Rule Sets from Various Artists

Anthony Mccall and his Line Describing a Cone has an interesting system. A beam of light is emitted out of a film projector at one end of a dark room. Projecting on the screen is an animated film of a small thin arching line that creates one complete circle as it traces the outline of the circumference of a circle. Viewers are told to stand in front of this interactive art. As the viewer’s body blocks the light, the circle that appears on the screen appear to be either a concave or convex. I think interesting about this system is that it is interactive. In a sense that the outcome is created by different situations, yet the rules are the same. I chose this piece because its something simple yet thought provoking. It’s not something that people would think of as a rule, but it is at the same time. 

Source: http://images.artnet.com/artwork_images_168878_633101_anthony-mccall.jpg

In Richard Serra’s Gagosian Gallery, the art piece Cycle draws upon a different kind of system from many other artists. Serra is known for his minimalist work and in the Cycle, it’s obvious that it is a very minimalistic piece. Although there is not much to the art piece, it is obvious what Serra is trying to convey. In the swirls that he creates, he has each swirl facing the next swirl. This creates a pinwheel effect, in which the art piece seems to be swirling in one direction. This effect is emphasized by the second ring of swirls around the first set of swirls. This site-specific art acts as spatial division, as well as circulation dictation. This is also the very reason why I chose this piece. The rules for this art piece forces the viewers to act in one direction in unison with the art piece itself. 

Source: http://www.m-kos.net/wp-content/uploads/SERRA_2011_Cycle2_580.jpg

Oskar Schlemmer’s piece the drawing of a Man as Dancer, really depicts rules in a conventional way that is graceful and interesting. In the center of the art piece, there is a man in a dancing pose. In the center of his chest, circles emit out from his chest. They echo out of the page. Although, a simplistic design, the best part of the piece are the ovals that cast out from the man. An example of this would be the oval over his head connecting to his two hands. This oval overlaps with the ovals that are created from his legs. In this manner, Schlemmer continues to use this man’s body parts as extensions for the ovals. All the ovals overlap, it creates a different art piece with flow and movement in an elegant matter. I thought the rules for this piece was interesting because it is created from such simple decisions, yet it becomes so much of the whole of the art piece.

Source: http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mez9bfOaSl1qmktfq.png