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Artist

Raoul Hague (Primary)

Title

Rainbow Lake

Date

1980

Century

20th century

Medium & Support

Carved walnut

Dimensions

Support: 68 x 48 x 41 in.

Style

Abstraction

Object Type

Sculpture and Installations

Credit Line

Gift of the Raoul Hague Foundation

Accession Number

2012.52.32

Copyright

In Copyright
© Raoul Hague Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

The massive walnut sculpture Rainbow Lake exemplifies the mature style of sculptor Hague, born Haig Heukelekian to Armenian parents. Without preparing sketches or a small-scale model beforehand, Hague allowed his intuition and the subtleties of the wood’s grain and joins to guide his process in carving the single block of wood. His treatment of the wood reveals that the tree was once a living, vascular body, its growth determined by its genetic makeup but still responsive to its environment. By doing this, he connected the lifecycle of the tree to that of a person. Hague’s sculptures also explored Abstract Expressionism in three-dimensions, employing wood in a similar fashion to the ways in which his peers Arshile Gorky and Phillip Guston worked in paint.

Exhibition Title: Asheville Art Museum: An Introduction to the Collection
Label Date: 2021
Type: Catalogue Entry
Written by: Hilary Schroeder

• abstraction
• carvers