Laylah Ali, Do-Ho Suh, Andrea Zittel, and Tim Hawkinson-by RY

Through the exploration of videos and writings on different artists it can, most often, be decided what movement the work can be categorized as. In the particular work of Andrea Zittel, this distinction is one that seems very iffy. With a strong emphasis on progress, Zittel’s work strides to create environments that aid in performance and the enhancement of space. Through pieces that can easily switch uses and stride to stay true to the initial intentions of the materials, this artist creates a strong message on how the world can become a more efficient space. Even in her fabric and textile work Andrea speaks about her intent to not “destroy” the original creation of the material, but instead utilize its shape and form. Some of these tendencies seem to lead conclusions to that of a Post-Modern mind set, but the strong sense of progress pushes my decision to that of a Modernist outlook.
Tim Hawkinson’s work is one that seems to be far more clearly defined in its categorization. Utilizing found objects as well as the inclusion of different types of media and mechanisms, this work falls into that of Post-Modernist ideals. Creating large pieces like Uberorgan, Hawkinson uses found materials such as fishing net while also including multi-media aspects like as photosensitive sensors. These pieces not only appeal to the visual sense, but also the auditory one. Viewers are able to walk through the pieces and in some ways interact with them. Although this artist seems to stride far into a realm of engineering and mapping out these intricate machines, his work style and creative mindset sets him apart from someone who is just creating a mechanic object. This conceptual distinction and Hawkinson’s creative mindset highlights this difference. It is this playful nature that nurtures a strong foundation in the Post-Modernist movement.
Do-Ho Suh is another artist that can be thrown into the category of the Post-Modernist. The work of this particular artist references the thought of a transportable living space which can be easily paired with some of the ideas of Andrea Zittel. Do-Ho Suh’s work however relates more to the idea of nostalgia. In the video Suh states that he created this process in an effort of finding a more active way of dealing with his feeling of longing for home. This displacement into a new city was a great contributor to this artist’s pieces. Sewing large fabric instillations that interact with the architecture that they are housed in, these pieces hang with an astonishing affect. The sheer nature of the fabric used as well as the impeccably sewn structures, establishes an extreme sense of awe when viewed. It is the nature of the work and the ingenuity of the use of materials that pushes the pieces into ideals of interaction and construction seen mostly in the work of Post-Modern artists.
Lastly, the artist Laylah Ali creates works that are also highly influenced also by an idea of memory and nostalgia. This idea of nostalgia however does not reference a distant homeland, but rather the large influence of television and cartoons on the artist’s mindset. Ali states that it was these two things that created her strong connection to the description of figures as two-dimensional forms. In pieces that hold a velvety visual quality because of the use of gauche paints, characters spring to action usually displaying a sort of violent natured act. It seems that Laylah Ali’s work style is one of great rigidity and one that in a sense turns her into a sort of machine. I felt that this idea related to those of Tim Hawkinson in a way, while also the artist can be related to Kara Walker in her stories about the confrontations of racism that she had experienced. The work stands quite distinctly from these two with direct visual references to comics and a color and visual quality of precise methodic decisions. The use of the comic structure for a newer message and meaning strides closely to the Post-Modern way of thought and places this artist decidedly into this category.