Richard Rezac was born and raised in Nebraska but attended college in Maryland, where he received his master’s of fine arts in 1982. His art consists of sculpture of all sizes and his style is modern/futuristic.
The lecture was divided into two parts. The first was an overview of the different influences that have inspired Rezac’s sculpture, and the second featured a chronological sequence of some of the artist’s works and explanations of their meaning.
Rezac described his notion of art as a young boy as “conservative and limited” and said he considers the art museum in Portland, Ore., where he attended school for a time, to be a major influence in his artistic development. Rezac made the “fundamental decision to work with abstraction” while in graduate school but nevertheless claims that his sculpture contains some reference to the natural world in its representation.
Rezac’s choice of material for his works ranges from different types of painted or natural wood and combines some elements of metal, glass and plastic. He described his earlier pieces as more simple than the contemporary ones and emphasized the progression of the three-dimensional and geometric aspects in his sculpture.
“The degree of complexity has increased,” Rezac said. “My sculptures started out compact and true to life in their size, whereas now my style is similar to cubism, somewhat layered and more three- than two-dimensional.”
Many of Rezac’s early sculptures were heavily influenced by Oriental, Buddhist and Native American forms of art. He attributes these themes to their availability to Portland’s art museum, which he had access to in the beginning of his career. Rezac was attracted to the “foreignness, symbolism, beauty and simplicity” of these ancient cultures and their forms of art.
For example, Rezac created a stand-up metal sculpture inspired by the fence of a sixth century Japanese Shinto shrine. Some of his work also resembles bridge railings, which he attributed to his childhood in Nebraska.
“The vegetation in Nebraska is quite spare,” Rezac said, “so bridges seem very much like part of the natural scenery.” He also recognizes 19th century Shaker architecture as a recurring theme in his work, owing to its “craftsmanship and elegance.”
Rezac’s more contemporary work has been influenced by Italian and other European art and architecture, and he is especially fascinated by the shape and construction of domes and arches.
Rezac showed two-dimensional diagrams of sketches he did preceding the actual construction of his sculptures, explaining that he planned on becoming a painter before he decided to do sculpture.
All of Rezac’s work is done by himself, with the exception of certain specialized tasks, such as welding, and requires few basic tools, such as saws and chisels.
Rezac’s sculptures have been exhibited at Feature Inc. in New York, Rona Hoffman Gallery in Chicago and Mark Foxx Gallery in Los Angeles as well as the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago and the Yale University Art Gallery. He is included in this year’s Corcoran Biennial and currently teaches at the Art Institute of Chicago.
