Works from the Hechinger Collection

Tools in Motion
Works from the Hechinger Collection
Educational Program by International Arts and Artists
9 Hillyer Court NW, Washington, DC | T: 202 338 0680 | F: 202 333 0758 | www.artsandartists.org
Tools in Motion
Works from the Hechinger Collection
Educational Program
Table of Contents:
1. The Collection: Summary
2. Available Resources:
a. Videography
b. Bibliography
3. Available Merchandise:
a. Books
b. Toys/Games
c. Gifts
4. Websites
5. Glossary
6. Lecture Contacts
7. Suggested Educational Programming
8. Selected Artist Biographies
The Collection: Summary
The Hechinger Collection was born in 1978, when the hardware industry pioneer found
his new company headquarters efficient but sterile: “The building seemed to rebuke the
fantasies that a hardware store inspires. For anyone whose passion is to work with his
or her hands, a good hardware store is a spur to the imagination and a source of
irresistible delights.”
Already the owner of “Tool Box,” a suite of silkscreen prints by Jim Dine, Hechinger
began collecting art that highlighted the company‟s very livelihood and displayed it
throughout the building to inspire employees. In 1998, the Collection left its original
setting for public display.
This unique collection of tool-inspired art was the subject of an ongoing series at the
National Building Museum in Washington, DC, where its attendance was among the
largest in the museum‟s history. In 2001, John Hechinger and International Arts &
Artists (IA&A) launched a national tour which continues to draw crowds around the
country. Upon Hechinger‟s death is January 2004, IA&A assumed ownership of the
collection.
At present, the Collection exceeds 375 works by 250 leading twentieth century masters
and emerging artists that often blur the distinction between high and low art. Spanning a
wide range of media, styles, and themes, the collection celebrates the dignity of
common tools and the intrinsic beauty of their design, where form and function are often
inextricably linked.
By identifying art with labor and tools, the exhibition highlights the act of creation as
work and stresses the simple fact that artists use tools to make art. While many prefer
to make the finished product seem effortless, much of the magic in the Hechinger
Collection stems precisely from the way artists acknowledge the importance of tools and
hardware. In the words of Jacob Lawrence “[Tools] have a history. In many of the
religious panels of the Renaissance, you see the same tools as carpenters use today.
They haven‟t changed at all since then, so they‟ve become a symbol of order and
aspiration to me.”
Many of the works in the exhibition incorporate found objects as a means to break down
the barrier between art and life and as a way to give new life and meaning to the
detritus of society. This tradition, which began in the early part of the twentieth century
with Pablo Picasso and Marcel Duchamp, continues to be an active strategy today.
Tools have been a fundamental part of our history and prehistory. Mr. Hechinger notes:
“When you go to the caves in Frances and look at the drawings of the cave men and
women, you see their tools along with the bison.” Several of the exhibited works
comment on the change from manual to technological labor. Others critique the roles of
machines and consumption in contemporary society.
Videography
 Artists
Claes Oldenburg. Documentary takes a revealing look at one of the foremost
exponents of the Pop Art movement. (54 min) Grades 6 to adult. Available at
Libraryvideo.com
Jim Dine: A Self Portrait on the Walls. This remarkable documentary records eight days
of intense work and quiet rumination as renowned artist, Jim Dine, produces an
exhibition of huge, bold charcoal drawings directly on the walls of a gallery in Germany.
It is an unusually transitory exhibition in that the drawings remain on the walls for only
six weeks before being painted over. (http://theoscarsite.com/pictures1995/jimdine.htm)
 Styles/Themes
Art Glass: Looking at the Basics. Provides a brief history of the studio Glass Movement
and working glass artists in their studios. (36 min) Available at Libraryvideo.com
One Hundred Years of Modern Art - Part 3 Film gives rudimentary exposure to a broad
range of art for young audiences; it offers a survey of the painting, sculpture and
architecture from 1930 to 1970. Includes Abstract Expressionism, Figurative Painting,
Pop Art, Kinetic Art, Illusion and more. (26 min) 13 years to adult. Available at
Roland-colleciton.com
Pop Art: The Test of the Object. Explores the birth of consumer society and the
American way of life, ,which ensued the movement of Pop Art. Including insights to
Pollock, Jasper Johns, Jim Dine, Liechtenstein, Claes Oldenburg and Jean Tinguely.
