In the Studio: Devorah Sperber

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a bit about Devorah
0:00:07
Devorah Sperber's work makes use of the obsessive repetition of individual structural elements (pipe cleaners, beads, spools of threads, etc.). It's also can be a little quirky - the curtains that Devorah is passing through are actually various Star Trek crew members beaming in. (photo: http://www.devorahsperber.com/caren_golden_show_3_08/beaded_works_2x2/beaming_in_figures.htm, courtesy of Devorah Sperber, Caren Golden Gallery)

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the finished piece
0:00:23
The piece as you see it hanging behind Devorah is actually unfinished. The photo here shows the work as it was installed in the galleries at MAD. (photo: Ed Watkins)

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the 'ah-ha' moment
0:00:47
One of the best parts of Second Lives was watching museum visitors approach Devorah's work. It often happened as she described - visitors would recognize the piece from afar, but then when they got a little closer and realized that the viewing sphere was actually a part of the piece, they were able to experience it in a completely different way. Unfortunately, many of our younger visitors didn't realize that the stand for the viewing sphere was height-adjustable. (photo: Katie Sokoler)

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more from Devorah on this subject
0:01:17
If you are interested, Devorah discussed the philosophy and physiology behind her work in greater detail at our Second Lives Symposium, held February 7, 2009. She was joined by two other artists from the exhibitions, Sonya Clark and Boris Bally.

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other thread works
0:02:40
Devorah has created many pieces from spools of thread, many quite a bit larger than the piece from Second Lives. While that piece had a mere 5000-something spools, her largest pieces have well over 50,000. Yes, she does have a good relationship with thread manufacturer Coats and Clark. (photo: http://www.devorahsperber.com/thread_works_index_html_and_2x2s/warhol4.htm, courtesy of Devorah Sperber)

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Channels: Contemporary ArtDevorah SperberExhibitions

Coming off solo exhibitions at the Brooklyn Museum and MASS MoCA, Devorah Sperber was one of the featured artists in MAD's exhibition Second Lives: Remixing the Ordinary. Devorah's work is all about the thoughtful, obsessive, repetitive use of commonplace objects to create complicated pieces of fine art. She had great company amongst the other artists in Second Lives, whose pieces were constructed from hundreds (or thousands, or tens of thousands) spoons, quarters, records, railroad spikes, eyeglasses and many other materials.

In this video, Devorah explains how she constructs her pieces, as well as ideas on the nature of seeing that make her pieces so complex.

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