One of the most fascinating aspects of a Sol LeWitt Wall Drawing is that it can never be the same from one exhibit to another.

Every time a Wall Drawing is put on display, a group of draftsmen paint or draw a new interpretation of the piece.  In following Conceptual Art, when the idea behind the art takes precedence over the actual piece of artwork, LeWitt writes a set of directions of how to create each piece of artwork.  The directions drive the art process.

Before creating the new piece, wherever the Wall Drawing is currently located must be painted over so it no longer exists in that setting.  Even if MASS MoCA wanted to relocate one of our Wall Drawings, the artwork cannot be moved, it must be repainted in the new space.

Only one official interpretation of a Wall Drawing can exist at one time; once the previous one has been painted over, the draftsmen are free to start their work.  The draftsmen then use LeWitt’s directions to create their interpretation.  However, every draftsman and every space is different, meaning that each time a Sol LeWitt is put on display, it is inherently unique.

Check out how varied, and at times similar, Sol LeWitt Wall Drawings can be even when they are rooted in the same directions!

Wall Drawing 146A at MASS MoCA.  The “A” in 146A refers to the original (146) being white wall with blue crayon and this piece having blue walls with white crayon.

146 at the Guggenheim in NYC in 1972.
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As a part of the new exhibit, An Exchange with Sol LeWitt, two artists are challenging the staff of Cabinet Magazine and MASS MoCA to complete simple daily tasks that will heighten our awareness of ourselves and the world around us and encourage us to do something different!

Photo by: Danelle Cheney

An Exchange with Sol LeWitt, which opened on January 22nd, asked artists to submit a piece of work that Sol LeWitt would have enjoyed. Sol made exchanges with his friends and other artists throughout his life to form special relationships between two minds.

As a part of this exhibition, Stephanie Diamond and Adia Millett of You Are Here send us an e-mail with a daily task that is meant to work fluidly with your work day.

But beware…The tasks aren’t as easy as you would think.

The first task asked us to NOT communicate for an hour. No texting. No facebook. No talking. Nothing.

LUCKILY I missed the e-mail for the first day and didn’t have to do that!

However, the next day I received an e-mail that said..

Your task for January 26th is:
Give something away to one of your co-workers, something that you never thought of giving away. Be aware of how it makes you feel.

I must be honest and tell you that I don’t have much to give away, but it was fun to consider what I DID have and give it to someone who most definitely deserved it.

But who could that be?…

Conveniently, January 26th is one our of graphic designer’s birthday! But our poor designer accidentally ate onions at lunch and it made her sick! So when I went to execute my task, she was nowhere to be found…I left the presents on her desk anyway.

Then this morning on January 27th, I came to work, poured myself some coffee, started blogging, and checked my e-mail…

Your task for January 27th is:

4) No caffeine Day

Oops! Too late!

The challenge that I send to YOU is: Challenge your friends or co-workers! Only good things can come from this!

Have a great day everyone and stay tuned for more tasks from Stephanie Diamond and Adia Millett of You Are Here!

We wanted to track down Sean Foley today for an update on his new project, Ruse, which will appear in the 100-foot long Hunter Hallway at MASS MoCA.

We asked him how he felt about the crazy Massachusetts weather and he said, “I love it! I grew up on the east side of Lake Michigan!” …So he’s pretty used to it. Sean said this weather gives him an excuse to stay inside and work all day!

Sean and his crew were spending time in the shop building, priming, and painting site specific wall-pieces that are made out of MDF (which is basically saw-dust and glue).

They were also cutting brackets for the pop-out pieces of the mural (made out of PVC).

Although Sean is very busy, he is extremely grateful for all the help he is receiving. Studio assistant, Emily Martiny (sadly) had to return to school. Luckily, Sean still has Katie Bullock on his side! “I couldn’t live without Katie,” he said.

Sean is waiting for his former student and current Ball State University Professor, Hannah Barnes, to show up for extra help. She is a painter and “a part of the family” according to Sean.

Sean and the team are planning on knocking out the wall painting and continuing to construct and reposition the pop-out pieces of the 3D mural.

“We’re all very happy. I feel the momentum is behind us today,” said Sean.

…After talking to Sean we went to check out the OTHER exhibition in progress- An Exchange with Sol LeWitt.

LeWitt consistently traded works with admirers and friends. This exhibit is giving artists the opportunity to answer the question, “If you were to exchange a piece of work with Sol LeWitt- what would you do?”

Cabinet and MASS MoCA had an open call for works for the exhibition. The display is scheduled to open on January 23!

Stay updated with the blog and learn more about these AWESOME additions to MASS MoCA!

Special thanks to Danelle Cheney, MASS MoCA’s graphic design intern, for the lovely photos.