Sculpture Collection
Alphabetical by artist
Sculpture Collection Maps
Artist: Richard Aber
Title:
Paradigms
Map abbreviation: (P)
Location: Langsdorf Hall, first floor south
Created: 1974
Installation: 1992
Materials: wax
Dimensions: 48" x 42" x 102"
Acquisition: Gift of Camille Duran
Paradigms was originally created for "Inferential Sculpture," Aber's 1974 M.A. exhibition at Cal State Fullerton. Camille Duran, a university supporter was so impressed with the work that she commissioned Aber to convert the temporary installation into a permanent work for the university collection. The wax sculpture was on display in the Titan Student Union's Chapman Atrium until 2017 when a wooly mammoth skeleton
, donated by the Gregg Family Foundation, was assembled and installed in the same location. It has since been relocated to Langsdorf Hall.
Richard Aber (1948–) worked with wax as a sculpture medium during the early years of his career. The medium's malleability and erosive capacities intrigued him—specifically, the impact of heat and the melting process. With all the sculptures in this series, he chose to work with shapes such as the circle and oval, geometric shapes typical of minimalism, which was an important art movement at the time the work was created. Geometric shapes are seen in many of the sculptures in the Cal State Fullerton collection but some of theses are more in-line with early twentieth-century modernist styles. Minimalists often used industrial materials that had no previous artistic associations rather than traditional artistic materials. However Aber chose to work in wax, a non-traditional material for a finished sculpture, that allowed the artist todemonstrate a handmade quality rather than the austereness of industrially mass-produced materials used by the minimalists.
Although Aber still works as a sculptor, primarily in bronze, painting has increasingly become his medium of choice. He has been exhibited nationally and is represented in the Orange County Museum of Art, the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, the Oakland Museum, and other public and private collections.
Artists:
Jason Chakravarty
and Derek Parker
Title:
In’Direction
Map abbreviation: (ID)
Location: South of the Visual Arts Center across from the Nutwood Parking Structure
(Not currently on view)
Dedication: July 2006
Materials: aluminum and neon
Dimensions: 18’ x 3’ x 4” (each section)
Acquisition: Donated by the Emeriti of
Cal State Fullerton
In Direction consists of three narrow vertical rectangular metal frames that house hinged perforated metal screens. Mounted atop six-inch diameter poles high above the ground, the screens respond to the wind, gently swaying back and forth as if they were gates, windows or doors.
These three imposing structures are positioned in a triangular formation on a slightly sloped field amongst a grove of eucalyptus trees adjacent to the Arts Drive campus entrance. They demark the entrance to the campus and specifically the entrance to the art department. They are a distant cousin of the man-created rock formations once used as landmarks in ancient civilizations. Yet they are distinctly contemporary, made of materials that echo the parking structure visible in sight line across the street. The silver metal surfaces hint at a bygone minimalist esthetic from an era when artists used industrial materials for their purity of form. Like the parking structure across the street from In Direction, the sculpture lights up at night—via blue neon lights mounted on the interior edge of the rectangular forms. At night In Direction becomes a beacon that gently announces in a subtle abstract fashion: “This is the gateway to art.”
Jason Chakravarty ( 1976– ) M.F.A., and Derek Parker ( 1975– ) B.F.A., are both graduates of Cal State Fullerton.
Artist:
Michael Davis
Title:
Terra Firma/Terra Incognita
Map abbreviation:
(TF)
Location: Between buildings D and E in the Visual Arts Center
(Not currently on view)
Created: 1985-86
Installation: 1999
Materials: steel, terrazzo, and steel twist bit
Dimensions: 145" x 93" x 43"
Acquisition: Gift of Louise and Richard Newquist
According to the artist, "This sculpture was created in the midst of a decade which started with the hostages in Iran being freed and ended with the fall of the wall between East and West Berlin. In between those events the cold war was heightened and the arms race accelerated. We had Reaganomics, the deregulations of S&L’s, junk bonds, shady arms dealings and the rise of terrorism. This was a time of euphoria but also one of great tension. What kind of future were we creating with foundations built on speculation and space weaponry? I remember having a sense that at any time things could implode, and with the threat of nuclear war, a truly apocalyptic end."
