Art & History Essay
The world of art is rich and diverse, which makes it rather hard to point out a single artist as a major inspiration. Being a reflection of one’s thoughts, experiences, and intentions, art in general and visual art in particular is as manifold, as human personality. On the one hand, the unlimited character of manifestations of art enables self-expression carried out in an almost infinite number of ways. On the other hand, however, such richness of possibilities eventually motivates one to search for more than merely self-expression. Lately, I am greatly attracted by public art because of its intrinsically transformative character. For this reason, I would like to point out Garth Edwards as an artist, whom I consider a model and whose works of art I find particularly inspiring and motivating.
Garth Edwards is a contemporary artist, whose contribution into the American public art cannot be underestimated. Since 1980s, he had worked in 10 states and had finished more than fifty public art projects (Edwards). The major material Edwards usually utilizes in his creative work is metal, which, although seemingly rough and soulless, in Garth’s hands turns into a lively universal medium, through which the artist transfers his creative and full of vivid imagery perception of the world to the communities he serves. Pieces of art created by Garth Edwards are rather universal and can be found within very different environments: they are applied to decorate the halls of buildings or to contribute to the beauty of the parks, the streets, and the alleys people walk daily. The diversity of environments results in a diversity of forms and manifestations, which includes such creative pieces as benches and manhole covers, bridge lanterns and bike racks to mention a few. Although serving different purposes, most of his projects possess a common feature: they organically fit into the chosen spaces, making art an intrinsic part of the neighborhood daily life.
Thus, Garth’s artwork is more than a manifestation of the artist’s self-expression: it reflects the culture characteristic for the taken environment. Along with decorating, art pieces unite seemingly separate parts into a single sensible whole - a community.I have chosen this artist as a model due to several reasons. Firstly, I am greatly attracted by the style of his artworks. Most of his art pieces are rather simple in terms of form, but considerably rich in terms of content. For instance, the composition known as the “Enchanted Garden,” which decorates the side wall of the Coleman Place Elementary School in Norfolk, VA (Arts Norfolk), portrays animals, birds, and trees in a rather simple manner. However, despite its simplicity, it touches one’s imagination making those figures revive in one’s mind and move in a magic dance.
Secondly, I am fond of the artist’s ability to make art valuable from the practical point of view. While visiting galleries, you observe the artworks in a quiet contemplation, but when Garth’s works are …
