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Richard Hunt Quotes (1935-)
Artist
About Richard Hunt
Richard Hunt (sculptor) (born September 12, 1935) is an American sculptor. In the second half of the 20th century, he became "the foremost African-American abstract scul ptor and artist of public sculpture." Hunt studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in the 1950s. While there received multiple prizes for his work. In 1971, he was the first African American sculptor to have a retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art. Hunt has created over 160 public sculpture commissions, more than any other sculptor in prominent locations in 24 states across the United States.
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โ"Everything that exists, natural or man made, contains some sculptural quality or property."โ
โ"I am the thinking personโs sculptor, joining metal manipulation to meaningful expression."โ
โ"The creation of a sculpture can be considered the process by which a sculptor demonstrates to himself whether or not he is creating a sculpture."โ
โ"A sculptor can be thought of as the sort of person who can reduce impressions of things, responses, and ideas about things into sculptural forms."โ
โ"Sculpture is not a self-declaration but a voice of and for my peopleโover all, a rich fabric; under all, the dynamism of the African American people."โ
โ"Sculpture is all about hard work and delayed gratification, and mysterious, harmonious, pleasantly jarring, revelatory spatial structuresโhaving good times and bad times at the same time."โ
โ"It is often felt that the lyric or romantic sensibility cannot express itself in iron. The intent of a good deal of my work is to demonstrate that it is a possibility no more foreign to iron than to marble. "โ
โ"Can the wisdom of the ages serve as the wisdom of the new age, the new millennium? Conventional wisdom is often not subject to or confirmed by independent research. The triumphal road for some can be a Trail of Tears for others. "โ
โ"I am interested more than anything else in being a free person. To me, that means that I can make what I want to make, regardless of what anyone else thinks I should make. My art is about artโembracing a vision of the future that is unlike past futures."โ
โ"Imagining a world without racial hierarchy, I work as if race did not exist. Look the world over, learn, enjoy, luxuriate, dream large, expansive dreams of a glorious future for ourselves and all mankind. Then, we turn our attention to what is humanly possible."โ
โ"The possibilities of developing the sense of movement in a sculpture are inherent in the material and in the technique, that is to say, forming, bending, stretching, cutting, and twisting metal parts. I like to suggest movement or give an impression of movement."โ
โ"The theme of much of my work can be characterized as a fusion or harmonization of the vital tensions existing between dualities, such as the organic and the geometric, the organic and the abstract, or the past and the present, the traditional and the contemporary."โ
โ"To be creative is to not know what one is doing. The process of creation resolves the imbalance or irritation that initiated the desire to create something. Sculpture is a way of exploring, amplifying, and giving form to my enthusiasms, which are wide-ranging and often intersect each other, technically, emotionally, and spiritually."โ
โ"Trees have long been my metaphor, symbolic of my inner and outer growthโthe taproot delving deep into my conscious and subconscious, the origins of my art, life, and family; peripheral roots branching out into other communities, cultures, a cosmos of interweaving inter- actions; a trunk and branches reaching up and out beyond their tips, leaves, fruit, falling here and there."โ
โ"When I enlarge pieces, however, I consider myself to be re-creating the piece in full scale rather than simply copying a small piece. This process of re-creating the piece in the larger scale gives the full-scale work a spontaneity and it keeps the process more open and alive for me as a sculptor through the opportunity to re-experience the ideas that gave rise to the initial subject. . . ."โ
โ"Iโve come to see the different metals as providing a palette. Stain-less steel and aluminum being sort of cool, bronze and Cor-Ten steel being warm and having, obviously, a variety of hues and colors depending on the heat and the patina one might use. This potential of a rich palette of colors and textures contributes to an ease of developing within the metal the kind of ideas that I seem to have."โ
โ"The challenges utility brings to the sculptorโs mind and art, are as varied as the people and the sites encountered with each commission. As sculptors in our time respond creatively to the challenges that the opportunities for the greater utilization of sculpture impose, we establish links with the greatest traditions in sculpture, and with the largest and most diverse audience sculpture has ever had."โ
โ"My own use of winged forms in the early โ50s is based on mythological themes, like Icarus and Winged Victory. Itโs about, on the one hand, trying to achieve victory or freedom internally. Itโs also about investigating ideas of personal and collective freedom. My use of these forms has roots and resonances in the African-American experience and is also a universal symbol. People have always seen birds flying and wished they could fly."โ
Quotes About Richard Hunt
Gain deeper perspective through quotes about Richard Hunt from others.
American sculptor Richard Hunt is now represented by White Cube. on Richard Hunt
White Cube Now Represents Richard Hunt, Totemic American Sculptor of the 20th Century on Richard Hunt
Oprah's 16 Books to Gift Your Favorite Bibliophiles on Richard Hunt
โ"Our most prominent Black sculptor. His metal pieces are exquisitely torqued and fissured, organic forms that meld industrial materials with high concepts . . . now in his late 80s, he remains a vibrant presence."โ
From Carter on Richard Hunt
โ"The artistโs approach to sculpture, and to metal as a material, is an ongoing expression and articulation of a life lived in and as sculpture."โ
From the foreword of Richard Hunt. Richard Hunt. Introduction by Courtney J. Martin. Text by John Yau on Richard Hunt
โ"If we count [Richard Hunt] among the Americans who simultaneously motivated a critique of the machine age and uncovered nuance within it by way of sculpture (Alexander Calder, Isamu Noguchi, Beverly Pepper, and either Smith, David or Tony), or those for whom the means of manufacture were experimental, often nostalgic and fetishized in equal parts (Anthony Caro, John Chamberlain, Mark di Suvero, Melvin Edwards, Hesse, and Judd), he stands out."โ
Kramer on Richard Hunt
โ"Hunt is one of the most gifted and assured artists working in the direct-metal, open-form mediumโand I mean not only in his own country and generation, but anywhere in the world."โ
Bearden on Richard Hunt
โ"We have a young man here, Richard Hunt, who I think is a great sculptor. This man is an artist. It has nothing to do with race; it is that real spark, unfathomable, and unidentifiable, that is deeply felt. The power of his sculpture is unassailable."โ
BK Fulton: Love Is the Secret Ingredient on Richard Hunt
โ"Richard Hunt is a national treasure. Richard is someone who cares so much for his fellow man that his lifeโs work of sculpture is about helping human beings to appreciate each other."โ
Russell L. Adams on Richard Hunt
Richard Hunt to create installation at the Obama Presidential Center on Richard Hunt
David J. Grain on Richard Hunt
โ"Richard Huntโs art is American treasure to be discovered, rediscovered, reflected upon, and protected."โ
Richard Hunt: 2017 Legendary Landmark on Richard Hunt
โ"One of the most innovative artists of the twentieth century."โ
The Art Institute of Chicagoโs Legends and Legacy Award: Richard Hunt on Richard Hunt 9 quotes
โ"Richard is the real deal a true independent spirit deeply rooted in his home turf, yet, like a kind of vulcan at his forge, sending forth metal incarnations of human striving and transcendence sending them like the mighty abstract sparks far and wide."โ
About Richard Hunt
Richard Hunt (sculptor) (born September 12, 1935) is an American sculptor. In the second half of the 20th century, he became "the foremost African-American abstract scul ptor and artist of public sculpture." Hunt studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in the 1950s. While there received multiple prizes for his work. In 1971, he was the first African American sculptor to have a retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art. Hunt has created over 160 public sculpture commissions, more than any other sculptor in prominent locations in 24 states across the United States.