Doug Aitken’s Text Sculpture Series

LA artist Doug Aitken is widely known for his innovative fine art installations. The “Text Sculpture” series uses light-boxes, mirror works, living plants and photography to create a mesh of words and images. In these sculptures words and images are in disagreement. “Riot” for example spells out the word of the title with the images of a beach landscapes. In a Blouin Art Info interview Aiken comments that “One of the things I believe in is friction, and how to generate friction within an artwork. Often these juxtapositions are where my interest lies; it’s where the energy is. My mother was a writer and my parents really valued long-form language. Maybe a word, or a letter, or a number, speaks to who I am, and the world that I live in, in the same way that “Ulysses” might speak to my father.”

1968, 2011. High density foam, wood and mirror. 36 x 80 x 8 1/2 inches.

Riot, 2011. LED lit lightbox. 24 1/2 x 89 1/2 x 5 inches.

Star, 2008. LED lit light box. 45 inches x 119 inches x 10 inches.

The Handle Comes Up, The Hammer Comes Down, 2009. LED lit lightbox. 35 x 131 x 7 7/8 inches.

Free, 2009. LED lit lightbox. 48 x 157 x 7 7/8 inches.

West, 2008. Neon lit lightbox. 40 x 177 x 7 inches.

Now, 2009. LED lit lightbox. 46 x 132 x 8 inches.

Sex, 2010. Living word. Clear PETG, white acrylic, moss, driftwood,various plants. 30 x 68 inches.

Vulnerable, 2008. LED lit lightbox. 28 x 216 1/2 x 7 1/2 inches.

Yes, 2010.  LED lit lightbox. 50 x 120 inches.