POETICAL URGENCY

 

Rizki A. Zaelani : 
 

Contemporary art is not only about the evolution of trends but also about the skills to bring art to life, as well as the changes in contemporary circumstances. Contemporary art is inevitably linked to the growth of a situation of consolidation of attitudes of doubt—doubt about various aspects concerning art as well as life. The term "contemporary art" is marked by the meaning of its abundant use, surpassing its interpretation of being merely about specific contemporary circumstances. In practice, the meaning of this term has absorbed the interests of various groups and certain forms of resistance; the whole concept becomes a matter of "multiple contemporary circumstances" (Gillick, 2016: 2)

Art in the form of the latest developments is now a product of complex events, the result of the construction of various personas and the forms of various individual critical tendencies. In essence, art is a form of fragmentation and at the same time grows into a more subjective tendency. Contemporary art is nothing more than a repository or warehouse for various ways of recognition and self-desire. At the same time, this flow can also be recognized as a symptom of the increasingly developing tendency of self-awareness to "challenge" other forms of art. The challenge for the development of contemporary art today, therefore, is clearly how to express a proper combination of circumstances: clarity, resistance, reference, and at the same time about the condition of subjectivity (Gillick, 2016: x).

"At this point, Gabriel's sculptures become interesting: on the one hand, he uses various types of materials, stone, metal, and resin, which allow the public to immediately recognize them.

Gabriel uses the resin medium, as a synthetic material, to create a relationship between materials with natural properties (metal and stone) and cultural materials (resin) produced by industrial processes. 

However, on the other hand, Gabriel also creates a composition of forms and results of formations that are actually 'distant' from the public's memory of the material, which is usually found as certain objects in everyday experience. 

The tension between these two sides, between the 'known' and the 'unknown', contributes to the expressive power of Gabriel's sculptures. 

As a sculptor, Gabriel knows that his way of connecting the tension of these two differences is related to the points of knowledge flow that are in the development of sculpture itself. "

Contemporary Sculpture?

The term "contemporary art" is used differently by various parties with diverse agendas. These interpretations can not only differ but also often contradict each other. Unlike previous art eras, contemporary art no longer obsesses over defining clear boundaries to clarify the current artistic landscape. Instead, it embraces the notion that "anything goes" and that meanings can be both simultaneous and contradictory. In practice, the definition of contemporary art that applies to one artist often differs from that of others. An artist, with their primary concerns, is responsible for creating perceptual objects that are recognizable and relevant to a legitimate mode of understanding, thus establishing their work as art (Strayer, 2007:3). These legitimate modes of understanding will continue to evolve (to encompass the dynamic scope of issues) and be discussed (to enrich the referencing tradition) to distinguish art objects from other non-art objects. 

Gabriel Aries' abstract sculptures, for example, become a clear issue when understood within the narrative of the resistance movements that occurred in the development of modern abstract sculpture (modernism) due to their belief and adherence to the principle of true knowledge of the medium (material). In contrast, the tendency of postmodern sculpture - considered an important marker of the development of contemporary art - chooses a different resistance movement by employing the principle of desacralization of the medium, also known as the dematerialization of sculpture. Contemporary sculpture is no longer considered to be necessarily based on the material capacity it chooses but rather emphasizes the context of the problem it seeks to present. The dematerialization movement in sculpture seems to negate the issue of the 'presence' of the medium (material) of art, instead focusing on revealing the various contextual issues embedded in art objects. Ironically, sculptors are precisely the artists who are bound by frameworks of understanding or theories about matter, about materials, or the mixture of concrete materials that are manifested as artistic expression. The expression imagined by sculptors can never escape the issue of material, referring to the explanation of the Classical Greek philosopher Democritus (460 BC-370 BC), who stated three important recognizable variables of matter: shape, order, and placement. These three variables of recognition, in fact, remain relevant and important for understanding the development of ways of conceptualizing sculpture to this day (Burnham, 1975:111). The expression of Gabriel's sculptures clearly does not show itself as part of a resistant movement against 'medium-specific knowledge'; for me, Gabriel instead considers medium-specific knowledge to be the 'tacit knowledge' condition that is unique to a sculptor to develop a unique form of resistance.

Thomas McEvilley sees the development of contemporary sculpture as associated with the new art history, the rise of the "Age of Doubt," and the question of the possibility of non-illusionistic objects. For McEvilley, the fate of sculpture is different from that of painting, which is based on the problem of illusion; sculpture, on the other hand, is in the midst of the problem of the Real, which allows it to achieve a higher form of ethical consciousness while still remaining in its realistic situation. Sculptors are considered to be able to display the problem of "illusionistic presence" but also to retain the support of materials (wood, metal, stone, or resin) - all of which are concrete and non-illusionistic conditions. Unlike paint in painting, the possibility of using different types of materials in sculpture connects public perception to the same materials that they can find in their daily lives: at home, at work, or in public places in general. Sculpture, therefore, can be considered "more" contemporary art - compared to painting - because of its direct connection to everyday life, both in terms of material and industrial involvement

(McEvilley, 1999:41-42).