Thin Walls
Artist
Oliver Nowlin
(American)
Date1987
MediumRhoplex on masonite with neon
Dimensions57 × 81 × 6 in. (144.8 × 205.7 × 15.2 cm)
ClassificationsPainting
Object numberUAC2803
DescriptionThin Walls is a mixed media hung sculpture composed of neon tubing attached to painted masonite. The central body of the piece is a very jagged and irregular piece of masonite, compressed wood paneling, which has a layer of sealant that has been brushed on roughly so that the brushstrokes remain visible even long after the sealant has dried. Two neon tubes light up the left and right edges as well to accentuate the straight, if angled, lines In contrast to the straight edges of the main body of the piece, there are also curving neon tubes that move around and through the central body, moving in organic shapes and circles that all seem to be drawn up towards the upper right corner of the masonite board.
The sculpture seems to capture a dynamic tension between straight lines and sharp corners and the curving organic shapes of the neon and rough brush strokes. There is also a marked interest in light and dark in the literal sense. Rather than the traditional interest in bright colors versus dark colors, Oliver Nowlin brings actual light into his piece with the electric lighting. In the late 1980’s this use of modern industrial material in a formal sculpture would have been innovative, pushing what kinds of things artists used in their artwork. Not only could art be made with canvas and oil paints but also industrial wood, acrylic sealant, and neon tubing.
Mixed media artist and former art professor at LACC, Oliver Nowlin specializes in works made from neon lighting and masonite. He has exhibited with the Elysian Artist Collective and their Fogtown Art Walk and he has work in the collection of the Museum of Neon Art in Glendale CA. He was also featured in the 1972 A Panorama of Black Artists exhibition at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art with his etching We the People.
Written by Alex Heath
