Maya Lin - Wave Field

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Storm King Sculpture Park - New Windsor, NY

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Wave Field - Maya Lin - Storm King - 2008

Storm King is a sculpture park in the Hudson Valley near NYC. It's pastoral landscape is the perfect setting for one of Maya Lin's Wave Fields. These giant earthworks represent a tempest at rest ... or a frozen moment in our ever ebbing and flowing world. The Storm King Wave Field is also an elemental design; a discussion of earth, wind, water, and heat. Walking between them encourages introspection; a realization of the mass of water and the heaving power of waves. Walking along their crest, one has the sense of freedom, of flight, control, and balance. 
 

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Maya Lin (1959 - )

Walking on Maya Lin's Wave Field - Storm King

Most Americans know well of Maya Lin's work. Even grade school children. She is best known for her design of the Vietnam Memorial in Washington D.C. She is an architect and an artist. The forms she works with are stark and pure.

She is often considered an environmentalist. However, I think the architect in her overrides; contemporary architecture must meld into its surrounding environment. The materials and form of architecture is meant to complement its surroundings as well as be complemented by it. So, it may be an error to consider her work as environmental art; rather it should be considered architecture.

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Wave Field - Storm King

Wind requires heat, waves require wind, earth is shaped by water. There might be an elemental discussion such as this in the Wave Field.

But, we have to remember always that Maya Lin is an architect by training. Architects are most concerned with mass and scale. The invention of the Wave Field is likely restricted to a formal composition of mass, scale, and proportion. But ... perhaps, there is an elemental discussion as well. One has to ask: why waves? why earthen waves? Why not waves of sticks? In art there is a reason for everything - even when the reason is to not have a reason. But, this is a post-modern work of art, so it is subjective. That means - it is up to you to develop a reason for the phenomena of the Wave Field as you encounter it. 

Maya Lin - In her words:

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