By Deandra Hoppe
In a world of increasing complexity, artist and author David Macaulay takes everyday structures and gadgets and simplifies them so that everyone can understand their inner workings.
He has won many prestigious awards for his innovative pieces, including the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation fellowships, also known as “the genius awards” and beginning Feb. 6 , the J.B. Speed Art Museum will be showcasing Macaulay’s work.
The subject matter of these pieces, range from mundane objects such as a stapler, to detailed ink drawings of various buildings. The pieces are divided into three main sections: “Big Ideas,” “Building Ship: Exploring the Artist’s Process,” and “Journey Books: The Evolution of Ideas.”
Accompanying this will be a biographical section displaying personal artifacts, memorabilia, and photographs. Macaulay uses elegant drawings and clear, entertaining descriptions of both simpler and more complex structures to explain how they function. “For some time now, I have been encouraging people to ask themselves why things look the way they do,” Macaulay said. His works help the viewer make connections about the world today.
Growing up in northern England, Macaulay credits his talents to his childhood and child-rearing.
He said, “My parents were both makers of things. My father would make things out of wood while my mother sewed or knitted. It wasn’t a matter of hobbies, it was making things we actually needed. So I kind of grew up immersed in process and developed in a very natural way an understanding of things, that things are created to solve certain problems, to satisfy certain needs.”
This mindset led him to study architecture at Rhode Island School of Design. While he decided that becoming an architect was not right for him, it gave him the background he needed to be successful both intellectually and creatively as an illustrator.
Macaulay has learned to take complex problems, break them down into simpler parts, and then put them back together again while adding an element of imagination. This generates more interest in the original problem from other people. Macaulay said, “It isn’t necessary to think in a straight line to make sense. While uncertainty brings with it the chance for screaming failure, it also offers the possibility of exhilarating surprise.” The Speed Art Museum is honored to have Macaulay’s work on display.
Admission cost is $8 for adults and $4 for children. This exhibit will run until May 3.
