I.

Biography

A. First Years

a) Grew up in Shaker Heights, Cleveland

b)At a young age, exhibited artistic talent

B. Education and Experiences

a) Studied science, engineering, visual arts, and humanities at MIT

on scholarship

b)Influenced by Gyorgy Kepes, a philosopher of an art/technology

movement Fisher advocated

c)Awarded Fulbright fellowship in 1061-62, which allowed him to

study in Scandinavia.

1. Influenced by the way artists in Scandinavia integrated

their efforts into the culture

d)Also studied architecture in rome

1. Discovered the works of Carlo Scarpa: an acclaimed

Italian contemporary artist

a. Fostered Fisher’s interest in the integration of art

and architecture

e)Pursued masters degree in industrial design @ Syracuse

university

1. Co-authored a book on visual design, “The Design

Continuum”.

C. Academic Career

a)Lectured profusely in Europe, Far East, and US including

Colorado state university, University of Illinois, Penn state, and
was senior research artist at Carnegie Mellon university.

b)Artistic director of science programs funded by the National

Science Foundation

D. Artistic Career

a)Interest in larger scale pieces led to Fisher using innovative

computer visualization to model his complex objects (1979)
 1. Considered a pioneer in the application of computer to art

b)Seminal examples of the use of computer in art:

1. “Osaka skyharp”

2. “northern lights”

3. “galaxy”

c)Awarded the major public art commission for the Philadelphia

international airport arrivals hall

d)Was on the Executive Board of Directors of the Internation

Sculpture Center and was the program chair of the 19th
International Sculpture Conference held in Pittsburgh in 2001.

e)He also serves as a Visual Arts Panelist for the National

Foundation for Advancement in the Arts

1. The artwork was selected for the commission: “American

Dream”

f)Critically acclaimed sculptures:

1. “Diherdrals” for gateway exchange in Columbia, MD

2. “Slice of Life” for AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals in

Wilmington, DE

3. “Sea Creatures” at Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute

in Fort Pierce, FL

4. “Reigning Knowledge” for the National Education

Association in Washington, DC

g)Has various sculptures installed at the Penn State Applied

Research Lab

h)Suspended art works can be found at Horizon Suite Hotel, Hong

Kong; Christ Clinic, Cincinnati, Ohio; WakeMed Hospital, Cary,
NC; North Colorado Medical Center, Greeley, CO; Piedmont
Natural Gas headquarters, Charlotte, NC; Royal Caribbean Cruise
Lines, Eugene, OR

i) Works have been displayed in public and private museum

collections Style and Technique

II. Style and Technique

I. Style

A. Movement

a) Allows small movements in art like (#1,2,3)

b) Creates piece around central frame that directs the eye

around (#4,5,6,7)In the spirals, your eye sees the external
spiral along with the inner piece, the spiral isn’t as interesting
but it still helps your eye travel in a circular fashion over and
over the entire work.

c) (#5)With the metal frame the interconnecting steel actually

helps to transfer the eye from one plate to another rand
notice the slight differences in light

B. Color

a) Varies color to help direct the eye in a piece. In (#6) your eye
is drawn to the center of the circle because of the bright
orange, but fades up and down in pretty pinks that really give
the character to the piece.

b) In (#4) there are large leaflike structures in the middle, in

colors that leaves never really get. These splashes of color
add texture and variety to the sculpture and help encourage
the movement of the eye (from one piece of blue to another,
from blue to green to red…etc)

C. Depth

a) Overlays one part of a sculpture over another, creating a

depth that changes based on where you look at it. (#2,4,7)

b) Creates a work of art that is displayed in a way that you have

to see more than just one part, or can literally see through it
to another section or piece. (#3)

II. Technique

A. Hanging works

a) By hanging whole works (#1,2,3) they are suspended, not

always rigidly, which lets them flutter slightly in a breeze or
draft, giving them a slight sense of movement

b) Hanging also lets him make creative use of the

wire/cording/cable that is helping keep most of the objects
 aloft. In (#1,3) he leaves extra cording hanging down below
the main pieces to help the eye travel in that vertical way. IT
extends the body of the piece without detracting from the
focus

B. Perspective

a) In (#5) Fisher builds a steel frame structure with small

bent steel panels to warp the light depending on how you
look at it. Depending where you are under the awning
they give a different appearance.

C. Lighting

a) Especially with (#7), Rob Fisher chose lighting to create a

change in the monochrome metal instead of leaving it all
the same. The added highlights and shadows are just as
dramatic as his work with color, and cause our eyes to
slowly shift around the piece

b) In (#3) the blue ‘pringles’ are suspended near the window

of a roof. Because they are translucent, the light flows
straight through them in varying shades, allowing the rest
of the room to remain lit but always feel the shadow of
Form / Shape

III. Creative Process related to artist

A. Form/Shape

i. Spiral Foundation

a) Artist: Used a Circular Spiral Shape to Draw in Eye

b) Group: Instead of using a circle we made a spiral coming to a

point, like a tornado on its side.

ii. Interior Hangings

a) Artist: Made the shapes fit the circle. As the circle expands the
shapes expand as well.

b) Group: As the spiral decreased the hangings decreased. The

pieces were form fitting.

B. Color

i. Artist
 a) Layers colors. Sometimes in and sometimes down but always
layered. In one particular piece he has them layered where the
both sides are dark and the inside is light.

b) Creates a sense of motion

ii. Our Artwork

a) Use lighter color first and expanded back to a darker color to

focus your attention in to the center. This also created the
central feel created by the spiral.

C. Materials

i. The Artist

a) Ring: Used Shiny Metal for the ring.

b) Panels: Thin, appearing to be weightless.

ii. Our Work

a) Ring: Used Plastic tube that had a shiny affect. We tried using an
air duct but size and stability were going to be an issue so we
used the tubing. Ring: Used Plastic tube that had a shiny affect.
We tried using an air duct but size and stability were going to be
an issue so we used the tubing. Our spiral structure consist of
three loops gradually increasing in size from smallest to largest.
b) Panels: light, thin, construction paper.
D. Inspiration
i. Artist

a) Mixture from nature, some man made. Lantern, Medieval

Helmet, Pine cones, light house.

ii. Our Work

a) “Protos” – Rob Fisher, “Lanterna” – Rob Fisher, and a tornado

V. Our work

A. object of design is to draw eye inwards

B. This is done by having the smaller end of the piece designated as the
main entrance. The viewer’s eye is now drawn into the structure.

C. The loops help draw the eye along the piece, bringing attention to the
shapes inside and the overall center of the artwork.