In Hugh Hayden’s show, ‘American Vernacular’ at the Aronson Fine Arts Center there’s something for everyone and not necessarily because the artist seeks to please, although there’s a lot of pleasure to be had visually and viscerally, along with disquiet, from this exhibition which challenges notions of the American dream and belonging.
Hayden engages
A gallery visitor asked Hayden during his talk, which was a part of the show’s opening debut program on Saturday, Feb 10, if the pregnant tree with male genitalia piece, Geppetto (2023, Cherry bark on acrylic on resin and White Oak, 25 x 15 x 10 inches, loaned courtesy of Lisson Gallery) might be a meditation on African American women raising their children without men after surviving the Middle Passage from Africa? Hayden did not claim this intention, or affirm the visitor’s interpretation; however, he smiled at the strong response she had and stressed during the talk and in an interview afterwards with The St. Louis American that people are going to have their own perceptions about the meaning of his work based on what they bring to it and how they react to different motifs and elements of a piece. He hopes that people’s reaction to his work will spur further conversation and consideration of culture, race, history, gender, sexuality, and the ways in which people experience America differently.
America and Americans are not a monolith
Hayden spoke to The St. Louis American about his practice of sculpting vegetation, utilizing materials found in nature, trees, tree bark, branches; materials which emulate grass, hay; and everyday objects found in daily life, because of their relatability. He seems interested in nature as a great equalizer. Other preferred objects in the show include pots and pans, tables and chairs, school desks, sports gear and equipment.
In America, and throughout the world, some people are made to feel they don’t belong or are not accepted relative to a pervasive culture or ideology. Hayden’s selection of certain elements, objects and materials which are regarded as essential to daily life, offer an accessibility to his work, his sculptures, to people from varied walks of life.
His work could be viewed as a descendant of Dadaism: readymades – everyday objects taken out of their regular environment and recontextualized, typically by being placed in an art show, art gallery or museum, and invested with new meaning as a result of this act, making them a commodity, assigning them value as works of art. This avant-garde art movement critiqued notions of art and commented on the brutality and absurdity of World War I in protest.
When The St. Louis American asked if he was influenced by Dadaism or Surrealism, Hayden responded that sometimes people try and label him and his work as “absurd” or “humorous;” however, what he seeks to achieve is the juxtaposition of different ideas and materials to create something which may seem challenging, but is actually “my life,” he said. While others may see his art work as a reflection of experience, it’s not just a conceit, it’s personal.
There is a clear connection to African sculpture in his series of skillets where facial masks emerge with features which simulate those of masks created by Baule or Dan people of Côte d’Ivoire or the Lega people of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Hayden mixes the sacred with the profane. Simulated African masks invested with a sense of spirituality and ritual are mixed with a mundane object, a pan or a skillet. These masks are hypnotic in their aesthetics: projected lines and circles, triangles and ovals make up facial features, some with protruding eyes and lips which draw the eye. Mundane objects that are transformed into dynamic pieces of art can be made utilitarian again and used ritualistically or routinely. Hayden underscores this point in an Instagram post from June 15, 2020, which shows him cooking in one of his pans in which a mask has been sculpted. The piece used is called Jazz 12 (2020 Cast iron, 19 5/8 x 15 3/4 x 3 1/2 inches, Loan courtesy of Noel D. Kirnon).
The origin of form and choice of materials, his approach to making art, he divulges comes from his work as an architect. Instead of taking a page out of the books about Surrealism and Dadaism, Hayden’s work is more likely to pierce them because a book could not be laid flat, undisturbed on one of his desks. The educational environment is portrayed as an unwieldy threatening one, with branches growing out of the chairs and desks. This is not an environment which can be neatly controlled and contained for an inquisitive student who is viewed as the “other,” treated as someone outside of, or at odds with, the norms; or rather at odds with a mythic homogenous American culture rooted in white supremacy.
Live Art and Artist
Hayden did speak of his work in relation to modern and contemporary American artists. He mentioned studying architecture at Cornell and working as an architect in New York before he had an artistic awakening. Prior to that, he recalls associating fine art with dead people. Hayden said meeting Derek Adams, a living Black artist, made an impact on him. Adams, described by Art Magazine as an artist known for his ”vivid depictions of Black joy,” showed Hayden how art could be relevant to current times and being alive today.
