Inner Nature - Organic Forms and the Symbolic featuring Lee Waisler and Matt Devine

Recent mercurial weather changes (hello sudden NYC snowstorm) have us thinking about the unpredictable beauty of nature. So this week we look at two artists whose work embraces themes and elements found in the natural word. Matt Devine’s sculptures reflect this sensibility through his organic use of a traditionally industrial medium while Lee Waisler’s works employ natural materials in a symbolic application of medium.

Nature is a recurring theme for both artists, and an important aspect of form and structure within Devine’s sculptures. His steel and aluminum works evoke the organic through methodology of structure, with the shapes emerging as part of his ongoing process. The forms appear deceptively fragile at times despite their rigid build, and are reminiscent of naturally occurring botanical and marine formations such as coral. As Devine works with industrial materials such as aluminum, steel and paint, he saves leftover pieces from earlier sculptures to generate the next step in his process, recycling and fluidly transitioning to the next piece. His minimalist aesthetic and color palette serve to reinforce the strength of the forms, highlighting the inner balance and order within the works.  

Waisler’s abstract Red pieces form a progression within his work that serves as a direct reference to the element of time, employing natural materials to a symbolic purpose. The choices behind color and material as well as subject matter stem from an interest in personal as well as universal symbols and our perception of them. Though traceable throughout his oeuvre, the Red pieces are the best examples of Waisler’s interest and use of natural materials, due to the strength imbued into the choice through an abstract composition. Waisler uses cut-out wood pieces as compositional elements dividing and directing the picture plane, using the material to show movement as a symbol of life itself. Other materials are also used for their cultural and historical connotations - sand represents the passage of time, tying in to the overriding theme of the works.