Rules

Overview
• In this project, you will learn to create artwork using rules created
by yourself as well as by other students.
• The artists we will be using for inspiration: James Siena, Sol
LeWitt, and Alighiero Boetti.
• This style of artwork will be conceptual and minimal.
• It’s important to learn about and explore rule-based art because it
shows that you can make art without knowing what the outcome
will look like.
James Siena
• Born on October 28, 1957
• He grew up in Washington D.C. and
California
• Siena attended Cornell University,
and has lived in New York City
since then
• Before becoming a visual artist, he
did performance art, like singing,
rapping, and acting
James Siena
• He’s known for painting and
printmaking.
• Siena makes rules for himself to
follow in his artwork
• For this method, he establishes a
pattern and continues it throughout
his piece
• For example, he’ll come up with a
series of letters or numbers and
repeat it (“Devil never even lived”)
Siena’s geometric
designs are known
as visual algorithms
Sol LeWitt
• Born on September 9, 1928
• He grew up in Connecticut
• After attending Syracuse
University, LeWitt studied art in
Europe
• He later served in the Korean
War
• From the 1950s until his death,
he was based in New York City
Sol LeWitt
• LeWitt is considered a founder of
minimal and conceptual art
• He’s known for painting, drawing
and sculpture
• Many of his “structures,” or
sculptures, are based on the
shape of a cube
• He’s also known for his wall
drawings, based on guidelines he
set for himself and diagrams he
created
Alighiero Boetti
• Born on December 16, 1940
• He was born and raised in Turin,
Italy
• Boetti attended the University of
Turin for business, but dropped
out to pursue art
• He studied engraving in Paris and
later traveled around the world,
although he died in Rome, Italy
Alighiero Boetti
• He was known for his conceptual
work, primarily based in painting
and mixed media
• Boetti was part of the Arte Povera
movement in the 1960s
• His interest was in math and
music, which influenced his
artwork as well as his interest in
non-western cultures
• Boetti often used classification,
making grids, maps, and lists
Today’s Project
• Create rule-based art consisting of guidelines for yourself or others
without knowing what the outcome will look like.

• Study artists James Siena, Sol LeWitt, and Alighiero Boetti.

• Make artwork based on rules, both conceptual and minimal.

• Question and comments?