Born in 1956 in England, Andy Goldsworthy is one of those artists who claim an art in symbiosis with nature. Playing on subtle balances and daring assemblies, he imposes himself as the emblematic figure of the artistic current that is Land Art. Ephemeral, geometric, graphic but above all unique, his works are the fruit of a path based on a strong attraction for nature. Whether it is sculptures, constructions, assemblies or others, Andy let his imagination create with what he finds.
His beginnings at Bradford Art College from 1974 to 1975 did not satisfy him, thus justifying that he felt like “must feel the birds before their first migration: a visceral instinct that something is not going where they are, the powerful impression that they must leave for places where they have never been before” (AG). This is how his powerful attraction for nature was born.
During an interview for Madame Figaro, he says the inspiration nature brings him by saying: “Nature for me is not quiet or calm, but intense, demanding and beautiful. In Paris Match, he added: “For me, nature is a difficult, rough subject that challenges and questions everything. “Thus, without idealizing his muse, he seeks to bring out what is beautiful in it. He has this strong desire to understand it in its changes and transformations, always being linked to the temporal aspect.
He works in nature, but also with it. He feels its energy and feeds on it. He uses everything he finds on the spot and does not limit himself to a particular field: leaves, snow, stones, soil, branches, sand, etc.. Although his work can be found all over the world, he doesn’t like to travel: “Real change is best understood by staying at one place. When I travel, I see differences rather than change” (Goldsworthy A., Le Temps, p. 7).
Thus, each of his works is driven by a strong passion, summed up by one of his quotations: “I thirst for a beauty that words cannot express. It is too hard-won to be described in conventional terms. I am attracted to beauty like a tree by light or an animal by water. It is a food and a reality that does not ignore these qualities that we call ugly, but that reach the truth about the nature of things. » (AG)
After “Rivers and Tides” in 2001, the film director Thomas Riedelsheimer dedicates to the artist a new documentary entitled « Leaning into the Wind », which will be released in theaters on July 2018.
All his works // www.artnet.fr/artistes/andy-goldsworthy/2
Facebook // Andy Goldsworthy
We talk about him on Instagram // #andygoldsworthy
Also to be read: Inspiration / Land art, when the artist meets nature
SOME WORKS OF ANDY GOLDSWORTHY