(53 min) High school – adult. Available at Roland-collection.com
The Twentieth Century. Informative program explores modern arts‟ reflection of the
technological and cultural developments of the 20th century. Includes teachers guide.
(32 min) Grades 6 – adult. Available at Libraryvideo.com
 Children
Mood Painting. Informative program presents basic technical instructions on mood
painting. Demonstrates how artists can use texture, color and line to express their
feelings. Includes a guide. (20 min) Grades 3 – 7. Available at Libraryvideo.com
Sculpture. Informative program presents basic technical instructions on sculpting,
teaches students how to create a sculpture, demonstrates how to shape and refine in
clay. Includes a guide. (20 min) Grade 3 – 7. Available at Libraryvideo.com
Bibliography
 Collection
Hamill, Pete and Hechinger, John. Tools as Art: The Hechinger Collection, Harry N.
Abrams. 1995.
Available at Amazon.com
 Tool Design
Hack, Garrett and Sheldon. Classic Hand Tools. Tauton Press. 1999.
Celebrates hand tools and their heritage. Available at Amazon.com
Kean, Herbert P. Price Guide to Antique Tools. Astragal Press. 2001.
Illustrattions and easy-to-find price on a range of tools.
Available at Barnesandnoble.com
Nagyszalanczy, Sandor. The Art of Fine Tools. Taunton Press. 1998.
Photographic collection of 250 unique tools. Available at Amazon.com
Taylor, Jess and Iwasaki. Tools of the Trade. Chronicle Books. 1998.
Portrait of over 25 classic tools. Available at Barnesandnoble.com
 Tool History
Duginske, Garrett, and Dick. Tools: A Complete Illustrated Encyclopedia. 2001.
Reference, photos, and information of antique and modern tools.
Available at Amazon.com
Mercer, Henry C. Ancient Carpenter’s Tools. 5th Ed. Horizon Press. 1976.
History of woodworking tools. Available at Amazon.com
Morris, Anny and Heyman, Ken. Tools. Morrow, William & Co. 1998.
Children‟s book with text and color photos featuring tools being used from 15
countries. Available at Barnesandnobel.com
Pollack, E & M. The Fascinating World f Early Tools & Trades. The Chronicle.
55 articles from Journal of Early American Industries Association.
Available at Toolbazaar.com
 Artists
Axsom, Richard H. Platzker, David. Printed Stuff by Claes Oldenburg: A Catalogue
Raisonne 1958-1996. Hudon Hills Pres. 1997.
Documents Oldenburg‟s career with prints of his entire oeuvre.
Oldenburg, Claes. An Anthology.
Mr. Imagination. Artist and the community, Mr. Imagination: June 19-September 29,
1999
Philip B. Meggs, Ivan Chermayeff, Milton Glaser, Paul Rand, Ikko Tanaka, Henrvk
Tomaszewski, Saul Bass, Ginza Guraffiku Gyarari. 6 Chapters in Design: Saul Bass,
Ivan Chermayeff, Milton Glaser, Paul Rand, Ikko Tanaka, Henryk Tomaszewski
 Tool Crafts
Dunbar, Michael. Restoring, Turning & Using Classic Woodworking Tools. Sterling
Publishing Company. 1989.
Guide to using classic tools. Available at Toolbazaar.com
Salaman, R.A. Dictionart of Woodworking Tools. The Tauton Press. 1990.
Explains usage and history of every known tools. Available at Toolbazaar.com
Weinberger, Kimberly and La Padula, Tom. The Home Depot Big Book of Tools.
Scolastic Inc. 2001.
Detailed look at tools and how to use them. Available at Barnesandnoble.com
Merchandising
 Books
Delafosee, Claude and Jeunesse, Galimard. Tools Scholastic 1999.
Children‟s illustrated book. Available at Barnesandnoble.com
Gibbons, Gail Tool Book Holiday House. 1998.
