Megan Combs, Blogging assignment #2

I found Claire Rau's exhibit in Haas to be very interesting. It was a refreshingly new collection of work that displayed both a personal and military/political focus. She was inspired by two films but also by her family background (the men in her family were all in the military at some point in their lives). I assume this body of work is also slightly influenced by the current state of our country, though I don't recall her coming out and specifically saying this. She takes these somewhat serious topics and turns them into this rather ridiculous concept of simple booby traps. I found this approach to be particularly stimulating because it wasn't just another serious body of work meant to sway the viewer toward agreement with whatever opinion it is the artist is trying to convey. Rau also used very diverse art media to form this collection of work, which seemed only to portray her ability to work with different art forms (and how one influences a jumping off point for another) but didn't seem to hinder the strength of the series.

I was particularly interested in Claire Rau's sculptures entitled "Leg-hold Traps." They immediately caught my eye and struck my curiousity, even though the representation of a bear trap was obvious. The piece displayed was a series of three "leg-hold traps" which, though not functional, served their pupose well. The traps were made with various materials---powder-coated steel, cast plastic, paint and hardware--- all of which worked well together to form these sculptures. The "blood" was a highly saturated red blob in the center of each rather unique and somewhat elegant twist on a trap.

The elegant and almost harmless design on the trap worked well with the theme of her "ridiculous booby traps." I thought the piece was very intriguing even though it was not functional as a trap. The artist discussed her desire to make these traps functional, which would be very interesting to me. I too would like to see the pieces functional, it would emphasize how silly booby traps can be. I think this was a very strong piece, to me it was perhaps the strongest example of her theme.