Today’s post comes from Taylor Shoolery, class of 2012 and Art Center student docent.
On Monday at the Art Center the sculpture, Untitled, by Arnold Zimmerman was moved from the sculpture garden to the front of the Power House Theater. Zimmerman’s work resembles the pre-Columbian sculptures of the Aztecs. In 1995, Magazine of Art commented, “no matter how much pre-Columbian sculpture…seems to defy our powers of interpretation, one can hardly escape the impact of the incredible vitality and creative passion which those carved stones emanate.” Zimmerman’s creation draws on that same power of vitality that the sculpture of the Aztec’s so fully embodied. For those of you on campus or in the area, take a look at the sculpture in its new location. Standing strong, dark, and tall, surrounded by the green foliage of its new home the sculpture takes on a refreshed, inexplicable power.
Below is an image of orignal pre-Columbian art. Take a look and examine the similarities between the piece below and Zimmerman’s work. Zimmerman uses a similar ascetic but doesn’t try to pretend he is of another time. Rather, his work seems to bridge the gap of time, drawing inspiration from both the ancient and the modern.
