Metamorphosis

Rochester Institute of Technology

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1-28-1991

Metamorphosis

Ching-Yuan Chang

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Rochester Institute of _Technology

A Thesis Submitted to the _Faculty of

The College of Fine and Applied Arts

In _Candidacy for the Degree of

MASTER OF FINE ARTS

'METAMORPHOSIS"

t

Chang, Ching-Yuan

THESIS COMMITTEE APPROVAL

Chief Adviser: Richard Hirsch

Date:

Associate Adviser:Roben Schmitz

Date:

Associate Adviser: Lenard Urso

Date:

Special Assistant to the Dean for Graduate Affairs:

Philip Bornanh

Date:

3 /

I'l(

Dean, College of Fine and Applies Arts:

Peter Giopulos

Date:

I, hereby grant permission to the

Wallace Memorial Library of R.I.T. to reproduce my thesis in whole or pan only

for the library collection. Any reproduction will note be for commerical use or

profit. I can be reached at the following address:

Date: _

1712 Sulgrave Ave.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Introduction

2. Childhood

3. Educational Background

4. The Visit In Japan

5._{Finding My}Aesthetic Direction

6. _ComingTo The United States

7. Metamorphosis

8. Technical Reference

Introduction

ComingfromTaiwan,Republicof_China, Iwas raised in a_very traditional family . All my perspectives of human life were _very much oriented in this

tradition. Since the fall of _1988, I have been exposed to a _extremely new

environment.The structureofAmerican societynot_onlygaveme culture shock but

Childhood:

Going backintochildhood, my impression ofthe adult world was one of

sacrifice. The adults in my _family seemedto give _up their life goals in order to make a living. Their choices of an occupation and survival were the complete

opposite of who_theywere and what_theywantedthemostin life. The question of

howtoliveand succeedina capitalistic_societyandyet still remain yourself,was

very strong in my mind. I was afraid for my future because I did not want to

follow intheirfootsteps.

When I was nine, I began playing with art materials such as wood, wire,

bamboo, clay, and paper. These were used on _my grandfather's farm for_making tools. I enjoyed_creating with _my own hands. Another inspiration camefrom my firstartteacher who sparkedourcreativeinterest_{by telling} ustraditionalChinese

Educational Background

After high school, mygoal was tomajorin art at college. _{To do this, I had}

to take theNational Test. The Educational department decidedyourmajor_byyour

testgrade. Students are not allowedto switch majorsin college. Due to the grade

fromthe_test, Iwas sendto theIndustrial Design Department. I foundmyselfinthe

design departmentwhereIfelta senseofunease. Therewasa_{lingering feeling}that

I was not_doing whatI really wanted. I feltthat there mustbe someotherformof

expressionthatcouldbettercommunicatewhatIwanted tosay. While Iwas unsure

what that formwas, I knew it would not be found _{by designing}products forthe

commercialmarket.

In the words of _Rousseau, "

/ am a man like other men but I am also

different, it assererted _itselfin revoltagainst the conditions _{of actuality} which

mightbe commonplace, the restrictions _ofconvention, orthe _{artificialityof}life.

"J

The onlypleasurable_thing thatIcould getfromschool wasthe _studyof art

history and traditional craftsmanship. I was able to take electives in Ceramics.

Claybecame the appropriatemediumforme to experiment with.I discovered the

unique_qualityof_clay,itsplasticity, andthenlearnedto give it _texture, color, and

form. _Usingclay allowed me tomakewhat everIwanted. Irealized_clay can give

formandtexturelike stoneorsteel. As withpainting, theglazecan achieve color

The Visit In Japan

After winning 1st place in a ceramics _competion, I was invited _by the

JapaneseShimpoWheel_CompanytovisitJapan in 1985. Itwasagreat experience for me to visit all the ceramic villages , such as Bizen, Shigaraki, Mashiko,

Kasama, and Seto. While _visiting, I had the chance to have some conversations

withthenew generationofJapaneseceramics _societycalled"Sodesha". One _thing thatstruck me abouttheirwork wastheiradaptation oftraditional techniques into

Finding my aesthetic direction:

Afterthis_{trip, I}wasleft withthequestion of whatis contemporary Chinese

ceramics?_Livinginthe _{late 20th century} withatraditionalChinese background I

needed tofindtheright_{vocabulary for my} work.

