Andy Goldsworthy is a man of many artistic talents, utilizing sculpture, photography, and a philosophical perspective on nature to create works of art that provide a social commentary on the inevitable power of natural forces. Officially labeled as an environmental sculptor, he utilizes objects he finds in nature – leaves, stones, ice, wood, etc. – to create abstract formations outdoors in an environment that is generally free from human interaction. During his creation process, Goldsworthy approaches his natural surroundings without preconceived notions of what he is going to produce. He observes the objects he encounters as his materials for an art piece and sees the environment as his canvas. He does not actually create; he manipulates to produce a finite aesthetic experience. To make this possible, Goldsworthy claims to be aware of a specific energy in nature that he rises above to produce a tangible art form. These works are, themselves, temporary. Once he creates the product, Goldsworthy leaves it in the environment to let nature take its course. In this way, these ephemeral sculptures challenge the importance of art as it is historically characterized by its permanence and significance as historical evidence.
Though his sculptures themselves are merely fleeting moments of artistic brilliance, Goldsworthy immortalizes his work through the use of photography. According to the artist, "Each work grows, stays, decays- integral parts of a cycle which the photograph shows at its height, marking the moment when the work is most alive. There is an intensity about a work at its peak that I hope is expressed in the image. Process and decay are implicit." The photographs allow for the artist’s creations to be environmentally friendly and naturally ephemeral, while still gaining mass exposure and appeal. He does not create art that takes up unnecessary space or destroys natural objects. He documents them in their environment and brings the representation of them at their height of aesthetic pleasure to his audiences. In this way, he creates a images of the ideal that cannot wither away or be destroyed. Nature plays the role of destructor for the object, but it will remain unharmed, beautiful, and inspiring through his photographic evidence, which captures the sculpture as the artist believes it should be seen for eternity.
Goldsworthy’s photograph Rowan Leaves with Hole illustrates the artist’s contrasting transient properties of his sculpture with the immortality of his photography. The piece itself is comprised of rowan leaves of various hues of red and yellow placed in a circular pattern on a dark ground. By placing the darker, more decayed leaves on the outer ring with the more vibrant coloration at the center of the piece, there is an appearance of a three-dimensional depression into the central black hole. The circular formation of the leaves does not appear natural, but it serves to represent the cyclical temperament of natural forces. The strong contrast of yellow against the solid black creates the illusion of infinite unknown space beneath the pile, symbolizing the division of life, as it cycles through the process of leaves in fall, with the uncertainty of death and decay that ultimately at the center of all living things. This theme mimicked in the comparison between the sculpture and photograph themselves. The inevitability of nature to bring an end to the piece by blowing away the leaves is undermined by the lastingness of the photograph’s capture of the moment of perfection in the piece.
Similarly, Stone Tower illustrates a disturbance in the environment without a clear indication of where or when it is taking place, but it is done with a new set of materials. The photograph, shot from the angle most appealing to the artist, allows for the illusion of a never-ending tower of stones. Bilaterally symmetrical, the photograph shows the “tower” with a base of larger stones that moves into a darker, less recognizable section at the top. It is hard to tell whether the rocks themselves get significantly smaller as the construction moves upward in the composition or if the piece itself monumentally overshadows the observer. Like all of Goldsworthy’s works, the sculpture itself is temporary. Also, as in all of his work, the photograph of the piece provides much more than an illustration of the sculpture. His perspective provides a symbolic understanding of the work while providing his audience with a lasting impression of his artistic endeavors. The choice of angle and representation in this photograph may serve as a commentary on the disconnectedness of understanding the earthly realm with that of the heavens above, as the composition becomes harder for the viewer to read as it rises higher. The solid pedestal of nature, as shown through the largest rock on the bottom, serves as the base for human reasoning about the unknown beliefs that rise from our interactions with natural elements.
Though not as artistically ambiguous in regards to time and place of the sculpture as the previously discussed photographs, Before the Mirror shows a circular construction made from weaving bamboo at the edge of a body of water. Though the piece again seems unnatural to its surroundings, it draws attention to its surrounding elements. Like the image with rowan leaves, the photograph references cyclical patterns of nature, but it encompasses and draws focus to the environmental combination, as well as separation, of water, earth, and sky. Though each of them is different, they are all necessary for the balance of environmental occurrences. From the calm center of the sculpture the bamboo becomes more chaotic, much like many natural forces such as that of a tornado or hurricane.
Goldsworthy’s photography does more than simply document the product of environmental sculpture genius. It captures the soul of an artwork that springs from a man’s understanding of, connection with, and power over natural elements, ones that fade away but live eternally through the picture. Unlike sculptures that do not tell the viewer how to access them and unlike photographs that solicit questions about the scene shown, Goldsworthy’s photographs show the viewer how to see his sculptures with the clear understanding that he is showing nature as he formed it at the height of its aesthetic appeal. He catches a fleeting moment of beauty and wonder in the ability of man to modify natural elements before nature overcomes him to take back what is hers once again.
