Spotlight on Artist Tony Liu

Welcome to The Elective’s digital art museum, dedicated to the incredible work of AP Arts students. Each week we highlight a work or series created in one of the AP Arts concentrations—AP 2-D Art and Design, 3-D Art and Design, and AP Drawing (the AP Program also offers Art History and Music Theory)—as well as a statement from the artist (and, occasionally, their teacher).

From the first cave paintings to contemporary breakthroughs in virtually reality, art, in all its forms, has been a crucial way for people to process, make sense of, comment on, and grapple with the world around them. In 2020, there is a lot to process and grapple with—and AP Art students have risen to the challenge. The work many of them submitted in their final portfolios is explicitly of the moment, from commentary on the covid-19 pandemic to the celebration of people of color to the nature of heroism in perilous times.

The work is often challenging and provocative but always insightful, inspiring, and expansive.

This week we feature a sculpture made by Tony Liu from St. George's School in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Here’s Tony’s statement on the work:

“In my series of investigations, I explored the human skeletal structure and its spatial qualities. Through experimental drawings and collages, I identified the critical architectural elements—form, function, and hierarchy—of each chosen body part. Then by using models, I manipulated and deconstructed the structures, creating spaces that challenge the preconceived perception of the human skeleton.

“To start, I was inspired by specific skeleton anatomies and created works mimicking how ribcages encompass volumes. I also played with geometry, which allowed me to deconstruct the spine into an unnatural form through repetition. This led to a chair, which continues the idea of repeating contours whose form then gives way to its function of having multiple orientations. Finally, with this piece, the deconstructed cube and landscape are designed to grant the inhabitant a stimulating experience by referencing the exposed structures and chaotic composition in previous projects.”

And here are a couple other works from Tony’s portfolio:

Student statements are lightly edited for length and clarity.