Jonathon Borofsky Molecule Man

Jonathon Borofsky: Molecule Man

"My first Molecule Man sculptures were made in 1977 and 1978 in Los Angeles. Early molecule structures included a molecule chair, a ceramic molecule vase, a molecule figure and a model for a molecule building made from styrofoam balls. Originally, I was fascinated by this molecule idea because of the simple fact that even though we appear to be quite solid, we are in fact composed of a molecule structure which, in itself is mostly composed of water and air.

For me, this hundred-foot tall aluminum sculpture composed of three figures meeting in the center, not only refers to the lightness inside our own solid bodies, but also the figures joining in the center, refer to the molecules of all human beings coming together to create our existence. This symbolism is especially poignant for this 100-foot Molecule Man on the Spree River in Berlin since the river marked the division between East and West Berlin."

Molecule Man, 30 meters tall, aluminum
Permanent installation, Spree River, Berlin, 1997

JONATHAN BOROFSKY grew up in Boston and was educated at Carnegie-Mellon, Yale, and the Ecole de Fountainbleau in France. Borofsky’s work has been exhibited at galleries and museums around the world. In 1984, a retrospective of his work toured major museums throughout the country. Borofsky’s sculptures can be found in many locations in Los Angeles from “Molecule Men” which holds a prominent location in front of the Roybal Federal Building, to the “Ballerina Clown” on Main Street in Venice, to the large activated “Hammering Man” in the plaza of the California Mart at Spring and Olympic Streets. These sculptures, as is true of most of Borofsky’s other works, are recognizable forms—humans, clowns, animals—used in a playful manner and unusual context, provoking diverse interpretation.

Those familiar with the work of Jonathan Borofsky might be surprised to know that he has not had a solo exhibition in a museum or gallery since 1991. They might be equally surprised to learn that during the last decade or so his efforts have almost exclusively been devoted to large-scale outdoor public commissions.

Borofsky was known in the ’70s and ’80s for installations that combined a plethora of materials and subjects, energetically and cleverly jammed into spaces. These stunning, visually abundant, and thought-provoking exhibitions were presented around the world, from New York, Los Angeles, and Minneapolis to Tokyo, Rotterdam, and Stockholm. The inventory of works and ideas included lively self-portrait paintings culled from a particular dream the artist recalled; series of small black and white doodled drawings of stick figures, faces, or animals; framed works spinning with the aid of an electric motor; lithographs and screen prints using words and texts; and video or light projections on the walls and ceiling. Mechanical beings such as his lively Chattering Man intermingled with the audience so that the viewer was as much a part of the assembled event as was the art. Borofsky became renowned for his multi-faceted style and razor-sharp inventiveness. Much of his work derived from dreams, dreams about movie stars like Elizabeth Taylor, historical figures like Hitler, or other artists, such as Dalí and Picasso. He was also the number guy, an artist who supplanted his signature with a number drawn or painted on the work like an inventory tag of his own thoughts and musings. Counting had been and continues to be the conceptual link in the work. The combination of dreaming and counting seemed to be the way in which Borofsky could blend the past with the present, feelings with observations, the here and now with memories. But the real key to understanding the work in general comes from a statement made by the artist in 1980, “I think everything in art is a self-portrait.

wn.com/Jonathan_Borofsky 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3ZQQwZK6g0

www.artspace.com/jonathan_borofsky