Davis states, "Out of industrial remains, emerges a surrealist landscape whose proportion is against time and space. Terra Firma/Terra Incognita is one or the other: solid ground or unknown territory." The sculpture is made up of vertial, diagonal and triangular geometric shapes. It reminds one of a sail hoisted on a found corkscrew mast. On the crossbar of the mast on the back of the sculpture, two building forms are visible perhaps referencing the solid ground sought.
Michael Davis (1948–) received both his B.A. and M.A. from Cal State Fullerton. He is an NEA Fellow. In recent years, he has devoted substantial energies to public art projects. His work is in major private and public collections throughout the United States.
Artist:
Woods Davy
Title:
Parma
Map abbreviation:
(P)
Location: Newquist Sculpture Court, Visual Arts Center
(Not currently on view)
Created: 1981
Installation: Spring 1999
Materials: eucalyptus and steel
Dimensions: 33" x 135"
Acquisition: Gift of Thomas W. Knaup
Originally commissioned for the Newquist sculpture collection, this was one of Davy's first commissions. He created about a dozen eucalyptus and steel works before moving on to the often seemingly gravity-defying stone and steel sculptures that have become the signature works of his oeuvre. Relative to his earlier sculptures, Parma is low to the ground with two pieces of eucalyptus supported by angular metal. In this series Davy uses the steel support structure to create a synthetic structural system that he counterbalances with the organic/irrational qualities of the eucalyptus tree trunk sections. Embracing the ephemeral nature of some of his materials, Davy replaces the organic eucalyptus when it decays.
Woods Davy (1949– ) received his B.F.A. from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and his M.F.A. from the University of Illinois. He is represented in the collections of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Orange County Museum of Art, San Diego Museum of Art, and other public and private collections.
Artist:
Guy Girard Dill
Title:
Millwood
Map abbreviation:
(M)
Location: Newquist Sculpture Court, Visual Arts Center
(Not currently on view)
Created:
1987
Installation: 1998
Materials: Douglas fir, steel, Texas shed stone
Dimensions: 127" x 76" x 14"
Acquisition: Gift of Thomas W. Knaup
Guy Dill once said, “Raw materials bring you closer to an idea.” In his work, metal, marble, concrete, and wood are used in unfamiliar ways, pushing them, in his words, “just about as far as they go.” Known for geometric abstractions, in his early career the circle served as a fulcrum for his compositions; later he added the column as a “connection and icon.” Here the artist uses colors and surfaces to provide “real-energy.” Millwood, the first piece commissioned by the Newquists for their collection, balances between motion and rest.
Originally from Florida, Guy Dill (1946– ) attended the Chouinard Art Institute in Los Angeles and earned a B.F.A. He currently lives and works in both Venice and Brussels. Nationally recognized, his work has been exhibited by the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, The Museum of Modern Art, and the Whitney Museum of American Art, among many others.
Artist: Rico Eastman
Title:
Nautilus
Map abbreviation: (N)
Location: Behind Visual Arts, Building A
(temporary location)
Created: 2002
Dedication: Spring 2006
Materials: steel
Dimensions: 96: x 144” x 96”
Acquisition: Purchased from the artist through the Art Alliance Sculpture Acquisition Fund and gifts from individual donors.
The spiral structure of the nautilus shell is said to display perfect mathematical proportion. Geometric forms often symbolize order and harmony rather than chaos. The multiple sections of this nautilus are made of interlocking, curved sheets of steel. The rigid steel is shaped through tension and held together by joins and grooves rather than nuts and bolts. The resulting abstracted armored creature echoes some qualities of an interlocking tile roof but this roof is exploding as the creativity of the arts metamorphoses the creature with its energy. It is no coincidence that this sculpture sits between the performing arts center and the art department.
