Wendell Castle, born 1932, Emporia, Kansas, Time Table, 2000, Gilded jelutong, copper, ebony & mahogany veneer, gold-plated brass, clock works, Collection of the artist. |
Clockmaking Inspired by the Science of Time |
Wendell Castle, born 1932, Emporia, Kansas, Topeka, 2008, Polychromed fiberglass, urethane, gilded urethane, clock works, Collection of the artist.
Wendell Castle, born 1932, Emporia, Kansas, Dr. Caligari Clock, 1984, Burly cherry veneer, ebony, gold-plated brass, clock works, Memorial Art Gallery of the University of Rochester (New York), Given in honor of Joan M. Vanden Brul by her family. |
Spencer Museum of Art American furniture artist and sculptor Wendell Castle, installs five of his clocks in the museum’s Central Court as part of the Spencer’s Fall 2008 focus on concepts of time in visual art. This exhibition is accompanied by a book featuring an interview with Castle and a major essay on Castle’s art by Charles C. Eldredge, KU’s Hall Distinguished Professor of American Art and Culture. In his essay entitled Of Time and Materials: The Art of Wendell Castle, Dr. Eldredge writes, “More than by traditional clock- or cabinetmakers, Castle has … been inspired by scientists, especially Alan Lightman whose Einstein’s Dreams, ruminations on the concept of time, is often cited by the artist in discussion. Unlike the traditional clockmaker’s concern with accurate timekeeping, or the contemporary furniture maker’s with artfully designed and constructed objects, Castle is intrigued by the scientific concept of time. ‘They (scientists) think about things like, time doesn’t move in a consistent way,’ he explained. ‘Actually, it moves in fits and starts.’ Or at variable rates, depending on velocity, or altitude, etcetera. ‘If you’re moving at the speed of light, time will stand still; if you’re moving very fast, it slows down. If you live on top of a mountain, you’ll live longer than if you live at sea level; time is different, it will move more slowly.’” Wendell Castle (b. November 6, 1932 in Emporia, Kansas, USA) is an American furniture artist and a leading figure in American craft. He is often credited with being the father of the art furniture movement. In 1958 he received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in industrial design and in 1961 he received a Master of Fine Arts, both from the University of Kansas. From 1962-1969 he taught at Rochester Institute of Technology, School for American Craftsmen, in Rochester, NY and is now an Artist in Residence. In 1980 he opened the Wendell Castle School in Scottsville, NY. He has garnered a number of awards including a 1994 'Visionaries of the American Craft Movement' award sponsored by the American Craft Museum, and a 1997 Gold Medal from the American Craft Council. He has also received grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Comfort Tiffany Foundation. About Time is organized by Lara Kuykendall, the Spencer’s 2007-2008 European and American Art Intern, and Susan Earle, Curator of European and American Art. |
Wendell Castle, born 1932, Top of the World, 1989, Poplar, cherry, bubinga, Honduran mahogany, Baltic birch, leather, gold leaf, Judy and Howard Berkowitz.
Wendell Castle, born 1932, Emporia, Kansas, Dr. Caligari Clock, 1984, Burly cherry veneer, ebony, gold-plated brass, clock works, Memorial Art Gallery of the University of Rochester (New York), Given in honor of Joan M. Vanden Brul by her family. |
Wendell Castle, born 1932, Emporia, Kansas, Time to Time, 1997, Aluminum, clock works, Collection of the artist. |
