Mark Oxman - Sculptor, The Decimation of Professor Richard Fink, Kirby Theatre, Amherst College

Saturday, September 18th, 2010 at 5pm

The Decimation of Professor Richard Fink will provide a bridge between traditional sculpture and some of the ideas surrounding postmodernism. While taking as its starting point a series of conventional sculpture heads, the Decimation of Professor Richard Fink transforms those static pieces into an interactive performance work. 

The work will begin as a series of 20 life-size portrait heads modeled from life and cast in plaster. These will be unique works, mot multiple copies or editions. The majority of those 20 portraits will be ceremoniously smashed in a ritual of decimation. Only two will be saved. The entire process from selecting the survivors through the ritual of decimation will be captured on video. 

Unlike conventional sculpture, which yields only a concrete work, and unlike conventional performance art, which is transitory, the Decimation of Professor Richard Fink will comprise both performance and enduring sculpture. While the resulting portrait heads will stand on their own as works of art, they will also be the outcome of an interactive performance work that is central to their creation and survival. 

Much of the contemporary art is involved with the "idea." Objects per se are often given less importance than in the past. However, by giving paramount importance to the concept, much contemporary work lacks traditional esthetic qualities. The Decimation of Professor Richard Fink highlights the conceptual elements of art, while nevertheless yielding concrete works. 

Mark Oxman
Director of the Sculpture Program Emeritus
American University
Washington, DC

Link  Kirby Theatre, Amherst College, The Decimation of Professor Richard Fink