Conductor II

Bryan Hunt

Bryan Hunt’s lyrical sculptures appear as though they are drawings in bronze, which combine the gestural idiom of Abstract Expressionism with linear forms that describe and invigorate negative space. His compelling use of negative and positive space provides unconventional views of natural phenomena and visible references to graphic symbols and human forms. Beyond its existence as an abstract composition, Conductor II alludes to both musical notation and the presence of the figurative, if not illusive, conductor. Conductor II was commissioned to celebrate the opening of the CSULB Music Department complex in 1983.

Born in Indiana and raised in Florida, Hunt first studied architecture at the University of South Florida. He later moved to California, where he enrolled at the Otis Art Institute (today the Otis College of Art and Design). In the 1970s, his work was based on architectural models recreating landmarks such as the Empire State Building, Hoover Dam, and Great Wall of China. By 1976, his work changed considerably. Inspired by Willem de Kooning’s expressionistic sculptures, Hunt began to translate elements from the landscape—lakes, quarries, and waterfalls—into richly carved, abstract forms.