THE PIONEERING ART OF EVA HESSE

google image for education only
eva hesse

Eva Hesse was a well known German-Jewish American born artist who was a leader in   using  plastics, latex and fiberglass  sculpture. The exposure to the harsh chemicals, that  are now considered cancer causing,
 led to an early death at the age of 34.  Her career only lasted 10 years. 
She was born in 1936 in Hamburg, Germany.  Her parents sought to escape Nazi Germany to the Netherlands, then to England and then to the United States.  Her parents divorced and her Mother committed suicide a year later in 1946 when Eva was only 10 years old.  Eva would go on to study at Pratt, Cooper Union, Yale and The Artists Student League. 

EVA HESSE                                     from google image for education only

(Her art is often viewed in light of all the painful struggles of her life including escaping the Nazis, her parents divorce, the suicide of her Mother when she was ten, her failed marriage, and the death of her Father. Danto describes her as "coping" with emotional chaos by reinventing sculpture through her aesthetic subordination, playing with worthless material amid the industrial ruins of a defeated nation that, only tow decades earlier, would have murdered her without a second thought. She always felt she was fighting for recognition in a make dominated world. Hesse is one of a few artist who led the move from Minimalism to Postminimalism.  Danto distinguishes it from minimalism by its "mirth and jokiness" and "unmistakable whiff of eroticism"…she was influenced by, and in turn influenced, many famous artists of the 1960's through today.  For many and friends who knew her, Eva Hesse was so charismatic that her spirit remains simply unforgettable to this day.) quoted from Wikipedia biography of Eva Hesse

I am not sure where I first saw Eva Hesse's art work, but I do know I was enamored from the first.  I had never seen such experimental use of new materials of the day.  It was art and sculpture as I had never seen the like before. I think in some respects her pioneering experimentation gave me permission to step away from traditional sculpture…that it might be possible to do sculpture with any material from any source. I am sure her story and the drama of her life was appealing, but I did not learn that until much later.

 She is one of these ethereal influences that just seem to live on after their time into the future. I know my friends who love realism and art they can understand will question Eva's art, but when someone starts a movement or invents the use of materials in art it is like Edison inventing the lightbulb or Einstein the theory of relativity.  They saw a vision, broke the mold, and led the way to a new understanding of what is possible. Eva did that, and it is one of the reasons her art and memory live on today.

EVA HESSE     SCULPTURE                                     from google image for education only

Eva Hesse/Pioneer in a Man's World

Eva Hesse has been one of the most interesting artist I have studied and her work early influenced my thinking about my art and the experimental nature of media.  Her story is one of tragedy, loss, and struggle.  She died at young age, yet made an indelible mark in the art world.

 For me Eva identified the scientific part of art that I love, the experimentation and discovery.  In her work I find the intellectualism that is missing in representational art.  In a world dominated by men in the art world she was a persistent force that refused not to be heard.  Her body of work now is looked on by other artists and critics as being a crucial step in minimalism by humanizing a normally cold structural movement.  If you are looking for beautiful representational art, you will not find it here.  What you will find is an artist involved in the discovery of new media, she is creating through experimentation with new materials.  

New York and the modern art scene has not always been friendly nor accepting of women, one could say there is a downright prejudice among museums and galleries to carry male artists work primarily.  That is why pioneers like Eva Hesse, Judy Chicago, Nancy Graves, Elizabeth Murray, Georgia O'Keefe, Louise Nevelson, Louise Bourgoise, Cindy Sherman , Niki de St. Phalle, Yayoi Kamasu, and others are so important.  They took on a male dominated art wold and persisted.  Women throughout history have played an important role in the art world, but in the past were not always recognized, many creating work that was credited to the men they studied with.  

I was fortunate to grow up with three strong women in my life: My Mother, my Aunt Josephine and my Grandmother.  Each were role models in their own right and gave me a gift of what it is to be a strong woman and define yourself in a male world.  They were accomplished women who persisted no matter the obstacle and succeeded.  I grew up with curious intellectual female role models, who taught me to think for myself and seek out the world on my own terms.  Strength of character was their mantra.  So it is in this vein I honor Eva Hesse and all the women artists who have made their mark in a male dominated art world and always persisted.