Who Are Your Art Heroes?

Who are your art heroes?  I’ve been thinking lately about who inspires me and why, and I’ve come up with my top five favorites.

It’s impossible to say who is my most favorite artist, that would be like picking my favorite bird or weather or fruit.  But one of my top favorites is Andy Goldsworthy.  His work is exceptionally beautiful and inspiring.  I love his attachment to place, his close observation of what makes that particular place special right then.  Time is such an important element in his work.  I also admire his dedication to do the work even if no one will ever see it in person and his utter purity of process. He only uses what is there at that time, in that place.

Another artist I love is David Nash.  I love his sensitivity to materials and his awareness of their provenance.  For example, he made a piece in 1983 called Sod Swop.  For this piece he cut a ring of wild, natural sod from his northern Welsh property and switched it with a ring of manicured turf at Kensington Gardens.  Just switching the grass rings and maintaining them appropriately, draws attention to what they consist of, where they’re from, and how wildly different they are.  At the end of the exhibit, they rings were suppose to be switched back, but they never were, and to this day David still maintains and mows the turf from Kensington Gardens.   That’s dedication to your artwork, your materials, and your process!

Both of these artists have been inspired by Costantin Brancusi and I can include myself in that category as well.  He was one of the first to make sculpture about what is essential in a subject, not the appearance of it.  I also love the emphasis on form and simplicity in the work of Brancusi’s student, Isamu Noguchi.

Last but certainly not least is Dale Chihuly.  Glass is inherently sexy and beautifully suffused with color and light.  But what I love the most about his work is how he makes multiples of a shape and then plays with them until he finds a resolution as a complete piece.  My favorite works are his installations and environmental artworks.

Heroes are a source of inspiration and a reminder of what we want to achieve.  Revisiting them makes me feel more motivated, more dedicated to do the best work I can, and to get busy!  Maybe it’s time to revisit your heroes too.