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Minimalist sculptors reduced works to the simplest possible shapes and made them very large. Martin Puryear loved the idea of large, simple shapes. This untitled sculpture is unusual for Martin Puryear, because much of his artwork is made of wood. ..

Minimalist sculptors reduced works to the simplest possible shapes and made them very large. Martin Puryear loved the idea of large, simple shapes. This untitled sculpture is unusual for Martin Puryear, because much of his artwork is made of wood. ..

63 Like many artists of his generation who witnessed the destructiveness of modern warfare and the deterioration of life in American cities, Martin Puryear turned for inspiration to the craft-oriented life of prehistoric societies, whose relationship with nature was fundamental and ritualistic. While retaining the legacy of Minimalism in his use of simple, reductive forms, Puryear rejected the machine aesthetic associated with the work of Donald Judd. Inspired by a lengthy residence in West Africa, his sculptures are hand-constructed from organic materials, usually wood. Puryear treats substances as if they had a life of their own; their essence is preserved, not obliterated, in order to maintain a harmony between the material and the action of its creation. Self is an outstanding example of Puryear's concern for the underlying forces that govern the formal geometries of abstract sculpture.

63 Like many artists of his generation who witnessed the destructiveness of modern warfare and the deterioration of life in American cities, Martin Puryear turned for inspiration to the craft-oriented life of prehistoric societies, whose relationship with nature was fundamental and ritualistic. While retaining the legacy of Minimalism in his use of simple, reductive forms, Puryear rejected the machine aesthetic associated with the work of Donald Judd. Inspired by a lengthy residence in West Africa, his sculptures are hand-constructed from organic materials, usually wood. Puryear treats substances as if they had a life of their own; their essence is preserved, not obliterated, in order to maintain a harmony between the material and the action of its creation. Self is an outstanding example of Puryear's concern for the underlying forces that govern the formal geometries of abstract sculpture.

another wood site: http://www.artincontext.org/welcome.htm

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