Library Boy and Girl

This semester has been a pretty busy one. My schedule filled with business classes on topics that don’t come naturally to me, I feel as though these new confusing things have been a real change of pace from my comfort zone. My time in the Museums this semester is giving me some of my only history exposure of the semester. I have been learning a lot about Christian Petersen, and the huge impact he’s had on this campus. The artist in residence for 21 years, his art includes the Fountain of the Four Seasons, Conversations, and many others. The library holds one of my favorite pieces by Petersen, and it has become more meaningful to me this semester.

Much like my semester, the library can be a  hectic place, full of the bustle of students, busily trying to get their work done. Further inside holds an escape from all of this. Walk past Bookends café, and immediately the library becomes much quieter. I see the familiar Grant Wood mural, and the two figures that are guarding it. These sculptures were made by Christian Petersen in 1944 as a replacement for lamps that were originally supposed to be in that location. The two figures are so calm and simple. Throughout this year, I have learned a little more about the history behind them. At the time they were made, men and women were in separate classes, lived on opposite sides of campus, and even had a curfew of 7:30. The library was one of the only places where boys and girls could meet without a chaperone. Once you put these sculptures into context, they hold more information. They are shyly looking at each other, so there are undertones of flirtation and secret meanings in their gazes. 

The library's art to me is special in that there are so many images of ISU’s history, covering every student’s experience. In between all this art are the two statues, representing the individual student. My favorite part about Christian Petersen’s works are that he so often captured quiet moments that everyone encounters in their life. The stone isn’t a flashy color, it’s just simply carved in a way that fits its surroundings. I feel like the statues may be lost in between these massive murals by Grant Wood and in the rotunda, but that’s what I like about them. They are two people, focused on their studies (or probably more likely, each other), and every student can project their own story onto them.

Terrazzo Floor, Julie Chang Curtiss Hall

                Earlier this month the new additions to Curtiss Hall were unveiled to the public. Curtiss Hall is home to the Agricultural College, as well as the Anthropology department, sneakily hidden away in the third floor. Having had an anthropology class daily in Curtiss throughout my 3 years here, I’ve been able to see the progress of this huge project.  We are lucky to have a newly renovated building with new classrooms, as well as the Global Café with plenty of seating and food available for students. Along with these new features, there are some additions to the art on campus collection.

                In my time as an intern with the museums, I’ve learned a lot about how much art Iowa State really has to offer on campus. We have the largest public art collection in the country, which I had no idea about until recently. Once you realize how much art we really have, you start noticing it everywhere. One of the great things about Iowa State’s public art is that every building has art that is applicable to the subject that is important in that building.

                Of the two new art pieces in Curtiss Hall, I’m going to be looking at the terrazzo floor by Julie Chang in first floor. Right in the center of the floor, this piece lines up with the overlook connecting all the floors of the building together, meaning you can see this piece from any floor you are on. I like how the terrazzo flowers and geometric shapes fit together with the material for the surrounding floor. In a lot of ways Iowa State’s Art on Campus is seen without being too obvious, like the other new glass piece lining the upstairs of the Global Café. The floor is something students will be walking over daily, and hopefully as they walk over the piece they see a new aspect of Iowa agriculture each time.

               

Looking over the new piece, I started looking from the floor above in order to get a complete view. The first thing I noticed is that it’s definitely not an obvious connection to agriculture and its many parts, but as you look at the individual pieces you start to fit everything together. The blue circling arrow was a prominent shape in the piece, it made me start thinking about the Lion King and the whole Circle of Life song. The blue arrow is connecting all of the other pieces of this giant floor puzzle together, and wherever the arrow touches another shape, there is this great layering of colors that make the piece so intricate. There is a mixture of geometric and natural shapes, and a mix of abstract and literal representations of Iowa agriculture. I see images of windmills, which are such a common sight on the Iowa skyline. The flowers and leaves show some of the blending of the colors, while incorporating images of what looks to be soybeans, one of Iowa’s main crops. Animal life is also represented in the floor, with metal inlays of insects and deer tracks.

                Many of the shapes are simplified versions of images that are very familiar to agriculture in Iowa. For those who are in the building actually studying agriculture, all they really need is a simple reminder to bring about thoughts of the plants and processes they’re studying. For the people just visiting, or maybe the anthropology major like myself, it gives us a little more freedom when looking at the floor. There’s a lot more room for imagination with a more abstract image. I love how this work of art is practical, and is hidden away in an everyday space. Combining every aspect of agriculture together in a simple abstract, I’m glad I’ll be walking over it everyday for the rest of my time here.

By Sydney Marshall