weight and measuer

1. What were Richard Serra's goals for the installation?

He hopes that in the installation he can bring relevance to the space of the Sackler Octagon.  He wants to expose it by placing two volumes in the Duveen Galleries, leaving the Ocatagon empty.  He wishes to contain the space in relevance to its volume and hold its volume in relation to its scale.

2. Define the field Serra is referring to when he states that his sculptural elements need to create "enough tension within the field to hold the experience of presence in the place". How do you define "experience of presence"?

The sculpture needs to add a presence to the place but only enough so it doesn't alter the presence of the place as a whole. It only creates adds to the place but does not change it's presence and experience overall.  The experience of presence to me is the effect that the object's presence has on someone or something, but according to Serra, he does not want the object to affect the original field itself.

3. How do the columns, pedestal condition, octagonal space and vertical axis challenge Serra?

The columns, vertical axis, and pedestal condition challenged Serra by creating limiting the the sculptures he was going to place. The vertical axis limited his used of columns due to their effect of making the space seem taller.   An octagon was too busy for the space itself and called to much attention being in the octagonal space.  The pedestal condition offset the vertical effect of the room making it appear larger in the vertical sense.

4. What is effective in terms of the shape, scale and number of the two square elements in the Duveen Galleries?

The square elements in the Duveen Galleries helps limit the expanses of the room in it's vertical sense.  The shape, scale, and number of it were using what was existing to grasp its architecture, and not redefine what was there into something new.

5. Describe the differences and similarities between Barnett Newman's and Richard Serra's work.

They both use very minimalist concepts in their works.  They use basic shapes, figures and colors.  However, Serra's work is more based of sculptures and uses a lot more gestural elements in his works.