Inside the Black Box: Relationships between Structural and Natural Spaces
“In the ruin, nature beings to have the upper hand: the ‘brute, downward-dragging, corroding, crumbling power’ produces a new form, ‘entirely meaningful, comprehensible, differentiated.’ “
—Brian Dillon from “Fragments from a History of Ruin,” 2005–2006
But at what point can nature be said to have been victorious in this battle between formal spirit and organic substance? This phenomena is not the triumph of nature, but an intermediate moment, a fragile equilibrium between persistence and decay. These tensions between the abandoned structure or ruin, and the completely natural space surrounding it are the moments that interest me most.
The process of making each piece is just as important as the final finished product in this body of work. Just like the continuous change that ruins undergo as they are consumed by nature, my sculptures too undergo change. The forms my sculptures currently occupy are the outcomes of work, editing, and reworking. Experimentation with materials, building without a clear final form in mind, and trial and error regarding placement of parts all play into the final outcome of my sculptures.
Bjorn Olsen '15
Advisor: Walter Zurko
Advisor: Walter Zurko
All images copyright © 2015 Bjorn Olsen. All rights reserved.
Untitled. Installation. Wood. 49” x 94” x 37”. 2015.
Flight of the Octopus, Hideaway, & Untitled. Installation. 2015.
Vestige 1. Plaster, gauze, wood, milk paint, beeswax, wire. 15” x 36.5” x 17”. 2015.
Flight of the Octopus. Wood, wire, clay, charcoal. 48” x 72.5” x 69”. 2015.
Collection 1, 2 and 3. Wood, nylon. Installation. 2015.
Vestige 4. Plaster, gauze, wood, milk paint, beeswax, wire, mosquito netting. 31” x 24” x 20”. 2015.