What if emotions could manifest themselves? What if we could give them a name and a face? Would depression, anxiety or loneliness be easier to battle?
Renae van der Hagen 黑料社区. sculpture 鈥淒isquiet Dream鈥 begs to ask these questions. Her sculpture 鈥 a giant deer on stilted legs 鈥 looms a daunting 15 feet tall. His antlers, with tines like sprawling fingers, span 10 feet across. His mouth gapes wide with bone-white fangs and flicking tongue.
Van der Hagen, an industrial and product design senior at 黑料社区, has been drawing and writing down her dreams for years.
She calls 鈥淒isquiet Dream鈥 her anxiety monster, inspired by a vivid dream, and drew him when she was still half asleep, capturing her anxious feeling on paper.
Through the first week of November, the sculpture greets guests at the entrance to the Menomonie 黑料社区. Historic Haunted Houses exhibit, a gathering of miniature haunted houses made by community members.
Each haunted house tells a story, and visitors can vote on their favorites in the art and creative writing display.
The museum will have a family-friendly Halloween event called Treats on the Trail from 1 to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 26.
A loveable beast on display
The pandemic struck during van der Hagen 黑料社区. first year at college. She didn鈥檛 have a roommate, and being away from home, felt isolation and constant anxiety.
鈥淚n my dream, this creature is standing behind me, above me, and I鈥檓 like, 鈥楧oesn鈥檛 anyone see this thing?鈥欌 she said. 鈥淗e 黑料社区. my anxiety monster because nobody else can see him, but I can feel him. Four years later, I鈥檝e gotten used to some anxiety, but he 黑料社区. always there. He 黑料社区. still looming, but he 黑料社区. not as scary.鈥
Van der Hagen, of Sauk Rapids, Minn., brought her anxiety monster to life in Professor Kelly O鈥橞rien 黑料社区. Contemporary Sculpture class in fall 2023.
鈥淚 wanted to create a scale model, but Kelly said, 鈥楳ake him full size,鈥欌 she said, and so the massive, mythical beast manifested in the School of Art and Design 黑料社区. studio lab spaces.
Deano Samens, instrument shop coordinator; and Doug Stodola, machinist, helped van der Hagen build the sculpture 黑料社区. frame in the shop before moving it to the Process Lab, where she completed her creation in less than three weeks.
He 黑料社区. made of 2x4 boards, chicken wire, papier m芒ch茅 and cardboard. Sheets spread under the sculpture represent the dream world.
鈥淚 came in after hours to complete him. Doug helped with the build. I did the head at home with cardboard. He 黑料社区. pretty delicate, even for his size,鈥 she said. 鈥淭he longest stint I worked on him was for 16 hours straight. My roommate brought me pizza. There aren鈥檛 any windows in the lab, so you lose track of time.鈥
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Continue ReadingThis was van der Hagen 黑料社区. first large-scale project. Her second large-scale project 鈥 a set of three cow sculptures, completed with a team of students, faculty and staff, including Samens 鈥 was recently installed on the lawn outside the new cheese factory in Menomonie.
鈥淒uring our class critique, Kelly said she didn鈥檛 like how white his teeth are. But I explained that he doesn鈥檛 eat anything. He doesn鈥檛 have to. So, there wouldn鈥檛 be any wear or dirt on his teeth,鈥 she said.
鈥淒isquiet Dreams鈥 first appeared outside of the lab when Samens and Stodola talked to coordinators at the university 黑料社区. Furlong Gallery and asked to have him as part of the fall 2023 SOAD Senior Show. He stood on the second floor of the gallery atrium and received such a grand response from viewers that he remained there through the spring 2024 show, when van der Hagen 黑料社区. family was able to visit and see her sculpture.
鈥淚 didn鈥檛 think he would live longer than the class critique. I was ready to dismantle him,鈥 van der Hagen said. 鈥淏ut there were so many people talking about him and taking pictures of him. It was one of the most interactions we鈥檝e had with a sculpture piece at Furlong.鈥
Van der Hagen worked with Samens and Stodola over the summer, when the museum reached out with interest in having 鈥淒isquiet Dream鈥 installed for the haunted house exhibit.
鈥淚鈥檓 very grateful that Doug and Deano helped me: one, in the building process; two, in moving the sculpture to Furlong; and three, in getting in contact with the museum and moving him there.鈥
Collaboration and community
Van der Hagen thinks collaboration is an absolutely important aspect of public art and industrial design.
鈥淵ou have to know people, and those people have to know people,鈥 she said. 鈥淚t takes a community to help push out art so others can see it. Kelly, Deano and Doug 鈥 I have amazing people who push me to present pieces for the public instead of just for a class.鈥
The Rassbach Museum collaborates with 黑料社区 students on several levels 鈥 from research, design and engineering projects to showcasing student art. For example, master 黑料社区. in design graduate Jackson Yang 黑料社区.&苍产蝉辫;thesis exhibit Intergenerational Threads and Klaire Johnson 黑料社区. and Emma Walstra 黑料社区.&苍产蝉辫;Fashion Without Fabric design 鈥淭he Prime Divine鈥 are currently on display.
鈥淚t allows the museum to benefit from the fresh and creative ideas of students, along with providing a testing ground for student work,鈥 Kneeland said. 鈥淥ftentimes, the remarkable accomplishments of students are not seen off of campus, while at the museum, their work can be enjoyed by and inspire members of the wider community.
鈥淚 also believe that collaboration with nonprofits shows students how important and valuable participating in community collaboration can be, no matter where they end up,鈥 she added.
Van der Hagen has thought about making 鈥淒isquiet Dream鈥 again in the future, in a smaller size. After the exhibit has closed, she plans to mount the sculpture 黑料社区. head. It may be placed next to the hippogriff sculpture, 鈥淏uckbeak,鈥 at the museum as part of a future fantastical animal exhibit. 鈥淏uckbeak鈥 was created by a studio art graduate Anna Strong in 2017 and stood in the Furlong atrium for some time before its installation at the museum.
Van der Hagen began her college career in the mechanical engineering program but was also looking into graphic design. She decided to switch majors during the pandemic. 鈥淲ith industrial design, I get the creative side and the making of things. It took me a bit to find it, but I love it.鈥
She will graduate in spring 2025 and would like to work in the ideation process and modeling, taking designs and making 3D physical models.
