These photos represent the visually striking qualities in Flank II. The texture of the copper warped by the natural environment shows hues of brown and bright blue and reflect a perfect beauty. The geometric shape draws the viewer in with its Minimalism and length but simultaneously blends into the environment by being low to the ground.

Mia Westerlund Roosen began her career as a sculptor in the late 1960’s when Minimalism was the main artistic movement. Westerlund Roosen made her choice of theme of organic over industrial. She took to a geometric aesthetic and a commitment to handmade objects. She stated in her interview with the Betty Cuningham Gallery, “The big differences between the pieces in the 70’s and now is that in the 70’s there were strict  parameters of how one made work. If you were doing processed art you had to have the material and the method and the placement of where you actually did it and how you did it had to be extremely visible in the piece. And that was it, then you left it that way. If you made it on the floor then it was on the floor, if you made it hanging up then it would hang. There was this logic to it that was very important and had to be extremely visible.” She carried this on to the creation of Flank II in 1978.

Flank II by Mia Westerlund Roosen was originally made in the Vancouver Art Gallery. Now, it rests in a patch of gravel within the grass on the southside of the Western Washington University Campus, while it was originally placed on the north end of campus with surrounding trees acting as its borders. When looking at the piece her original intent can be interpreted many different ways.

Flank II has multiple meanings for us. One of the meanings speaks to the relationship between man-made things and the natural environment. Since Flank II is made out of steel, copper and cement it is definitely considered a man-made object. In Flank II’s original place with the grass directly beneath it and trees surrounding it, it was a more significant juxtaposition between industrial and natural. Westerlund Roosen may have meant for this piece to draw attention to the difference between the two, or maybe even to shed light on how as time goes on more industrial aspects of life blend into the natural environment. Because of the layer of copper on the outside, it has oxidized more and more over time and turned the sculpture a pretty teal blue color. This is the same process that has happened to the Statue Of Liberty.


Speaking of blending into the natural environment, the other significant aspect we drew from the piece was how understated the piece was overall. Which could be intentional with the purpose of blending into the world around to state something entirely more powerful. Since we spent a good amount of time trying to figure out what Westerlund Roosen was trying to say with the piece, it was completely left open ended. We all walk past the sculpture on a daily basis but never noticed it until we were told to find it. To the naked eye it looks as if it may just be a few logs lying on the ground, or could look as a functioning bench for people to sit against. This speaks to us more than the sculpture itself. The connecting video is a time lapse of Flank II during the daily commute of Western students to and from classes. This time lapse brings the insignificance of Flank II to attention because no one that passes the sculpture pays any mind to it or even looks at it. The amount that this piece is underappreciated is overarching, because when you stop to look for the different meaning it can open your mind to many possibilities.

 

Bibliography:
    1. Betty Cuningham Gallery http://www.bettycuninghamgallery.com/artists/mia-westerlund-roosen

  1. Photography: Emily Michels
  2. Time Lapse: Abigail Ford (Music: Forces Of Attraction – Jóhann Johannsson) 

 

Made by: Bailey Arionus-Lecouris, Abigail Ford, and Emily Michels