"

Tolearn butstilltocontrol so_strongatraditionisachallenge

--- IsamuNoguchi ₂

Itried to achieve a morepersonal aesthetic _{by working} withnon-functional

vessels. However this method was not the right vehicle for my thoughts. _By

confronting this _issue, I tried to re-examine the Western methodologies thatwere

stressedinschool. I was_attemptingtodiscover how I should work as an artist. _By

eliminatingthe techniquesmasteredinschool, I hopedtodiscover_my true thoughts

and creativity. Iwantedtobe an artist and not _strictly a craftsperson.Ilooked back

to _{my Chinese heritage} and the Western sculpture. What attracted me to

contemporary Americanceramic sculpture, wasthe increase in scale andvolume

Technological advancesin construction and _firing contributedto _overcoming the

difficulties inherent in workingwith_clayofgreat heightand weight. _Workingwith

sculpture, gave me the whole new perspective. Icould _enjoy the new process of

creating. I alwaysdiscoverthe next_{stepbyexamining} thefinishedpieces. Itmade

Coming to The United States:

Myinterest_{in coming}to theunited States to_studywas inspired_byGeorge

Geyer and Tom McMillin's art works in the Ceramics _Monthly magazine.

"

Theemphasis on_allowing naturalphenomenato alter)ormanasurface

has its rootsin therituals _ofpre-technological societies as wellasin theEarth

works_ofRobert_Smithon,whose spiral_Jettyof1970extendedintoasaltlake and

linkedart and

nature."

3

"

Inherent in a process where variables _of natural forces--- wind,

rain,tides_{determine thefinal structure is the metaphoric association with the}

temporal aspect_ofall lifeon earth. These twoArtists who have brokenfrom the

security offired,functional objectsto explore _clay as amediumfor didacticand

environmental concept.Nottrainedasfineartistsin theusual_{sense, they}see their

ceramics education as_{paradoxically} essential to _dealing with art issues. While

pioneeringconceptsthatincorporatescientific andecological_information,George

and Tom emphasize the _beauty in the metamorphosis and_{fragility of} earth

4

In destruction lies the essence of what George and Tom _intended, a

partnership withnaturalphenomenainwhich theartists₍ at acertain point ₎allow

forces beyond their control to determine the final structure. Inherent in such a

process are thevariables ofweather, the emotional impact of natural forces and

metaphoricassociation withthe temporalaspectof alllifeonearth.

Theconcepts oftheseartists parallelthose ofChinese Taoismphilosophy.

In myopinionboth artistgive new_meaning toclay. Theirmethod of work allows

Metamorphosis:

The thought process:

While studying at the _R.I.T., I explored _{my interest in} sculpture. I had

donenumerous experimentswith_{color, form,} and scaleinclay. Afteracritique of

somefinishedpiecesI realizedthe _tendencyI had towards _enlargingthe _scale, as

wellas a_{strong influence from my landscape}painting.

Outdoor sculpturebecame my main interest. I wantedto break _{away from}

the work that would be displayed on a pedestal. I became interested in the

possibilities of outdoor sculpture, and wanted to focus more on nature,

environment, and landscape as reference. Another aspect of_my work that came

into focus was the social, and political activities around me. The issues of

contemporary American art _{society includes politics, capitalism,} sexuality, and

censorship. From my classes in contemporary issues I learned to research and

debate the specific issues reflected in Western art. _However, I was unable to

incorporate theideologiesofanewenvironmentinto my own work. Because I am

a Chinese I didnot grow _{up in} this society. I could not_honestly placeAmerican

thoughts into my own art work. In order to express popular Western issues I

wouldhavebeenforcedtogive_{up my}personal_character,which Iwas unable and

unwillingtodo. Meanwhile, I triedtore-examinethe way I feltabout theposition

ofartin Taiwan. The one connectionIcouldmakebetween the separate countries

was thesimilar effects commercialism and capitalism hadon theart world. These

dual"isms"are _overbearingto bothartist and audience_creatingthephenomenaof

art _becomingproduct, whilethe viewerbecomes a consumer. I never considered

my worktobe aproductin theart market, but as a recordof_my experience. This

record representsthe worldaround me and_mypersonalresponseto the society. It

mine, this life that I can _{only live} once. _Only the processes of thinking, experimenting and_creatingcan make mefeel likean artist. Thereis a_feeling that

comes out of_me, when the actual process of_{creating has begun. Things do} not necessarily turn out as I planned. Curiously, those works that veer from my

original intentions are oftenthemost successful.

