It wasn't stone. It wasn't welded steel. It wasn't traditional sculpture. They thought it was craft, or something else, but not art. They couldn't define it in the early Fifties when I was starting out.
Ruth AsawaRead
We used to make patterns in the dirt, hanging our feet off the horse-drawn farm equipment. We made endless hourglass figures that I now see as the forms within forms in my crocheted wire sculptures.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects on the childhood practice of creating art through playful patterns, connecting it to the author's later artistic work.
Ruth Asawa's quote illustrates how childhood experiences of creativity and play influence an artist's adult work. By recalling the simple act of making patterns in the dirt while engaging with farm equipment, Asawa emphasizes the connection between early imaginative endeavors and her subsequent development of intricate sculptures. This highlights the importance of play and exploration in artistic expression and the ways in which our past shapes our present creations.
Themes
ArtCreativityChildhoodPatternsSculpture
In practice
Example use cases
In an art therapy session, this quote can inspire clients to reconnect with their childlike creativity.
More from Ruth Asawa
All quotes →Art is doing. Art deals directly with life.
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An artist is not special. An artist is an ordinary person who can take ordinary things and make them special.
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I am able to take a wire line and go into the air and define the air without stealing from anyone. A line can enclose and define space while letting the air remain air.
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