Retha Erasmus
The sum of us
I have wanted to make this piece for a while now but couldn’t decide what materials to use. The choice of wood was based first and foremost on practical concerns. Wood was perfect since it is easy to use. It is cut into strips of varying lengths (I have this done for me since I am terrified of the radial arm saw). Putting everything together is done by hand, screwed and bolted.
Pine is a soft wood and very easy to manipulate – it’s like cutting cheese. Plywood is many thin layers of pine pasted together. It’s stronger than normal pine planks, and beautiful as it has grain on the outer surface that can enhance the character of each individual piece. Oak is a much harder wood and slightly more difficult to drill and cut. Oak is used in this work where strength is needed, in the supports and so on. Pine wouldn’t have done the job.
In the past I’ve avoided working with wood because of its association with carving. Carving just doesn’t suit my frame of mind, my way of thinking in terms of straight lines. When I studied there was a trend for carving among the students – everyone was carving and gluing which put me off carving for life! Plywood provided me with the opportunity to use wood in a clean and clinical manner. It’s also important that plywood is lightweight, since the various elements are combined together into a large object that must float in space.
The sculpture consists of four segments, each requiring a different character and features. This is simplified by using wood stain as a differentiator. I’m using it very subtly to give some of the segments a character of their own – something that adds to their separate natures.
One of these segments is in a different medium altogether: Perspex. I’ve worked with Perspex for years and love the material: it is clear, concise, clinical, versatile. I chose it specifically because it contrasts so sharply with the organic qualities of the wood. Perspex is only easy to work with if you know what not to do. It is very brittle and can crack easily when drilling or cutting. The surface needs to be protected since it scrapes easily. Wood is tougher in terms of what it allows before becoming damaged.
The overall effect is a work in unity made up of four very separate and unique parts, and that’s what it is all about. To me the work is a way of making sense of family life. I use the materials, the means of construction, the overall look, every nuance contained in the complexity of making this structure to that effect. Very, very directly it is about separate lives being led, never really touching each other but always connected and unified through each other’s experiences.
I like the clinical look – it doesn’t allow you to fudge. The way I work and think is very planned and designed. I like clean, neat lines and finishes. I constantly need to concentrate on what I am doing and can never drift off or focus on ‘nothing’. I use various tools: a hand drill, a stand drill, many wonderful measuring tools, clamps, my lucky pusher pencil, eraser ... actually I have compartmentalised plastic containers with all my stuff in, like my stationery, my bolts and nuts, drill bits and other tools. It’s wonderful. I look at it from time to time and get a warm fuzzy feeling all over.
Biography
Born in Pretoria in 1977, Erasmus graduated with a BA Fine Art from the University of Pretoria in 2000. She curated and exhibited on the group shows Clean and Grime, at the Millennium Gallery in Johannesburg in 2001 and the Bell-Roberts Gallery in Cape Town in 2002 respectively. She has also shown on Reverb at the Gordart Gallery in Johannesburg (2004) and Frame at the Open Window in Pretoria (2001).