The physical description:

"Metamorphosis"

(See Plate 4,5 ) is basedonmypersonal experience and

the _{relationship between} artist and society.The transition of the center pieces

symbolizes the process of loss and gain for an artist in society. The opposing

colors in this outdoor sculpture represent two extremes ofhuman life. The color

red is symbolizes _energy, and _activity of the _{young emerging} artist. I chose antiquebronzetosymbolizethe _aged,experiencedartist.Thetwoend pieces with

their window like _space, gives the audience view through the color connected

center pieces. The largered square piece symbolizes the artist who can _honestly

expresshisorher_idea, despitetheir_inability tobecomeaccepted_by theart system.

These artists arebest described asromantic. The antique bronze piece represents

the artistwho has gonethrough the experienceof survival in the art society. _They

havegainedacceptance_bythe_society, buttheirworks are confined_bytheirmarket or reputation.

In my thesis

"

Metamorphosis" I am_{expressing my}personal response to thissociety. The physical processof a metamorphosis ties in with theprocess of

my thought. From childhoodto the conceptof an art _{work, the transformation} of

reality is constant. In choosingthisconceptI hopeto describeanimpressionand a

Technical reference:

Working with outdoor _sculptures, I needed an appropriate _clay body and

specific color._{This claybody} needed strengthfor largescaleconstruction.

The clay bodythatIusedwasdeveloped in my firstyearatR. I. T._During

that_{time, I} was unableto understandandutilizeallthe materials. So,I took some

ofthe_claybodiesthatIfound in thebooksandmagazines. _Meanwhile,I had done

testfiringsanddiscussedresults withProfessor Schmitz Asa result ofthese tests,

Ideveloped and choseto usea simple _{clay body}recipe. I chose the simplestone,

because Ineeded _{approximately 5000}pounds of clay. A simpleformula wouldbe

easiertomixand getthesame consistency. Therecipewas:

NARCO 100 pounds

Howthorne 100

Redart 100

kynite - 100

35m _Grog 50

100m _Grog 100

Thetotal shrinkage ofthis _{clay body} was 4% to cone 3-5 and 3% tocone

04. The absorptionwas morethen 25% at cone04 and_{approximately 15%} at cone

3. The _theory was that amore porous _body was able to withstand the expansion

and contraction of weather _freezing and throwing. After the first piece was

finished, I found that the _top shrank 1% more than the bottom. To resoulve this

problem,Ihadto turn_{it up}sidedown in orderto gettheperfect squareform afterit

dried. In regard to surface treatment; I decided to use black slip with red and

antiquebronzepaint. _First,Icoveredthe surfacewith _{black slip} and fire tocone3.

Redart 80

Red ironoxide 5

Blackcopper oxide 5

Cobaltoxide -2.5

Manganesedioxide 2.5

Ipainted_opposingsidesofthecenter piece withthe redandantiquebronze

paint.

The scale of these center pieces were 33 inches square. There was no

electric kiln large enough to fit these pieces. It was difficult to control the

atmosphere in a gas kiln. Reduction can have adverse effects on earthernware

glazes. _Anyway, themain themeofthiswork was_purely sculpture. _So, I decided

to use car paint which would give me the same _result, and be even more

controllable and predictable.

"Metamorphosis"

was made with thepress mold methodin 23 sections. I

actuallymade25ofthem.Theextratwopieces gave methechance toexperiment

thecolor ofthe _slipand paint. _Meanwhile, Icould use these twopiecestoreplace

A cr

SeeDiagram

Before Iconstructedthe twoend_pieces,I hada_meetingwiththemembers

of_mythesiscommittee. Inordertomaketheend piece stable,Ichangethe section

AtosectionB, andsectionC tosectionD ₍seediagramabove ₎The new structure,

gavethepieces more strength whentheywere assembled.

I used 2 inches diameterplumbing pipes for theinterior structure as the

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REFERENCE

Munson, Ronald. 1939

-comp. Manandnature;philosophicalissues in biology.

New _York,Dell Pub. _Co.,1971

Noguchi, Isamu, "IsamuNoguchi, PortraitSculpture" Smithsonian Institution

Press fortheNational PortraitGallery, 1989, P28.

Ceramics_Monthly "GeorgeGeyer, TomMcmillin, NewDeifinitions " Published

by Spencer L. Davis, 1981.P.50 Elain Levin "The_HistoryofAmerican

Ceramics"

HdrryN. Abrams, Inc,

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Crubb, Nancy. EarthworksandBeyond. 1989 _by Cross RiverPress Ltd.

Egan, Teresa. Varieties_ofVisual Experience. 1987 _Harry N. Abrams Inc., New York.

Hertz,Richard. Theories_{ofContemporary}Art. 1985Prentice-HallInc. Englewood _Cliffs,New_Jersey 07632

Krauss, Rosalind E.,Passages in Modern Sculpture. The MITPress, Cambridge,

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