “tree huggers” would fit the era nicely. Log Ramps was designed as an interactive piece of art, one students could relax on, it has an earthy ambiance to it. The period influenced its creation in that all the turmoil of the era set forth a need for peace; the hippies, the music, the art. The era needed something to mute out the negative things happening around, and this can explain Log Ramps.

Today, we see this sculpture as a resting place for students in between classes or as a relaxing place to connect with nature. Similar to the eras that inspired this piece, the art is still connected with the environment as are the students.

Works Cited

Andrews, Oliver. Living materials: a sculptor’s handbook. Berkeley: U of California Press, 1988.

Print.

Clark-Langager, Sarah. “Walking Tour with Artists.” Outdoor Sculpture Collection Transcript.

Western Washington University Gallery, 2006. Transcript.

Graham, James. “Historical Events in 1974.” OnThisDay.com. N.p., 2016. Web. 26 Apr. 2017.

Phipps, Paul. “The 1970s.” RetroWaste.com N.p., 9 Sept. 2015. Web. 26 Apr. 2017.

Hamrol, Lloyd. Lloyd Hamrol sculpture. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Apr. 2017.

Hamrol, Lloyd. Lloyd Hamrol sculpture.  Lloydhamrol.com.  N.P., n.d. Wed. 26 Apr. 2017

Created by:

Carolyn Trainer

Elliot Mcintyre