About
Frozen in mid-step, a man grips the leash of a dog trotting ahead of him. Look again. This is not the expected cast bronze sculpture seen standing on sidewalks everywhere. Outlined by red steel frames and sided with flat, transparent, tempered acrylic panels the two figures are essentially see-through containers that give a clear view of the objects piled inside. Filled with tennis balls, the dog has a one-track mind while the man, filled with gadgets, tools and small objects used in everyday life, tells a more complicated story.
Located in the Delmar Loop, an area with small stores selling everything from shoes to musical instruments, I Want seems intended to mirror the consumerist spirit rampant in contemporary life. Yet the delightfully engaging man and his dog, each obsessed with the objects of their desire, convey their message by showing rather than telling.
In constructing her sculptures Victoria Fuller often assembles ordinary artifacts that she uses in unexpected ways. Sometimes the objects become construction units and are cast in aluminum but often she uses the actual objects as metaphors to support her theme. She wants to tweak viewers’ perceptions of themselves and use humor and irony to comment on society and culture.
To see another of her sculptural assemblages, visit the Brown Shoe Company headquarters in Clayton. Titled Shoe of Shoes, it’s a giant aluminum shoe composed of hundreds and hundreds of individual shoes. She likens her use of multiples of the same object to DNA.
Courtesy of Metro Arts in Transit
Dimensions: 6′ x 10′ x 2′
Year Completed: 2004
Material: Plexiglas, tennis balls, found objects
Owner: Arts in Transit
