Richard Serra Quotes

Powerful Richard Serra for Daily Growth

About Richard Serra

Richard Serra (born Richard Gordon Sanders on December 2, 1938) is an American minimalist sculptor whose work is characterized by large-scale installations of steel plates and sheets. Born in San Francisco, California, he was the elder of two sons born to Clara (Gordon) and Jack Sanders, a naval officer. His family moved frequently due to his father's career, which exposed him to diverse cultural influences that would later inform his art. Serra studied at the Alabama School of Fine Arts in Birmingham from 1956-57 before transferring to Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond where he received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 1960 and a Master's degree in 1961. He then attended Yale University School of Art and Architecture, receiving his MFA in 1964. Influenced by the Abstract Expressionists, particularly David Smith, and the Minimalist movement, Serra began creating sculptures using industrial materials such as lead, rubber, and steel plates. His first major work was 'Sculpture for Wandelheid,' a series of six 20-foot long steel plates installed in Düsseldorf, Germany in 1969. This marked the beginning of his exploration into site-specific installations. One of Serra's most famous works is 'Tilted Arc,' a 120-foot-long steel plate sculpture installed in Federal Plaza in New York City in 1981. The work sparked controversy, with critics arguing that it obstructed pedestrian flow and was an eyesore. It was ultimately removed in 1989. Throughout his career, Serra has continued to push boundaries with his large-scale installations, exploring themes of gravity, space, and the viewer's physical interaction with his work. His art is housed in museums worldwide including the Museum of Modern Art in New York City and the Tate Modern in London. Despite ongoing controversy over his works' placement and impact on their surroundings, Richard Serra remains one of the most influential sculptors of the 20th and 21st centuries.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"Art is a physical act."

Richard Serra's quote "Art is a physical act" emphasizes that art creation is not just an intellectual or emotional process, but it also involves tangible, manual work. It suggests that the essence of art lies in the actual process of making, sculpting, painting, or composing – the physical engagement with materials and tools, which transforms ideas into reality. This perspective underscores the importance of craftsmanship and hands-on skill in artistic expression, stressing that true creativity stems from both conceptual thought and manual dexterity.

"I like to get in over my head, whether it's physically, intellectually, or emotionally."

Richard Serra's quote indicates a preference for challenges that push him beyond his current limits, regardless of whether these challenges are physical, intellectual, or emotional. This mindset embodies the pursuit of personal growth through overcoming obstacles, pushing boundaries, and continuously striving for more, reflecting a spirit of resilience, curiosity, and ambition.

"The space around an object is as much a part of that object as the object itself."

Richard Serra's quote emphasizes the interconnectedness of objects and their surrounding spaces. He suggests that the space around an object is not just empty or passive, but it actively contributes to the essence and identity of the object itself. This perspective invites us to think beyond the confines of an object, recognizing its environment as an integral part of its overall character and significance. In design and aesthetics, this idea highlights the importance of considering not only what is physically present but also the spatial relationships that shape our perception and experience of objects in their environments.

"Sculpture is really about the manipulation of space."

Richard Serra's quote "Sculpture is really about the manipulation of space" emphasizes that sculpture transcends merely representing physical objects; instead, it is about shaping and transforming the environment by manipulating the three-dimensional spaces around us. In essence, it's about designing experiences that engage viewers within a spatial context, inviting them to interact with the work and contemplate its relationship with their surroundings.

"I make sculptures because I don't have enough control over my life."

Richard Serra's statement suggests that for him, creating sculptures serves as a means to exert control over his creative process and, in turn, find a sense of order and balance amidst the unpredictability of life. By shaping and manipulating materials into structured forms, he finds an outlet for personal expression and control, which may be lacking in other aspects of his life.

I think you always have to find where the boundary is in relation to the context in order to be able to kind of articulate how you want the space to interact with the viewer.

- Richard Serra

Think, Always, Viewer, Boundary

Basically, what you really want to do is try to engage the viewer's body relation to his thinking and walking and looking, without being overly heavy-handed about it.

- Richard Serra

Want, About, Viewer, Overly

But I'll try to immerse myself in as many of the formal characteristics of site as possible in the landscape.

- Richard Serra

Formal, Characteristics, Immerse

But you have to take all of those things, you have to take into consideration the paths, the roadways, how much cloud cover there is, how much foliage cover there is, whether there are streams, all of that comes into play.

- Richard Serra

Cloud, Play, Cover, Streams

I think different people have different problems and different relations to the exhibition of their work.

- Richard Serra

Think, I Think, Exhibition, Relations

If you get it out into the urban field it's going to be used or misused but it'll also probably provide a way of people acknowledging what the aesthetic is about because people have to confront it every day.

- Richard Serra

Every Day, Aesthetic, About, Acknowledging

The thing about coming back to the Bay Area, it's like coming home for me.

- Richard Serra

Bay Area, Like, Area, Coming Home

And certainly the history of public sculpture has been disastrous but that doesn't mean it ought not to continue and the only way it even has a chance to continue is if the work gets out into the public.

- Richard Serra

Chance, Been, Certainly, Ought

But what does interest me is the notion that if you do a lot of work it means there's a potential for other people to understand that a lot of things are possible with a sustained effort and that the broadening of experiences is possible and I think that's all art can be.

- Richard Serra

Effort, Other, I Think, Broadening

On the other hand, if there's an underlying core of poetry that I go to, I go to the sea. I've lived on the sea all my life. I live on the sea in Cape Breton.

- Richard Serra

My Life, Go, Other, Cape

I think this, I think basically I'm not interested in people following my work or making work like my work.

- Richard Serra

Think, Making, I Think, Not Interested

Now when you have administrators deciding what sexuality is, and what's a taboo and what's not in terms of content, you got guys, like, Trent Lott who equates homosexuality with a disease.

- Richard Serra

Disease, Homosexuality, Taboo

They've also, the government's decided now, what sexual content is.

- Richard Serra

Government, Now, Decided, Sexual

I used to eat lunch with Billy Wilder when I first came out here.

- Richard Serra

Lunch, Here, Billy, None

But I don't think of any particular viewer in mind other than myself.

- Richard Serra

Mind, Think, Viewer, Particular

Work out of your work. Don't work out of anybody else's work.

- Richard Serra

Work, Anybody, Else, Work Out

The thing about rigging is, you can learn it if you become a master rigger but there's no book on rigging.

- Richard Serra

Book, Learn, About, Master

I started working for Bethlehem Steel when I was about 16 during the summers.

- Richard Serra

Steel, About, Bethlehem, Summers

I thought Out of Action was better as a catalogue than the honeycomb because the honeycomb was like walking into one compartment and then another compartment.

- Richard Serra

Thought, Like, Another, Action

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