By: Dillon Hamblin & Paige Rittenhouse

The Piece

“Two-Part Chairs, Right Angle Version” was created in 1987 only 2 years before Scott Burton’s death. This piece was originally in the Virginia Wright

“Two-Part Chairs” in front of the WWU Biology Building

Fund in Seattle and gifted to Western Washington University in 2005. The two chairs sit on either side of the main entrance of the biology building on campus.

This piece is part of his long running series ‘Two-part Chairs’ which incorporated and combines two polished granite shapes to create a interpretive form of a chairs. This gives the title two meanings with the combination of two parts and the creation of two chairs in a piece. This series in itself is part of his vision to combine functionality and sculpture in his art. The chairs in this series express Burton’s belief that a work of art should transcend any single artist’s emotional or intellectual concerns. Likewise, these objects demonstrate Burton’s engagement with the disposition of bodies in space, since furniture accommodates and reflects the form of the human body especially with chairs. ‘Right Angle Version’ specifically is very rigid and straight using only 90° angles to shape the piece. The two blocks making up the piece fit perfectly together with only very small seems created by the slightly rounded edges of the shapes. The human body is forced to adapt to the intense form of the chairs but with a large surface area and unrestricted nature of the piece, a person is free to explore the ways it can be used.

“Right Angle Version’ is made out of polished Barents Granite blocks. Barents red granite gives the sculpture a very distinct mix of red and grey colors. The intertwining of natural contrasting colors is visually stimulating. The use of the same granite in both blocks of a chair intentionally shows that the blocks are one entity but different elements.

The current location of the piece also helps ensure that the chairs see daily use and traffic around it. The spot is convenient to passing students and the forward facing view the chairs observe looks over other campus buildings as well as other brilliant sculptures and the forests of the Arboretum behind.

View of the Biology building from afar

The Artist

Scott Burton is an American artist known for blurring the lines between what is art and what is furniture.  He was born in Greensboro, Alabama on June 23rd, 1939.  He started his artistic career by dabbling in performing arts.  When Burton got into the very early stages of his career in fine arts, he was very intrigued with the idea of exploring the relationship between the human body and furniture.  Burton believed that art should, ”place itself not in front of, but around, behind, underneath (literally) the audience.”

”Place itself not in front of, but around, behind, underneath (literally) the audience.”

Burton wanted his art to be interactive.  He worked in a tradition of utilitarian modernism meaning creating work that is useful, practical, and functional.  He rejected fancy ornamentations in his work.  He wanted to use only what was necessary.  His designs were sleek, modern, and made for people to use.  Burton typically used granite and other types of stone to achieve the clean precisely cut furniture sculptures.  Burton’s personality shines through his work.  He has been known for his vast knowledge and verbal precision.  His work clearly tells the story of the artist with the well thought out designs and the clean execution.

Scott Burton (1939-1989)

Burton is mostly known for transforming the idea of public furniture.  His designs were created for people to use, sit on, lie down, eat a lunch on.  He really wanted to create work of art that people could interact with.  Throughout his life Burton had created many benches, stools and chair sculptures.  His work can be found today all around the world in cities such as Seattle, New York City, Portland, and Toronto.  Burton died in Manhattan, New York in 1989 at the young age of 50 due to AIDS.  His work however lives on as everyday people sit upon it and not even realize that what they are sitting upon is a work of art.

Bibliography:

AIDS, Visual. “Scott Burton.” Visual AIDS, www.visualaids.org/artists/detail/scott-burton.

“Western Washington University.” Western Gallery, westerngallery.wwu.edu/sculpture/two-part-chairs-right-angle-version-pair.

Nelson, Estelle. “Two-Part Chairs: Right Angle Version (A Pair) – Scott Burton.” Edited by Grace Kennedy, React. Research. Execute!, Western Washington University, wp.wwu.edu/wwuart109/2017/02/16/two-part-chairs-right-angle/.

Smith, Roberta. “Scott Burton, Sculptor Whose Art Verged on Furniture, Is Dead at 50.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 31 Dec. 1989, www.nytimes.com/1990/01/01/obituaries/scott-burton-sculptor-whose-art-verged-on-furniture-is-dead-at-50.html.