"The piece both is and is about responding,'" Van Pelt said. "Responding to the drawings I am constantly making in my intern studio, responding from one element or material to the next."
Van Pelt said the work is an intersection of his interests in drawing and the three-dimensionality of sculpting.
"It's about taking the experience and the immediacy of drawing on paper and exploring what occurs when I translate that experience into steel, concrete and the other materials of a three-dimensional space," he said.
The usage of steel as the primary medium for the piece was a particular challenge but an integral component in creating the work. Despite the metal's inflexibility, Van Pelt strived to treat the unlikely material with the malleability and dynamic nature of a two-dimensional drawing. The unpredictable nature of the steel, however, made it hard to envision the final product during the artistic process, he said.
"It's a real back and forth of the exerting my will on the drawing, and then the drawing pushing back and insisting upon further manipulation," Van Pelt said.
Van Pelt said the experience of mixing drawing with sculpture was daunting and equated it to working blindfolded. He felt the piece was an "experiment" and said that he was really "going out on a limb" during its creation.
"I had to weld 11 separate steel pieces, and I didn't get the opportunity to visualize the entirety until it was 85 percent done," Van Pelt said. "There is no plan or concept to this piece, other than tapping into a process and repeating the experience of a particular mode of thinking. I love that."
The exhibit's location in the rotunda was an important factor in the outcome of Van Pelt's work. The space both inspired and constrained the piece, he said.
"The rotunda is both the best and worst in that its highly public and enclosed," Van Pelt said. "You can put something fragile in a traffic area, but you have to deal with the challenges of the 1960s infrastructure and terrazzo floor."
In order to adapt his piece to fit the limited shape of the rotunda, Van Pelt covered the entire floor with gravel, except for a small area by the door so that he could enter and exit the exhibit. The wires are all held up by several differently shaped bases.
"The repercussions of response sometimes extend widely and other times very locally," he said. "It's about being flexible, being open-minded about awkwardness, precision, aggression and delicacy."
The final product is a harmonious balance of welded metal linked by string and placed on a thin layer of gravel. The structure itself is a combination of rugged, unmolded pieces with precisely crafted sections.
"Here in this landscape that I've created in the rotunda, things occur and respond at different scales," Van Pelt said. "If somebody can sit here and have the piece move their eye around the space and think about all these elements existing by each other and watch it unravel, I'm satisfied."
Van Pelt explained that his colleagues and professors are his greatest influences and that he is considering art school in the future. He hopes to continue working with both drawing and sculpture, he said.
"I'm just excited to play it by ear," he said.
"Responding" will be on display in the rotunda until March 18.
