Sol LeWitt Overview

LeWitt first entered the art world as a graphic designer for Chinese American architect I. M. Pei. He emerged as an independent artist in the 1960s, when he created his first sculptures, or "structures." Constructed from cubes that could be arranged... [more]

LeWitt first entered the art world as a graphic designer for Chinese American architect I. M. Pei. He emerged as an independent artist in the 1960s, when he created his first sculptures, or "structures." Constructed from cubes that could be arranged in various patterns, they often occupied entire gallery spaces. Like installations, the structures were usually disassembled at the end of a show; the cubes were saved for reuse in other projects. The cube format allowed LeWitt to explore his interest in repetition and systematic variation; themes that led to his development of serial art. His technique, which he eventually applied in other media, prepared him philosophically to make the leap to Conceptual art. His two-dimensional works range from graphite drawings of geometrical patterns to large-scale drawings on walls, which iterate abstract shapes across the entire expanse of a gallery. The effect can be surprisingly potent: the patterns cause the walls to vacillate and shimmer, and the eye gets lost in the repetition. The wall drawings are temporary (again like installations) and are accompanied by discretely displayed notations that specify dimensions and patterns. This technical context reveals that the displayed work is merely a single manifestation of a concept that could be executed on any suitable surface. LeWitt has also written several essays and articles that explore the theory of art. His seminal "Paragraphs on Conceptual Art" (1967) provided the first public defense of the Conceptual art movement. LeWitt advocated giving priority to the concept or idea of art as opposed to the touch of the artist: "All planning and decision are made beforehand and the execution is a perfunctory affair. The idea becomes the machine that makes the art." By glorifying the process as opposed to the artist, and the idea instead of the object, LeWitt liberated art from its traditional dependence on the skills and personality of the artist. The success of Conceptual art is determined not by the person who executes it, but by whomever devises the concept. It succeeds at the level of the Platonic ideal. [show less]