The Department of Art presents María Elena González as part of the Fall 2013 Bensussen Art Lecture Series on Wednesday, October 23, 2013 at 7 p.m. in Argyros Forum, Room 209.

María Elena González will discuss the development of her latest work, Tree Talk, from conception to execution. It was awarded the Grand Prize of the 30th Ljubljana (Slovenia) Biennial i n September 2013. González was born in Havana, Cuba and now works in New York and Basel, Switzerland. Best known for sculptural installations that are architecturally as well as personally informed, the Tree Talk series was inspired by her encounter with a fallen birch tree in the woods of the summer artist colony the Skowhegan School of painting and Sculpture in Maine. She collected and flattened its bark, made drawings and rubbings, and then scanned its striated patterns to see what kind of sounds would result. She digitally translated the bark patterns and had them laser-cut into a roll for a player piano. When played, the scroll has an unexpected ‘score’: the phrasing, polyphony, and rhythm seem deliberately composed and modern. This project allows us to hear the ‘music’ of the birch tree and reminds us of the inherent logic that exists in all the nature’s patterns.

This event is free and open to the public. For more information, please call (714) 997-6729.