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| The Neon Virtues Light Up the Night |
The Stuart Collection has an amazing combination of
sculptural works. One of the more
striking, and impossible to ignore, is the bright, blinking neon piece by Bruce
Nauman, "Vices and Virtues" (1988), located on
the Charles Lee Powell Structural Systems Laboratory on the UCSD campus in La Jolla.
This slightly minimalist piece is an intriguing combination
of opposites. Seven virtues and seven vices are superimposed together in a huge
seven-foot frieze around the top of the laboratory. Each word is a blend of two
different colors created, in total, with nearly a mile of neon tubing.
Faith/Lust, Hope/Envy, Charity/Sloth, Prudence/Pride, Justice/Avarice,
Temperance/Gluttony, and Fortitude/Anger are paired in this thought provoking
work. Each word in a pairing
flashes at a different rate, allowing for the words to be seen singularly and
occasionally overlapping. The grouping of each vice and virtue invites the
viewer to contemplate the relationships between the words and the meaning. The
intrigue continues with the thought that this complex moral imagery is generated
from mechanical algorithms. The bright neon lights are so vivid against the
plain industrial building on which they are mounted. Six stories up, the words
are easy to read, day or night, and from a considerable distance.
The change of vice and virtue is a constant reminder to all
viewers of the daily moral struggles every person undergoes. After viewing "Vices and Virtues," visit ThumbprintGallery on Kline Street, La Jolla, to see more urban artwork by local
artists. Open Wednesdays, Thursdays,
Saturdays, and Sundays 12-4pm.
Source: http://stuartcollection.ucsd.edu/artists/nauman.shtml
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