January 1973. Wood, Ohio Chestnut. Dimensions: 10 × 10 × 52 in (25 × 25 × 132 cm). Collection of the artist.
Horizontal Form #2 was created while I was an undergraduate at Kent State University and, like several works from this period, explores the visual tension and spatial relationship between distinct abstract forms. Rather than relying solely on the negative space separating individual elements, however, the two major geometric masses are physically joined by an expressively carved organic passage. The contrast between the long, restrained horizontal geometry and the concentrated, flowing forms at the center creates a dialogue between geometric order and organic movement, solid mass and open space.
The work reflects my growing awareness that sculpture could be shaped as much by the space moving through and around a form as by the material itself. The carved openings penetrate the central mass, while the organic contours seem to pull the two extended geometric elements together, concentrating the sculpture's visual energy at their point of connection. Looking back, Horizontal Form #2 represents an early exploration of mass and void, geometry and organic form, and the expressive possibilities created when contrasting sculptural elements are brought into a dynamic relationship—concerns that would continue to develop throughout my work.
January 1973. Wood, Ohio Chestnut. Dimensions: 10 × 10 × 52 in (25 × 25 × 132 cm). Collection of the artist.
Horizontal Form #2 was created while I was an undergraduate at Kent State University and, like several works from this period, explores the visual tension and spatial relationship between distinct abstract forms. Rather than relying solely on the negative space separating individual elements, however, the two major geometric masses are physically joined by an expressively carved organic passage. The contrast between the long, restrained horizontal geometry and the concentrated, flowing forms at the center creates a dialogue between geometric order and organic movement, solid mass and open space.
The work reflects my growing awareness that sculpture could be shaped as much by the space moving through and around a form as by the material itself. The carved openings penetrate the central mass, while the organic contours seem to pull the two extended geometric elements together, concentrating the sculpture's visual energy at their point of connection. Looking back, Horizontal Form #2 represents an early exploration of mass and void, geometry and organic form, and the expressive possibilities created when contrasting sculptural elements are brought into a dynamic relationship—concerns that would continue to develop throughout my work.