Master metalworker Rico Eastman (1952–2012) is known for his large-scale, multi-ton sculptures. Eastman received a B.F.A. from the Rhode Island School of Design in 1974 and a M.F.A. from Arizona State University in 1985.
Artist:
Claire Falkenstein
Title:
Game Action
Map abbreviation:
(GA)
Location:
West wall above main entrance to the Titan Gymnasium
Created:
1965
Installation:
Summer 1965
Material:
copper tubing and colored glass
Dimensions:
81" x 780" x 15"
Acquisition:
Funded as part of the construction cost of the gymnasium
This abstract sculpture was commissioned for the entrance wall of the gymnasium soon after the installation of Falkenstein's fountain, Structure and Flow, at the California Federal Savings and Loan building in Los Angeles. The sculpture was constructed in seven sections to interact across the long expanse of wall above the main entrance. Falkenstein's interest in the natural as well as geometric forms is seen here. Copper tubing with fused glass form lines that point in various directions. These dynamic lines are intended tosymbolize the energy and emotion of athletes in action. The fusion of glass and metal was a hallmark of Falkenstein's sculpture.
Claire Falkenstein (1908–1997) earned a B.A. degree from U.C. Berkeley. In 1950 she opened a studio in Paris and in 1960 moved to Venice, California where she maintained a studio and residence until her death. Private commissions and works are found in Europe as well as the United States. Major commissions in the Los Angeles include the St.Basil church windows, rectory screen, and doors, and sculptures on the CSU Long Beach and CSU Domingez Hills campuses.
John Olson, then Chair of the Division of Fine and Applied Arts, was responsible for having the sculpture funded as part of the construction cost of the gymnasium.
Artist:
Claire Falkenstein
Title:
Sun #27
Map abbreviation:
(NSC)
Location: Newquist Sculpture Court, Visual Arts Center
(Not currently on view)
Created:
1966-67
Installation: 1998
Materials: painted steel and iron
Dimensions: 120" x 60" x 54”
Acquisition: Gift of Thomas W. Knaup
Sun #27, once part of the Nuewquist Collection, is an exploration of curvilinear, biomorphic space using iron and steel. From a series of sculptures started after 1953, the form of Sun #27 is developed from a lattice structure that is twisted by Falkenstein to create a dimensional shape that evokes the tension between the internal and external space. The completed sculpture, painted a bright yellow, brings to mind a cheerful, giant cobweb.
During Falkenstein's varied and distinguished career, she created large-scale sculptures such as
Sun #27
and
Game Action
(also on the Cal State Fullerton campus). She is also well-known for drawings, paintings, and less expansive sculptures in metals, glass, and wood.
Claire Falkenstein (1908–97) earned a BA degree from U.C. Berkeley. In 1950 she opened a studio in Paris and in 1960 she moved to Venice, California, where she maintained a studio and residence until her death. Private commissions and works are found in Europe as well as the United States. Major commissions in Los Angeles include the St. Basil church windows, rectory screen and doors; and sculptures on the CSU Long Beach and CSU Dominguez Hills campuses.
Artist:
Charles Fine
Title:
Herramientas de la Vida
Map abbreviation:
(NSC)
Location:
Newquist Sculpture Court, Visual Arts Center
(Not currently on view)
Created:
1987
Installation:
1998
Materials:
bronze and stone
Dimensions:
90" x 36" x 67"
Acquisition:
Gift of Thomas W. Knaup
Herramientas de la Vida (The Tools of Life) was created for Fine's 1987 one-person exhibition at Ace Gallery in Los Angeles. This sculpture is a companion to a sculpture of the same name currently owned by the Orange County Museum of Art, a gift of Mandy and Cliff Einstein. Originally purchased by Louise and Richard Newquist, this version of Herramientas de la Vida was given to the university by Thomas Knaup.