Children‟s illustrated book. Availbale at Barnesandnoble.com
Johnson, Stephen T. My Little Red Toolbox Harcourt. 2000.
Children‟s book. Available at Barnesandnoble.com
 Toys/Games
The following items are available at Toyrus.com:
The Home Depot Power Sounds Workman Power Tool Set
Electronic Project Workshop
Red Wheelbarrow
Home Depot Toll Box and 12 piece Tool Set
Workbench
Home Depot Chainsaw with Sound
Home Depot Weed Trimmer
Tonka Dusty My Talkin’ Toolbench
 Gifts
The following items are available at Habitat.org:
Brushed Pewter Frame 3-D tool Accents
Little Hammer Tie
Mr. Fix-it Tie
Little Hammer Scarf
Ms. Fix-it Scarf
The following items are available at Surprise.com
Workshop Photo Frame
Hammer Handled Coffee Mug
Key Chains (drill/hammer/saw)
Websites
 Collection
www.toolsasart.com
 Merchandising
www.habitat.org/ourhouse
www.toysrus.com
www.geniusbabies.com
www.toolbazaar.co.uk
 Books/Videos
www.amazon.com
www.barnesandnoble.com
www.2csd.cmu.edu
www.libraryvideo.com
www.roland-collection.com
 Activities
www.tedwatkin.com
 General Information
www.antoquctools.co.uk
www.tooltimer.com
www.nbm.org
Glossary
Abstract Expressionism: Describes contemporary paintings that are abstractions or have
no noticeable relation to anything in nature.
Collage: Attachment of various objects to a surface, from French verb „Coller‟, meaning to
glue.
Contemporary: Current, belonging to the same period of time. Usually referring to our present
time, but can refer to being current in any specified time.
Cubism: The subject matter is broken up, analyzed and reassembled in an abstract form,
developed primarily by Picasso and Braque.
Expressionism: Style of art that is based on expressing the artist‟s emotions; began at end of
19th century.
Figurative: Describes artwork representing the form of a human, animal or thing.
High art: Fine art that is of universal transcendence having withstood the test of time and
representing the epitome of artistic achievement.
Illusion: A deceptive or misleading image or idea.
Incongruous: A state of two or more things lacking in harmony, being incompatible and
inconsistent.
Kinetic sculpture: Any sculpture that contains moving parts.
Low art: Refers to lesser or minor arts, sometimes because of poor manufacturing in inferior
materials, kitsch appearance or simply catering to popular taste.
Luminism: The depiction of light in a painting.
Medium: The material or technique used by an artist to produce a work of art.
Movement: A tendency or trend by artists during a period to use certain techniques, methods
or attitudes.
Pop art: An art movement and style, which is focused on familiar images of popular culture.
Realism: The realistic and natural representation of people, places, and things in a work of art.
Retrospective: An exhibit that shows a large number of works over time by a living artist.
Sculpture: A three dimensional work of art, such works may be carved, modeled, constructed
or cast.
Silkscreen: A stencil method of printmaking in which an image is imposed on a screen of silk
or another fine mesh.
Still life: A picture of inanimate objects. Common still life subjects include vessels, food,
flowers, books and clothing.
Three-dimensional: Having or appearing to have height, width and depth.
Trompe l’oeil: French term meaning deception of the eye, when paintings are so realistic to
fool the viewer that the objects are real.
Two-dimensional: Having height and width but no depth, flat.
Tools in Motion Contact List
This is a list of artists including the collector and curator of the Hechinger collection, who
are available for lectures and/or panel discussions.
John Mansfield: PO Box 733, Norwood, CO 81423; tel: 970-327-4888
Claes Oldenburg: contact Joni Weyl, Director, GEMINI G.E.L. at Joni Moisant Weyl, tel:
212-219-1446; fax: 212-334-3109
Sarah Tanguy, Curator, 3103 17th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20010, Tel: 202-4626719, Fax: 202-797-1197, Email: mail@sarahtanguy.com
Colin Ives, Artist (The Tools We Carry), Director of Digital Arts, University of Oregon,
Eugene, 97402; tel: 541-346-0072; Email: ives@uoregon.edu
Suggested Educational Programming:
1. Any of the above names would be available for lecture and/or panel discussion.
2. Kids Day: Contact your local hardware store to possibly donate old or recycled
hardware/tools. The Kids could use the hardware to create their own collages.
