“As old as art itself”
What is 3D art?:
3D art includes sculptures, street painting, textiles, design objects, installations, murals, beading, computer graphics, and much more. It is a type of art that is not flat on paper. Yet, 3D art can also be works of art that create a perception of depth and its interaction with its audience.
Examples of 3D art famous artists:
- Sculptures: Michelangelo, Auguste Rodin, Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Louise Bourgeois, Donatello, Henry Moore, Antony Gormley, Fernando Botero, Barbara Hepworth
- Street painting: Edgar Müller, Julian Beever and Kurt Wenner
- Textiles: Alexandra Bircken, Sheila Hicks, Tanya Aguiñiga, Sarah Zapata, Nick Cave, Inge Jacobsen Billie Zangewa
- Design: René Lalique, Erté, Le Corbusier, Jean Dunand, Leon Bakst, Sonia Delaunay, Jean Després
- Murals: Banksy, Keith Haring, Shepard Fairey, Diego Rivera, Lady Pink, Maya Hayuk, Eduardo Kobra, David Alfaro Siqueiros
- Beading: Liza Lo, Joyce J. Scott, Ran Hwang, Jamie Okuma, Keri Ataumbi, Robin Atkins
- Computer graphics: David Carson, Saul Bass, Stefan Sagmeister, Paula Scher, Michael Bierut, Massimo Vignelli, Milton Glaser, Paul Rand
Elements:
- Space: Distance, are and volume that the artwork will occupy (physical space)
- Line: The outline of the form (wire, wood, string, etc)
- Plane: The surface or where the artwork is placed (foam, metal, plastic, wood, etc)
- Volume: The closed three dimensional form (wood or stone)
- Shape: The shape that lies between the contours is the positive shape, the shapes created by the empty spaces are the negative ones
- Value: The light and shadows on the surface of the shapes
- Texture: The surface can be smooth or rough, etc (it depends also on the materials used)
- Color: The actual color of the material being used, or the color added with different materials
Principies:
- Harmony: the elements used to create the artwork belong with each other due to the presence of similar things between them
- Variety: The use of different elements, forms, shapes and textures that create contrast
- Rhythm: Results of the use of forms used alternately or with a specific sequence.
- Emphasis: Something in the artwork that stands out or catches the viewer’s attention
- Balance: Symmetrical or asymmetrical order within the elements
- Scale: Size and quantity of the elements
Investigating 3D Artists:
“La Esfera de Caracas” by Jesús Soto
“La Esfera de Caracas” is one of the most important artworks of the venezuelan plastic artist Jesús Soto, it is situated at the Distribuidor Santa Cecilia, autopista Francisco Fajardo, Caracas. It was built in 1997 and it has been restored two times (2006 and 2014). This icon of Venezuela’s capital is built using eight hundred thousand aluminum sticks. The sticks have a width of 0.75 inches and are 13 meters long. They are all suspended from a stainless steel structure. The entire structure is 13,64 meters long and has lights that make it visible during the day and at night. Each stick is single handedly painted with orange paint to create the illusion of a giant orange floating sphere. It also creates an illusion of movement when the viewer moves that makes it even more incredible to watch. I grew up watching this piece everytime I went to school since I had to pass through this highway. For the analysis, this type of artwork is called Kinetic art. Which is based on the use of any medium that either contains or creates movement based on the viewers perspective. In this piece the movement is created by the different, yet specific length of the orange paint of the sticks. This bright and powerful orange also helps this illusion since it is a color that symbolizes activity and enjoyment.
Soto, J. (Jesús Soto). (1997) “La Esfera de Caracas”. Caracas, Venezuela
“Escultura-Relieve” by Lía Bermudez
This amazing artwork is called “Escultura-Relieve”, it was made in 1982 by the Venezuelan sculptor Lía Bermúdez and it is located in Caracas subway. Bermúdez was born in Caracas, Venezuela in 1930. Her career began at a very young age with cubist drawings and then took the turn towards sculptures and never looked back. Jesús Soto (the artist that made the previous artwork) was one of his mentors and later fellow friends. Her work is currently described as an abstract geometric tradition. Her work is presented in private and public collections across the globe. To begin with the analysis, this piece is made up of welded iron and then painted with red anti-rust paint. It is composed of six different pieces that create groups of three each. The groups are hung cohesively on the granite walls of the subway station. The shapes created are a sharp-petal like structure, that even though this piece is created from iron it gives it a sense or feelings of lightness and movement. All the pieces are asymmetrical which creates balance and variety, but they harmonize because they share the same light and fragile vibe. These characteristics are typical for the architecture of the time (The 80’s), where big elements created from iron were popular as decoration. This piece was created as one of many pieces that were created by Venezuelan artist for the Subway’s inauguration and it is preserved in its same spot since, even though with time and the crisis the piece has lost some paint.
Bermúdez, L. (Lía Bermúdez). (1982) “Escultura-Relieve”. Estación del Metro Colegio de Ingenieros, Caracas. Pictures by: Luis Chacín
“El Abra Solar” by Alejandro Otero
This piece is one of the most representative pieces of kineticism in Latin America, it is located in Plaza Venezuela, in Caracas city. It is called “El Abra Solar” and it was made by the venezuelan artist Alejandro Otero in 1982. This work is composed of 34 aluminum gyratory pieces that are fastened by a metal exoskeleton. The pieces are called butterflies by the artists since they move with the wind. The structure is 42 meters high and 16 meters long. The butterflies also have the property to reflect the light in different colors with the sunlight. Therefore, with different environmental conditions such as sunny or windy the spaces, value and balance of the pieces changes. This contributes to the piece movement, that even though it already has a lot since it literally moves, from different perspectives and even time periods the piece can be seen differently. This is just one of the main reasons why this piece is one of the most iconic and modern venezuelan sculptures. This piece was originally made to be displayed in New York, but then the Otero decided with other artists to create a public museum for the citizens, that is why it remained in Venezuela.
Otero, A. ( Alejandro Otero). (1982). “El Abra Solar”. Plaza Venezuela, Caracas, Venezuela