Charles Fine (1951– ) established himself as a painter in the 1980s. His usually monochromatic, ostensibly abstract paintings are noted for layered, richly textured surfaces; he often uses such materials as oil, encaustic, and resin. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Fine began to create sculptures. Like Herramientas de la Vida, many of his works are rife with totemic and animistic allusions.
Fine currently resides in Santa Monica and is represented by Diane Rosenstein gallery.
Artist: Dextra Frankel
Title:
Weathervane
Map abbreviation:
(W)
Location:
North entrance to Visual Arts Center, Building E
(Not currently on view)
Created:
1967
Installation:
1994
Materials:
cast bronze, steel pipe, and ball bearings
Dimensions:
168" x 48" x 48"
Acquisition:
Gift of the artist
Dextra Frankel produced this work in 1967 for Hortense Miller of Laguna Beach. Because Miller liked to feed visiting birds, raccoons, and other small animals, it was the artist intention to provide a place for birds to nest on the top and around Weathervane. It is a sturdy birdhouse, weighing over 2000 pounds. The large sections of bronze thread vertically over steel pipe and are bolted together. The moving piece comes equipped with bronze ball bearings. Weathervane was installed on the grounds of the Laguna Art Museum for many years before being gifted to the university in 1994. The sculpture was at home in a grove of trees near Pollak Library until 2005 when campus construction required that it be moved to its present location – appropriately, outside the building where Frankel had her office as gallery director for many years.
From 1958 to 1970, Dextra Frankel (1924–2016) exhibited her work in more than sixty institutions. In 1967 she became gallery director and professor of art at Cal State Fullerton where she initiated the graduate exhibition design and museum studies programs and organized over eighty exhibitions. She retired from teaching in 1991 but continued to work in exhibition planning and design through Dextra Frankel Associates.
Artist: Betty Gold
Title:
Kaikoo H. XI
Map abbreviation:
(K)
Location: In front of Dan Black Hall
Created:
1985
Dedication: December 1985
Materials: painted steel
Dimensions: 264" x 144" x 108"
Acquisition: Donated by Charles Elliott, president of Tygart Industries West. The Art Alliance raised the funds necessary to build a complex and strong foundation to anchor this massive sculpture.
The idea for this sculpture was conceived when the artist was visiting Hawaii. "Kaikoo" is a Hawaiian word for high tide and the “H” in the title is an abbreviation (for the artist) of the concept of holistic. The main concept of the sculpture is that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts, as actually the sculpture is actually composed of shapes cut from a rectangle and re-connected to create the three-dimensional form. The viewer can enjoy the interrelation of the visual shapes. The color is arbitrary so as to be seen only for the intrinsic value of red as red.
Betty Gold (1935– ) attended the University of Texas and now maintains a studio in Venice, California. Her creative work has included sculpture, painting, tapestry, photography and jewelry. The artist usually develops a number of ideas around a common theme, building a maquette for each of the series, and then has the full scale sculpture fabricated at a local steel mill.
Artist:
Betty Gold
Title: Untitled
Map abbreviation:
(U-BG)
Location: South end of the central courtyard of the Visual Arts Center
(Not currently on view)
Created: 1979
Installation: 1999
Materials: redwood and steel
Dimensions: 84" x 48" x 8"
Acquisition: Gift of Ed Ames
This untitled redwood and steel sculpture represents a seminal work in the oeuvre of this Los Angles based artist. As part of a series, Gold laminated the wood and then reinforced the linear, muscular structure of the sculpture with steel plates bolted directly into the wood.
Betty Gold (1935- ) attended the University of Texas and now maintains a studio in Venice, California. Her creative work includes sculpture, painting, tapestry, photography, and jewelry. The artist usually develops a number of ideas around a common theme, building a maquette for each of the series, and then has the full-scale sculpture fabricated at a local steel mill.
