Supposing an immobile object had a personality, it might be visible in the tensions and gestures inherent in the form itself, as in a human body with a stiff neck or stooped shoulders. Sculptor Douglas Rieger believes this to be true of objects, including the utilitarian ones we use everyday without much notice. Rieger sees a latent desire, or restrained expression, of personality traits in such forms as doorknobs, faucets, electrical conduits and sign posts. He explores this sublimated potential in the sculptures he creates, working curiously with the tension at play between the mechanical and the biological, both in his choice of materials—be it wood and epoxy, or leather and fiberglass—and in the forms themselves which blend industrial with biomorphic components.

There is no denying the anthropomorphic nature of the forms Rieger creates, full of human-like eroticism and a navigation of gravity from an upright stance. “My objects are abstracted figurative works. Anthropomorphic intimate wooden forms swollen and hollow with exposed flaccid plumbing and interruptions relating to the body (belts, socks, cups, rings). I enjoy bawdy humor to attract the viewer inside and around the sculptures. They are languidly aggressive and perverse, revealing their peculiar primitive nature openly.”

Rieger received an MFA in sculpture from Yale University and a BFA in sculpture from Virginia Commonwealth University.

An opening reception will take place Friday, September 2, 5-9pm during RVA First Fridays.

For more information, please use the links below:

Press

Artist Statement

Artist Biography

Artist CV

Douglas Rieger's Website