“I cannot believe I did all this”, were Rudy Rotter’s words when he returned to his warehouse and observed his amazing artwork (Brehmer pg. 1). One of these amazing art pieces was Adam and Eve and the Serpent in the Garden of Eden. This mix media art piece was made on a singed block of plywood with metal square plates nailed on top of the linoleum material.
There was marker outlining around the metal pieces and he also drew two faces of a man and woman inside the parameter of what seems to appear as a stuffed snake. Rotter’s art piece acquired my attention because the metal square plates on the plywood reflected the light which made it shine. When I observed closer I noticed this unique circular figure on top of the plywood which was the stuffed snake.
For me, the viewer, I believed that Rudy Rotter found enjoyment in making random pieces, that he found or had at home, flow together to make an amazing piece of art. What made Adam and Eve and the Serpent in the Garden of Eden unique was the way Rotter pieced it together. The context of the artwork has a mixture of low and high relief.
He begins with a low relief using plywood as the base with the metal squares and linoleum nailed to it and then uses high relief when he nailed the stuffed snake in a circular manner on the plywood. He also created this work by the use of additive process. With this additive process, he began to add pieces to the artwork such as metals square plates, nails, some type of glitter paper, and the stuffed snake.
The composition of his three-dimensional artwork flowed well with the visual elements of lines, color, form, texture, and mass that fly to the viewer’s eyes. I was fascinated with the different line structures he used on this bizarre hexagon shape plywood. He outlined around the outside edges of the plywood in black marker and began to trace around the metal square plates in green marker.
He used round lines to draw the two faces as well as diagonal lines to give them detailed features. The way that Rotter used the color scheme of having primary and secondary colors, especially the use of the colorful snake, interested me because with the use of the snake it draws the viewer’s attention. The snake would be described as a colorful camouflage with a peculiar design of wiggly lines that range in color of blues, yellows, and greens. The main two colors that stick out are the red and orange which make up the body and head of the snake. Without the snake, the artwork would have been dull and boring plus it would have made it two-dimensional.
Another element that made this art piece unique was the different textures that he incorporated. Began with a hard surface (plywood) as the base, moved to a smooth surface by the use of the metal square plates and linoleum, and then ends with a soft and spongy-like texture with the use of the stuffed snake. Rotter used both geometric and organic shapes that gave it structure and brought it to life.
For the geometric shapes he used metal square plates and vertical and horizontal lines that out lined these metal plates in the background (Getlein pg. 82). The use of organic shapes were observed when he traced the two faces using circular, vertical, and horizontal lines in marker and when he nailed the stuffed snake to the plywood (82). This snake was significant in Rotter’s art piece because it took up space, brought life to it, and gave it its three-dimensional form.
In Rotter’s art piece, he used many repetitions of shapes with his materials. The use of metal square plates across the base of the plywood which represented the garden with the green outline and the circular shapes of the stuffed snake and the round of faces outlined in black marker. I believe there is unity in Rotter’s artwork because the different materials flow together to tell the famous story The Fall of Adam and Eve, however I think it depends on the viewer’s opinion.
The same goes for the balance of the artwork; I believe it can be both symmetrical and asymmetrical because if it was cut in half one side matches up with the other side but if using precise details then the sides would not match together.
But why did this piece catch my eye from the rest? What was so intriguing about this artwork by Rudy Rotter?
As I mentioned earlier, the piece had metal plates that reflected light and the unique figure which was snake but the main reason was because of the focal point. I was fascinated by the focal point of this artwork because in a way it had two focal points depending on how the viewer observes it. The colorful stuffed snake drew my eyes towards it first but then I began to notice it was in a circular shape.
As I stared at this circular snake, I noticed that it surrounded these two faces of a man and woman in the center of plywood. Although the faces were faded, due to either dull markers or age, I believe that this was the true focal point even though I noticed the snake first. It was interesting to notice that the faces made up the ground image and was still the focal point while the snake made up the figure shape (pg. 83). I believe that Rotter suggested that the snake would draw the viewer’s eyes toward the center of the artwork.
Rotter’s artwork expressed an old famous story that I have heard all my life which was The Fall of Adam and Eve. As soon as I observed the snake surrounding the faces of a man and woman I knew instantly that this was what Rudy Rotter was expressing. However, to a non-religious viewer who has never heard of this story would have a tough time trying to convey what Rotter was expressing when he made this piece.
Nonetheless, when I observed this artwork it brought an emotional reaction to me because it reminded me that God sent his only Son, Jesus Christ, to save us from this sin that Adam and Eve committed by eating from the tree of knowledge. I really enjoyed evaluating this unique artwork because it really communicated a story and message that even though this happened remember that you are saved.
What do you think was the focal point? The snake or faces? Would you agree that this artwork communicated a story? Why or why not?
Work Cited
Brehmer, Debra. "Rudy Rotter." Portrait Society Gallery. Twenty Eleven Scheme, 01 June 2009. Web. 13 Apr. 2015.
Getlein, Mark. "The Visual Elements." Living with Art. 9th ed. Boston, MA: McGraw Hill, 2008. 75-112. Print.
Your snake looks far from evil. Great use of the various art terms in describing this Rotter piece. You have a great concept and feel for sculpture. I can tell that you really gave the piece a great deal of thought. I didn’t get to see this piece. You gave such a vivid description that I could see it in my mind’s eye. Very nice blog post! Well done!
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