He referenced Jasper Johns, when we were viewing the different images made up of red, white and blue lights on a panel which acts as a screen; images included emojis, and the American flag with heart imprints (Hypnotism, 2017-2020, Erykah Badu’s ‘On & On,’ Plywood, fir, emergency lights, milk paint, fire retardant, steel hardware, electrical equipment, wiring,computer, speakers, 97 1/2 x 96 x 48 inches, Loaned courtesy of Lisson Gallery), displayed in front of rows and rows of what resemble regular wooden church pews (Good Hair 1, 2021, Found oak church pews, red nylon epoxy 8 total, Dimensions variable, Loaned courtesy of Lisson Gallery), but when you get close to look at them you realize that the pews are all lined with red bristles rather than seat cushions. While the bristle is well-manicured, and the order of the pews might be pleasing to the eye, there’s an obvious discomfort and lack of ease rendered by this tableau. The pews are so neatly laid out and inviting for a rest, but you can’t really sit down on them because the bristles will poke you. You also can not rest and relax in the environment due to the continuous flashing of the red, white and blue lights, intensified by their reflection against the window of the gallery, which mirrors and encloses a space in which you’re kept alert. One might enjoy the light show and their strobing effect as a form of pleasure, but there is an insistence to it, which a viewer can walk away from. Hugh spoke about flashing lights of police cars that some neighborhoods experience routinely, even while in the midst of worshiping.
This tableau piece was the largest, most extensive, structure inside the gallery, but there are other works of scale, which should not be missed; including Hayden’s forest of chairs sprouting branches which is exhibited just outside of the Aronson Fine Arts gallery in the Laumeier Sculpture park (Brier Patch, 2022 Cedar and aluminum One hundred objects; 75 with branches, each approximately 96 × 96 × 96 inches; 25 without branches, each 36 × 28 × 27 inches, Collection the artist, courtesy of Madison Square Park Conservancy). This piece was previewed before the rest of the show at Laumeier Sculpture Park in early November 2023.
Another compelling work inside the gallery is the towering 3 Story Rapunzel (2024 PVC, powder coated steel, hair 48 x 60 x 24 inches, Courtesy Lisson Gallery), 3 Story Rapunzel (2024 PVC, powder coated steel, hair 48 x 60 x 24 inches, Courtesy Lisson Gallery), a basketball hoop with a descending net, which appears to be well over over ten feet of long black hair weave. Hair weaves and extensions are certainly a feature of contemporary life. Hayden and his assistants learned how to weave hair extensions in order to create the elongated net and he said that it took hours and hours to finish. We discussed the current fashion of Black women and girls wearing braids that go past their waists, and in some cases nearly touch the floor. The woven black net extending from the basketball may recall the German tale of Rapunzel, a beautiful girl who is locked in a tower by a witch and who finds agency and is able to escape by extending her long hair to the ground. For others it may call to mind the power of basketball as a vehicle for some outsiders in the US, namely African Americans, who may strive to achieve the American dream, and the precarious nature of this track. Hair can be fragile, break off or be cut, and basketball players can get injured.
It must be stated that this is an art show which kids may find as engaging as adults. Many of the sculptures seem to penetrate the space between the viewer and the protective markers provided to delineate a safe distance between a gallery visitor and a work of art. Hayden talked about hoping visitors would have a visceral experience with his work. Providing a visceral experience is one thing, doing so with precision, great craftsmanship, artistry and acumen all of which Hayden’s work employs can move the experience into the sublime. As an architect, he is used to working with teams to create exacting work in size, detail and labor. The audience chuckled during the talk when Hayden mentioned that some people regard him as a micromanager. He works with people who construct specific elements of his pieces, work with the materials regularly and have earned reputations as excellent in their craft, but he insists on putting his mark and interpretation on things, making sure an object is rendered with specific details that may go against convention. He admires and respects the artisans, production teams and construction crews he works with, but he must be able to manipulate and determine the end product. If he doesn’t make his mark, then it won’t feel like his work, and won’t be as much fun or as satisfying to create. He was insistent about this and those who get to experience his work in person, the power of its evocation and aesthetics, will be pleased that this architect turned sculptor micromanages the way that he does. The work is exquisite and the reward bountiful.
Hugh Hayden’s “American Vernacular” is at the Aronson Fine Arts Centerat Laumeier Sculpture Park from Feb. 10 – May 12, 2024. Admission is free.