3. Contact the National Building Museum about their program, “Be a Builder”. The
following information was taken from the National Building Museum website:
Students act as carpenters and use real tools to assemble an 8 x 11’ house from the
ground up. While building, they learn about the hidden features that support
buildings – foundations, wall frames, and trusses. Once the floor is completed, the
walls are raised, and the roof secured, students can go inside the house and see
firsthand how their hard work has paid off!
A variety of building materials are presented and discussed throughout the program
to introduce students to sustainable building choices. They weigh the pros and cons
of building materials and explore how to select a material based upon factors such
as strength, durability, appearance, cost, availability, and environmentally friendly or
green qualities.
•
•
•
•
•
•
Minimum of four chaperones required per program regardless of number
of students
Grades 5 - 8
2 hours
Minimum class size 15 students/maximum class size 30 students
$75 per class
The Museum offers only one of these programs at a time
4. Tools as Art: The Hechinger Collection – out of print
5. Tools as Art: The Hechinger Collection – catalogue of traveling exhibition (65
works) available at from International Arts & Artists for $10 a copy.
6. Concert by Ted Watkin (see above) playing the Saws. If you are interested in
listening to the CD, please contact Tatjana Franke.
Selected Artist Biographies
Arman
Arman was formally trained at such institutions as the National School of Decorative Arts in Nice and the
Louvre School in Paris. He founded the New Realism movement along with Yves Klein, Jean Tinguely
and Pierre Restany. His “destructions” and “accumulations,” a complementary series of works that focus
on the excess and humor of modern life, made him famous. Through the years, his work has been shown
at such prestigious institutions as the MoMA, the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, and the Venice
Biennale and Documenta.
work: Blue, Red, Brown, 1988
Claes Oldenburg
Oldenburg is considered the classic Pop artist, garnering attention for both his soft sculptures and his
large-scale public projects. He received his B.A. from Yale University in 1950, and then studied at the Art
Institute of Chicago. In 1959 he had his first show at the Judson Gallery along with Jim Dine. Since 1970
his work has been exhibited throughout the United States and Europe including shows at the Philadelphia
Museum of Art, the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., and the Nelson-Atkins Museum in Kansas
City, as well as the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, the Kunsthalle in Dusseldorf, and the Tate Gallery in
London. In 1994, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Sculpture Center.
work: Three Way Plug, 1965
Jacob Lawrence
In 1936 Lawrence was offered a scholarship to the American Artist‟s School in New York City and by
1938, he was hired by the WPA Federal Art Project. During this time, Lawrence created his famous
“Migration” series, consisting of 60 panels and accompanying text. This series is now owned by the
Museum of Modern Art, New York and the Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C. In 1946, he was awarded
a Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship. Lawrence was given his first retrospective in 1960 by the
Brooklyn Museum of Art and has since had several exhibitions around the world.
work: Builder’s Three, 1991
Jim Dine
As a child, Dine developed a love for tools at his family‟s hardware store and they have remained one of
his favorite subjects throughout his career. He studied at the University of Cincinnati, the Boston Museum
School, and in 1957 received his B.F.A. from the University of Ohio. He moved to New York where his
early years yielded pieces that combined real and painted objects. These expressionist assemblages
reinterpreted Action Painting by presenting objects as tangible presences, not as symbols. In 1970, when
Dine was merely 35 years old, the Whitney Museum of American Art gave him his first retrospective. In
1980, Dine was elected to the American Academy and Institute of Art and Letters. Dine served as a
bridge between Pop Art and a new generation of figurative expressionism, and continues to refine his
product, which is marked by a heightened sense of drama and sensual surfaces.
Work: Tool Box series, 1979.
* All selected biographies were excerpted from Tools as Art: the Hechinger
Collection, published by Harry N. Abrams Inc., pages 173-205.