Aurora 1992 - 1993

Mark di Suvero made ‘Aurora’ from steel, and when you look at it, you know that this is art about the process of making! The rust on the metal isn’t just something to be avoided or covered up; it’s part of the story, a record of time and weather. I think of the circle, cut away in parts like a pie chart, as being about being incomplete. Its form is strong, but it is disrupted. There are also beams sticking out that almost look like wings or arms. The whole sculpture has a feeling of reaching, striving. The way the beams join each other reminds me of Picasso’s constructions, but also the Russian Constructivists, like Tatlin. It's like di Suvero is asking what is art? What can it be made from? And how can it change the space around it? It is all about open questions, not closed statements.