ART Habens
Anne Cecile Surga
For each work , the idea or concept is what always comes first and this will dictate the choice of material to make it . For instance if I want to represent a person on one feet and on a small scale I will not be able to use marble as there will be too much pressure on the small ankle area and therefore the sculpture might break . For such a project I will have to use papier maché , plaster or metal in order to ensure that the sculpture will be strong enough to bear its own weight . It is quite an instinctive process for me to go from the conceptual idea to the choice of material . I attach importance to the sensation a work can trigger in the viewers or what can emanate from it , which guides the choice of final textures between glossy or matte , rough or smooth for example , and this also determines the choice of a particular material over another .
I do not have self-imposed constraints when making an artwork , as each material already places its own : working with marble is a subtractive process while working with papier maché and plaster is an accumulative one . That is why the material needs to dry after applying each new layer of matter in order to fuse with the material below and to be able to receive additional material or to be workable or polished . Marble on the other hand is heavy , fragile and difficult to find . Also there are internal veins in marble that might not be visible when choosing the block , and which might interfere with the final work . I need to go to quarries ( in Carrara or in the Pyrenees ) to find the blocks and then to bring them back to the studio
Special Issue
23 474