By An open sign made of a wrinkled sheet of aluminum foil hung over a table full of shiny Hersey’s Kisses and signaled guests to enter into the Marilyn Werby Gallery at California State University, Long Beach.
Variations of grays and tans reflected through three Plexiglas boxes containing crumbled pieces of flattened foil stacked into three, nearly identical, abstract structures. The wooden stands supporting the pieces resembled set flats, commonly used to reinforce playhouse stages.
CSULB senior Shane Aufdemberg premiered his collection of structural art inspired by theatrics in his BFA Senior Solo Show on Sunday.
Influenced and informed by his past as a photographer, the CSULB sculpting major said he is more interested in display framework and mechanisms rather than being inspired by someone or something.
“I guess it’s not so much about the objects as it is how the objects are displayed,” Aufdemberg said. “And the translation of those objects through light.”
A trip to Costa Mesa’s South Coast Plaza is partially to blame for his exhibit, but Aufdemberg admitted that the rest of his inspiration is credited to a night of one too many beers.
“There’s no meaning. I think that’s why I like it so much,” Aufdemberg said, referring to why he chose to use foil. “It’s a fairly empty object.”
Spectators seemed to be drawn to the other three-dimensional aluminum piece enveloped in a colored light reflected from the lustrous metal.
Julie Sadowski, a photographer who visited the gallery, enjoyed the simplicity of the piece, but also acknowledged how complicated it was.
“I love how it turns into almost like a landscape, and the round projection is almost like a moon,” Sadowski said. “It’s like a weird spatial experience.”
Aufdemberg said that the piece began as a crumpled up piece of aluminum foil that was scanned and carved out on a CNC in foam and then finally re-cast back into aluminum. It hung companionless in the back of the gallery.
Aufdemberg originally planned to fill the gallery with fog for a more theatrical feel, but could not do so without setting off the alarms.
Despite the missing fog, the room projected harmonious and tranquil vibes that visitors found very appealing.
“I think, for this, it’s appropriate that it’s very quiet in here,” CSULB School of Art graduate Christine Kurata said. “It’s nice because there’s a lot going on [in other galleries]; I appreciate this kind of atmosphere.”
As an art major, Kurata was curious about the contrast between the forms and the environment, elements the artist himself still bring into question.
“It’s beautiful,” Aufdemberg commented as he looked at his own work. “I’m still figuring this one out myself.”
Aufdemberg’s exhibit, which is in FA1, will close on Thursday.
