Found Object Sculptures

Found Object Sculptures

My favorite coffee table was once a dirty, broken mess sitting next to a dumpster. Thanks to some heavy-duty cleaner and a piece of wood, I still get compliments on my masculine vintage table to this day. One person's trash turned out to be my treasure, much like the artists who create found object sculptures.

Found object sculptures are those made from materials that were not intended to be used for a work of art.

They are natural or found materials which are subsequently used by an artist to create a sculpture, often without being altered in any way. These found object sculptures take a material that was once used in one particular way and make it function within the realm of artwork. As one creator of found object sculptures, Louise Nevelson, said, When you put together things that other people have thrown out, you're really bringing them to life – a spiritual life that surpasses the life for which they were originally created."

Louise Nevelson was known for her abstract sculptures made from found objects. Her specialty became collages that were made of wood scraps, ranging in size from small to quite large and monumental. One of her most famous works is entitled Sky Cathedral. It is a wall piece made from 38 boxes, each filled with various wood fragments made into a design. The boxes are all attached and the entire piece is painted a single color, black, to eliminate the individuality of the boxes, instead unifying them as a whole. The color black casts dramatic shadows within the boxes, giving the piece a cavernous feel.

Another composer of found object sculptures was Jim Gary. An American sculptor, Gary created large, colorful dinosaurs made entirely from discarded automobile parts. His collection was displayed in the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, making him the only living sculptor ever invited there for a solo show. Though known for using the automobile parts, Gary created a life-sized figure of a woman titled Universal Woman, made of various pieces of hardware. Stained glass is also featured in some of his formal sculptures. His whimsical found object sculptures are still appreciated by visitors of all ages to this day.

John Chamberlain was yet another artist that used scrap parts of an automobile for his found object sculptures. Unlike Gary, he preferred to take dented pieces from cars that had been involved in a crash. The idea of this was threatening for many critics of his work, as his pieces involved dirty metal with jagged edges that further suggested a car wreck. Chamberlain, however, only viewed this as poetic. Some examples of his sculptures include Scull's Angel and Shortstop. His work is most often referred to as Abstract Expression, with the pieces of steel welded together and painted.

Some artists create found object sculptures to mock the idea that art can be made from anything. Marcel Duchamp, a French artist, was the inventor of ready-made art . His ready-mades were created from everyday objects, such as a snow shovel. Duchamp's sculptures demonstrated a contempt for artists who chose pre-existing objects to create their art. One of his most controversial sculptures was entitled Fountain. It was signed R. Mutt and was nothing more than a common urinal turned upside-down. It clearly ridiculed the idea of found object sculptures.

Found object sculptures are both original and renovated. They can be from natural or man-made materials. The beauty is found in the uncommon, sometimes quirky transformation. So is it worth it to grab your noseplugs and dive into the dumpster to see what you find? It depends on which starving artist or college student you talk to. My favorite coffee table has convinced me.