Sculptor Doug Schatz to talk on intersection of art, science

Skidmore alumnus Doug Schatz, an associate professor of art at the SUNY College at Potsdam, will discuss his work in a talk scheduled at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 11. His lecture is the third of four lectures in conjunction with the upcoming Schick Art Gallery exhibition titled A Resolution of the Arts and Sciences. Free and open to the public, the talk will begin at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 11, in Davis Auditorium of Palamountain Hall.

Schatz makes sculptural forms that use a combination of found objects, fabricated steel, and bronze. He uses images of containment, suppression, and compression of objects to illustrate the ideas of societal dynamics and self-awareness. The images he portrays are everyday objects that have been denied their original function and must wait forever in a state of what he calls "poised inaction."

At Skidmore, Schatz completed a double major in geology and art. He is interested in fire as a shaping force, both in hard science and in social science, and he makes, and burns, sculptures as a part of his body of work. He will oversee a sculpture burn on the upper South Park lawn (the green located between Case Center and the Saisselin Art Building) immediately following the lecture.

Schatz explains that fire is a key element of his work and that fire "has always had a powerful effect on our cultures and ideas." 

He continued, "In my fire works, or performance sculptures, experimentation plays a large role in both the construction of the artwork and in the outcome of the piece. Like many science experiments, I have a good hypothesis as to what will happen over the course of the artwork's existence, but I do not know the effects in totality until afterwards. My sculptures bring people together to participate in the experience of producing a performance artwork, but the dynamics of this experiment change with each new performance.

Concluded Schatz, "The fire itself is an attraction because it is so elemental humans. Often, fire is the means to an end (heating) or the byproduct of other processes (energy production), rather than a product in itself. My fire works touch on the danger, excitement, and potential energy that fire represents."

A Nashville native, Schatz earned an M.S. degree in geology from Vanderbilt University and an M.F.A. degree in sculpture from the University of Kentucky. He has exhibited internationally and is active in both state and national snow-carving competitions. In addition, he is on the board of the International Sculpture Center, publisher of Sculpture magazine.

A student curatorial team is working with the Schick to present the exhibition, which runs from Oct. 28 to Dec. 4, and the series of talks preceding the show, which feature work by Skidmore students, faculty, and alumni that explore connections among art, science, and technology. The final lecture in the series will be at 5 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 18, when Skidmore Art Professor John Galt speaks about iron casting and melting iron in Skidmore's cupola furnace.

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