There are three art movements that have inspired my creative style. These movements are installation, minimalism, and feminism. Within these movements, I have found multiple artists that have inspired my creative style and direction. Installation art consists of three dimensional pieces that are designed to transform the perception of an indoor space. These works can either be permanent or temporary. This art movement incorporates a wide range of mixed media. What makes installation art different from sculpture or other traditional art forms is that it is a complete unified experience, rather than a display of separate, individual artworks. The focus on how the viewer experiences the work and the desire to provide an intense experience for them is a dominant theme in installation art.  Some installation artists that have inspired me are Louise Bourgeois, Louise Nevelson, John Chamberlain, and Tara Donovan. I have never done any installations before, but I have always been interested. I love of the idea of creating work that will create a whole experience when they view it.

Minimalism is a step away from Abstract Expressionism by removing any autobiographical information from their artwork. This rejection of expression together with an interest in making objects that avoided the appearance of fine art led to the creation of smooth, geometric works that purposefully and radically avoid conventional appeal. Minimalists were known to make pieces that resembled factory-built commodities and overturned traditional definitions of art in which meaning was tied to a narrative or to the artist. The use of manufactured industrial materials and simple, often repeated, geometric forms along with the emphasis placed on the physical space occupied by the artwork led to some works that forced the viewer to confront the arrangement and scale of the forms. Viewers also were led to experience qualities of weight, height, gravity, agility, or the appearance of light as a mental presence. They were often faced with artworks that demanded a physical along with a visual response. Minimalist artists that inspired my work include Louise Nevelson, Eva Hesse, and John Chamberlain.

The last art movement that encourages my work is feminist art. The feminist art movement came out of the anti-war movement in the 1960s as well as civil and queer right movements. Before this movement, a majority of women artists were denied exhibitions and gallery representations due to the fact that they were female. Feminist artists created alternative venues as well as worked to change established institutions’ policies to promote women artists’ visibility within the art world. These artworks sought to create a channel of communication between the viewer and the work through the inclusion of women’s perspective.  There is no singular medium or style that unites feminist artists, there are a plethora. The mediums they used did not have the same male-dominated precedent, such as, painting and sculpture.  The production of feminist art created many pathways that previously did not exist for women and minority artists. It also inspired activist art throughout the 1980s. Some feminist artists that motivate my work include Louise Bourgeois, Eva Hesse, and Louise Nevelson.

My first artist that fuels my creative aspirations is Louise Bourgeois. She had influenced both the installation and feminist movements. Her installations are haunting as they share a piece of her tragic childhood. The emotion she invokes in such works really reaches the spectators and allows them to see her adaption of her living nightmare. Most of her career was inspired by feminine psyche, beauty, and psychological pain. Her art was extremely therapeutic to her, as art is to me. My work is my only way I can truly express myself and communicate.

My next artist was actually inspired by Louise Bourgeois, Louise Nevelson. Louise Nevelson’s sculptures inspired all of the art movements that I previously described. Her work was also extremely influenced by her childhood. She primarily worked with wood to call to mind the forms of the city, nature, and the otherworldly bodies. Nevelson carefully arranged the objects in order to historicize the debris within the new, narrative context of her wall sculptures. She is an important part of my Tree of Life because she broke the stereotype of the “macho man” sculptor. Her work paved the way for femininity in art.

Another artist in my tree that is inspired by Louise Bourgeois is Eva Hesse. She influenced both the feminist and minimalist movements. Her sculptures are based off of every day, commonplace materials, such as, rope, string, wire, rubber, and fiber glass. In these pieces, Hesse explored by way of the simplest materials to suggest a wide range of organic associations, psychological moods, and sexual innuendos. I love how she uses conventional materials and creates them into abstract sculptures. I do that in my work to give the spectators a different perspective of these everyday objects. I feel like there can be far deeper meanings and perceptions of these objects that people see every day; they can be turned into something fresh and visually appealing.

Next, is the sculptor John Chamberlain who was inspired by installation and minimalism. The media he is best known for is the parts of automobiles. As he progressed in his work he used other materials, such as, galvanized steel, mineral-coated Plexiglas, aluminum foil, and metal. There is no true meaning behind his work, when questioned he answered with, “Even if I knew, I could only know what I thought it meant.” Chamberlain inspires my work because with his use of conventional materials, he completely transforms them. When you look at his work you see an abstract dream and not car parts. I aspire to reach that level in my work.

My last artist is Tara Donovan. She is a sculptor that is inspired by installation and minimalism.  Donovan’s work uses everyday manufactured materials such as Scotch tape, Styrofoam cups, paper plates, toothpicks, and drinking straws to create large scale sculptures that often have a biomorphic quality. While creating her work, Donovan explains that she chooses the material before she decides what can be done with it. That fact motivates me in my material selection for a piece. I love the idea of letting the material speak to you. Premeditated visions of work can be stifling to the creative process so the artist must let the material come alive before them.

Works Cited

“Eva Hesse Biography, Art, and Analysis of Works.” The Art Story. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Oct. 2015.

“Minimalism Movement, Artists and Major Works.” The Art Story. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Oct. 2015.